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[FM10] "You'll never win anything with kids"

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YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS

In the 95-96 season, Alan Hansen famously said "You'll never win anything with kids." But Beckham, Giggs, Scholes and the rest proved him very wrong as they went on to win the double, and as they say the rest is history.

In my FM games I almost always sign youngsters and try to build a squad of young players whenever possible. But I find it particularly rewarding when i bring a player from the youth team and he makes it into the first team and eventually becomes a star Player.

I decided i would start a game in which i would try to build the whole squad with youth players, mostly from my own youth academy but strengthened with youngsters who have been dumped by their clubs. Obviously i wouldn't last long in the top leagues with only my youth team players, but in non league football i might stand a chance as the ability of the opposition players is much lower.

I created a new team without any players or staff for this game. I called them The British Bulldogs.
BulldogsFINAL.png

The British Bulldogs are a semi-professional club based in London. They play in English Non League football in the Isthmian Premier league, which is the 7th tier of Football in England. Their reputation is 1000 which is the average of all the teams in that league . They have a decent stadium nicknamed "The Kennel" that holds 8000 fans and has seating for 2000. The club have £50k in the bank and the chairman is not exceptionally wealthy as he has invested most of his cash into a state of the art youth academy and training facilities. The estimated value of the club is high due to its facilities but the reputation and finances are in line with other teams in that level of football.

I have set myself a few rules to follow and ways to deal with certain situations.

My manager will be set as Automatic as his past experience.

I'll avoid the search tool this season and let my scouts do the hard work.

Obviously the situation may arise that a certain position is not filled by the players that graduate to the youth team, In this scenario i will find a teenager who is without a club to fill the role.

Some players will obviously not be good enough so i will be letting them go on free transfers to keep the squad size reasonable and wages manageable. I will bring in youngsters who have been dumped by their clubs to improve my squad and give them another chance to stay in football.

I have no intention of spending money on players or signing anyone above the age of 19.

I will not get rid of a player just because he gets past a certain age.

I intend to sell players if i get a good offer and keep track of them to see if any of them become successful with other clubs. I'll post updates on any such players.

If i get the sack I'm not sure if i will add myself again and continue from where i was or call it an omen and finish the thread, Depends how interesting it is i suppose.

Game version
FM2010

Database Version
10.1.0

Edits
English Regional Premier leagues added (tier 7, using big rons edit file) New club (British Bulldogs) created and inserted into Isthmian Premier league in place of a team called Cray. Custom chairman added with average stats. Plenty of patience but not much cash.

Playable Leagues
England down to tier 7 (regional premier leagues)

View only Leagues
France, Germany, Holland, Ireland, Italy, N.Ireland, Scotland, Spain and Wales. Top 2 leagues .

Database Size
Small with all players loaded from UK and Ireland Region.
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Thanks for the comments.

I just hope that it won't fall flat on it's face with me getting relegeted in the first season.

Out of interest, did you design the club badge yourself?

I did spend a little while on paintshop creating the badge. I was quite pleased with how it turned out. I'm not very good with the program yet but do like to have a go at badges from time to time and have done a few on request for some friends. Also did my manager picture this time. (Manager profile will be in the game start update.)

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH ISTHMIAN PREMIER DIVISION

BulldogsFINAL.png

GAME START

MANAGER PROFILE

My first task was to place adverts for some staff members. I decided to look for Assistant Manager, Physio and Scout to start off with and eventually chose to employ these
from the applicants. I had to pay £18k compensation for Beech, but he was by far the best candidate for the job.

SQUAD

The first set of youngsters has been brought through and promoted to the first team
Ian Foster stands out as the best of the bunch according to my staff. The team report shows that the Goalkeeping position is the weakest area of the squad and will need a higher standard player brought in. It was also suggested to strengthen the midfield. I intend to get another left sided defender in and maybe add another striker to the squad. Thats 4-5 players needed, time to send the scout out.

PRE SEASON

The friendly games went fairly well, The bulldogs won 4, drew 1 and lost 2. Winger Phil Palmer was the only injury worry, straining his knee ligaments and potentially out for quite a while .

EXPECTATIONS

The media have predicted that we will finish 10th this season and during my first meeting with the board it was agreed that our aim was for a respectable position in the league. Which equates to a top half finish. With a few additions to the squad i think this is within reach. The bookies however, have little faith in my young squad and have priced us at 40-1 for the title. In other words they think we should be more concerned about getting relegated than promoted.

I will update with end of season updates this time

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH ISTHMIAN PREMIER DIVISION

BulldogsFINAL.png

SEASON UPDATE - 2009/10

Media Prediction - 10th

Board expectations - Respectable league position

SEASON SUMMARY

  • League

The season started fairly well for the Bulldogs, solid performances saw us sitting in the top 4 for the first 5 games. As could be expected with a whole new team, the form dipped for the next 4 games, which saw us start to drop towards our expected position in league. It took until the 10th game of the season for the young Bulldogs to recover their composure. An improvement in form then saw us climb to a position just out of the play off places.

So far the youngsters were a bit hit and miss. We were good in front of our own fans but we had a habit of crumbling away from home and an inability to defend corners. With a third of the season already gone a humiliating 5-2 thumping away to Tonbridge meant it was make or break for the Bulldogs. We had to improve to stand any chance of silverware this season and avoid dropping into the mid table mediocrity that had been predicted for us.

Things were so close at the top by this point of the season, a sensational 6-1 win away to kingstonian( who were second at the time) saw the bulldogs jump from 6th to 1st. It was a bit of a false position as Horsham and Wealdstone had 3 games in hand by this point and were right on our tails. As the team gelled and the youngsters started to gain some experience, we put together a brilliant 10 game unbeaten run which saw us remain top right through to the new year.

Wealdstone and Horsham played their games in hand and as the bulldogs form inevitably dipped we dropped to 3rd by the end of January with just 12 games to go.

As the season came to the final 10 games the Bulldogs sat in second place to Wealdstone, goal difference was the only thing separating us. Horsham were 2 points further back but with a game in hand. Baring any crazy situations it was a 3 horse race for the title at this point.

March saw a surprise
call up for defender Francesco Ventura. Unsurprisingly he didn't make the 18 man match squad, but i was still pleased that one of our youngsters had made such an impression he was even considered.

With a great February and March behind us the Bulldogs once again hit top spot. There were only 5 games remaining, the last 3 of them were away from home, the bulldogs needed to dig in to see this through.

It seems the pressure was too much for the youngsters. The bulldogs only won once in the last 5 games and failed to score in the last 4. This final hurdle saw us drop to 3rd and put us into the playoffs. With form so bad at the moment and the inability to handle pressure i didn't hold out much hope of success.

In the playoff semi final the Bulldogs were drawn against Horsham who finished second. Horsham had home advantage and things looked bleak as we found ourselves a goal down and going out. Then out of nowhere a scramble on the goal line resulted in an 88th minute own goal equaliser to take the tie into extra time. Lifted by this late rescue the young Bulldogs found the goal they needed to overcome Horsham and reach the play off final.

With the Bulldogs playing infront of a bumper home crowd, the playoff final started perfectly. The Kennel was jumping when the Bulldogs took a 3rd minute lead against the inform Hastings Utd. We then had to hold off wave after wave of Hastings attacks, before a quick break saw us go 2 up in the 57th minute. Hastings, staring defeat in the face, pushed everything forward. Curran saw red in the 72nd minute as the Bulldogs tried to keep Hastings at bay. Hastings pulled a goal back through an 80th minute penalty as the bulldogs started to buckle under the constant pressure. The 10 youngsters had their backs to the wall but held out with some desperate last gasp defending. The Bulldogs win the playoff and promotion!

  • Cups

Alferton of the BSN knocked the bulldogs out in the 3rd qualifying round.The Bulldogs had already beaten higher league opposition in the form of Chelmsford in the second qualifying round. In the FA Trophy and Isthmian league cup however the bulldogs were embarrassingly knocked out by lower league opposition after some shocking performances. The FA Cup was won by Everton. The FA Trophy was won by Rushden and the Isthmian league cup was won by Ramsgate.

TRANSFERS

  • Outgoing

Central Midfield player Steve Dixon was allowed to leave on a free transfer as he was not up to the required standard. He went to play for Armature N.Irish side Ardglass.

Goal Keeper John Jones was also allowed to leave for free. He is playing semi-pro football in Wales for Barry Town.

  • Incoming

Graham Curran and Oliver Zamaradi were brought in in august to improve the midfield and striking options respectively.

September saw the arrival of Goal Keeper Curtis as this was one of the weakest positions in the squad. Hogarth was also brought in to add some much needed height and strength to the defence.

My scout finally found a suitable left back in October and Steven Page was brought in.

November saw Midfielder Hamilton brought in to allow the impressive Danby to move to the wing. Sean Connolly was also brought in to improve the striking options.

The final 2 signings came in January. Chris Kerr for the right midfield slot and Keeper Ross Gibson was too good to miss out on if my scout was correct.

Thats nine players given another chance to build a career in football.

STATISTICS

  • Top scorer

Ian Foster 12

  • Most Assists

Ian Foster 11

  • Most Man OF Match

Harry Hogarth 7

  • Highest Average Rating

Harry Hogarth 7.32 from 37 apps

FORMER PLAYERS

N/A

PLANS FOR NEXT SEASON

Trim squad after next influx of youth players has been evaluated by my staff.

Strengthen weakest positions if good youngsters become available.

Consolidate in new league

BRITISH BULLDOGS SUMMARY

Season	Team		     League                   Position     Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

09-10	BULLDOGS   Isthmian Premier Division	        3RD      Promoted > playoffs

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Maybe we can see some screenshots of some of the star youngsters that come through? Really good thread, good luck with next season :)

I'll add some screenies in my pre season update. :thup:

Thanks for commenting.

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH BLUE SQUARE SOUTH

BulldogsFINAL.png

2010/11 PRE SEASON

NEWS

The club have announced a link up with Gillingham. The friendly each pre season should help make some money for the club, but i don't intend to make use of the player loaning scheme.

We decided to enter a youth and reserve team this season. It will give some of the players, who are not yet good enough, a chance to impress me and get some games under their belts.

I have been made a full time manager and awarded with a new 3 year contract worth £600 per week.

I've been on the lookout for someone to help Chris Beech with the coaching and training side of things. I placed an advert and
was the best candidate for the job.

SQUAD

Another set of youngsters has been promoted from the youth academy. I've ran the rule over my squad and put some into the reserves. Here is the list of players who are fighting it out to be in my initial first team
and
look to be the pick of the new youngsters this season. I think
and
are the best players in the squad. I don't intend to add many more players to the squad this season, unless someone special turns up in my scout reports.

PRE SEASON

The friendly games went very well, The bulldogs won 5, drew 2 and lost 1. The loss was against Aston Villa, there was a super turnout of over 6000 to bring some money in. Thankfully there were No major injuries in pre season.

EXPECTATIONS

The media have predicted that we will finish 20th this season. The board just want us to try to avoid relegation this season. Which speaks for itself. I think we will be good enough to stay up, i hope we will be safe in mid table and avoid a relegation fight altogether. The bookies however,surprised us by pricing us at 6-1 as the 4th favorites for promotion.

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH BLUE SQUARE SOUTH.

BulldogsFINAL.png

SEASON UPDATE - 2010/11

Media Prediction - 20th

Board expectations - Fight bravely against relegation

SEASON SUMMARY

  • League

You never know what to expect in a new league and this season looked to be no different. The Bulldogs had a patchy start with an impressive 3 match winning streak, followed by an equally unimpressive 3 match losing streak. Moral was dropping amoungst the young squad and to make matters worse we had some bad news on the injury front. Young defender Rob Reid suffered a dislocated shoulder and will now miss 2-3 months while he receives specialist treatment.

We soon settled though and put together a 9 game unbeaten run which included a club record 6 wins on the trot. This superb unbeaten run ran from mid September to early December and the bulldogs had reached the heights of second place in the league table. The run was ended when we lost to second place Merthyr and resulted in a drop to 6th in the league for the youngsters.

continued to make it into the Italy u21 squad and eventually broke into the starting line up. He made 2 starts playing at right full back. After 2 youngsters from Man Utd were brought into the U21 side, Ventura was moved to the u19 team.
who also has Italian 2nd nationality has been called up to join him in the u19 squad, where he went straight into the team.

The disappointment of ending our unbeaten run didn't last long as we beat top team Bath in their own back yard in the very next game. With the season nearing the half way point it was still a tight league with 6 points separating the top 10.

A mid season dip in form saw a terrible 4 game losing streak which threatened to undo all the hard work we had put in so far. Worryingly for the Bulldogs we had only scored one goal in these 4 games. Worse still was the loss of center back Leon Pierce for 4 weeks due to a pulled hamstring.

We managed to stop the rot with a 1-1 draw against Wealdstone, our rivals and the eventual champions form the Isthmian premier league last season. The start of the new year saw the Bulldogs sitting in 8th. 12 points behind the leaders Worcester.

I lost an important member of my staff as Assistant manager Chris Beech was poached by League 1 side Scunthorpe to be their new Assistant Manger. We received £14k compensation. I wish him luck in his step up to league football. My task now is to look for a replacement and the club are only allowing me half the wage i was paying Beech.

The Bulldogs finally got a win in the league at the 7th time of asking, a convincing 3-0 win at home to Forest Green. We had failed to win in the league between 18th of December and 19th of January.

Its been a bit of an up and down season so far but Once the bulldogs got going again we were firing on all cylinders. After the Wealdstone draw we were on a 10 game unbeaten run which included another incredible run of 6 wins in a row, which put us back in contention with the top teams. We were now 3rd in the league with just 10 games to go. Game on!

Our unbeaten run had extended to 13 as the season drew toward the climax. Defeat away to a well organised Bromly side brought the run to an end. But a solid 4-2 win in the next game against relegation favorites Maidenhead, limited the damage and quashed any chance of falling into another losing streak. Merthyr were 5 points clear with just 8 games to go and it would have to be a big blunder from them to miss out on the title now. The Bulldogs were sitting in second, but all the playoff places were up for grabs with only 4 points separating the teams contesting them.

After 10 weeks and 16 applicants, i eventually found an assistant manager who didn't want twice as much money as i had available for wages.
came in on a £325 per week part time contract. All the other applicants wanted more for a part time Assistants contract than i am on for my full time Managers contract. I can avoid those awful press conferences again now!

Just 5 games before the end of the season the Bulldogs were up against the leaders Merthyr. We started well but after a good spell from Merthyr we found ourselves A goal down at half time. We knew we had to get something from this game, so we went for an attacking formation in the second half. A fine second half comeback saw us pull level and get an important draw to stop them from pulling away. 4 games to go and we are second place just 3 points behind Merthyr.

Merthyr did blunder in a big way. While the Bulldogs went about their business of gaining as many points as they could. Merthyr were stumbling and could not buy a win. With just 2 games remaining the bulldogs had taken the lead and were now 3 points ahead. It was a position the youngsters had no intention of relinquishing and after another Bulldogs win and Merthyr loss, The Bulldogs were crowned Champions with a game to spare. It was a surprise but well deserved title. The Bulldogs could boast being the top scoring team in the league and the fine form of just 2 defeats in 20 games and only 3 losses since the turn of the year. One of those losses was the last game of the season. Which was a shame because despite normal crowds being nearly 1200, over 3800 fans turned out to see the new champions lift the league trophy.

To top things off i got the manager of the season award.

  • Cups

We negotiated our way through 3 F.A. Cup qualifying rounds with wins against Kingstonian, Biggleswade Town and Braintree without conceding a goal.

The F.A. Cup first round saw a huge match for the Bulldogs against high flying League 1 side Brighton. Unfortunately our inspirational captain Hogarth picked up a groin strain just before the game which saw him miss 4 weeks of action. Brighton were just too strong for the Bulldogs but it was a good effort as we only lost 1-0 in front of a home crowd of over 2500. Man City were the eventual winners.

The F.A. Trophy took much more work to progress through the early rounds. Truro from the level below were beaten after taking us to a replay.

The next round put us up against Blue Square Premier side Crawley town. After holding them to a draw at the kennel the Bulldogs managed to outplay them in the replay and win 1-0 to go through to the next round.

Despite the poor form mid season form we were still doing well in the cup. A battling performance at home against Workington of the Blue Square North saw us draw to take the tie into a replay for the 3rd round on the trot. Once again the Bulldogs had what it took to beat their opponents away from home.

A fine performance at home against fellow Blue Square South team Hampton and Richmond resulted in a comfortable 2-0 win which saw the bulldogs Progress into the semi final, where we met Cambridge Utd.

The Blue Square Premier side were too strong for the young Bulldogs in the away leg. Despite a valiant effort, Cambridge eventually won the game 3-1 after having the lions share of the chances in the game.

The home leg was dominated by the Bulldogs, with Cambridge content to sit on their 3-1 lead. We went forward on every occasion and really put them to the sword. Foster managed to score and bring the scores back to 3-2 but Cambridge dug in and kept the Bulldogs at bay as we looked for that elusive goal. Cambridge Utd went on to win the Competition.

The Good runs in this years cup competitions has seen the bulldogs rake in over £54k in prize money and the Brighton Fa cup game alone was worth £35k in gate money.

.

TRANSFERS

  • Outgoing

The first move was to release Midfielder Mpendulo Magagula and Keeper Steve Etherington who were not good enough and out of contract. Both remained unsigned throughout the season.

Goal keeper Richard Curtis was surplus to requirements and was sold to Welsh Premier Division club Welshpool for £1k

Midfielder Dean Hamilton fell down the pecking order this season and was allowed to leave. Windsor and Eton signed him, 30% of any future fee will go to the bulldogs.

Winger Micheal Flick didn't make the grade and signed a deal to join welsh lower league side Cwmbran Town for free at the end of his current deal.

  • Incoming

There were no extra signings made.

STATISTICS

  • Top scorer

20

  • Most Assists

14

  • Most Man OF Match

7

  • Highest Average Rating

7.27 from 40 apps.

Squad Statistics

FORMER PLAYERS

N/A

PLANS FOR NEXT SEASON

Once again i need to evaluate the new set of youngsters.

As always i will look out for any good youngsters to become available on free transfers.

Try to stay in the Blue Square Premier Division

British Bulldogs Summary

Season	Team		 League                   Position     Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

09-10    BULLDOGS   Isthmian Premier Division  3RD    Promoted > playoffs
10-11    BULLDOGS   Blue Square South  1ST   Promoted > champions. F.A. Trophy Semi Finalists.

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH BLUE SQUARE SOUTH

BulldogsFINAL.png

2011/12 PRE SEASON

NEWS

I was linked with the vacant managers position at League 2 side Bury, but i told the press i was not interested. Despite this they still offered me the job. This experiment with the bulldogs is a long term project so i turned them down.

The Bulldogs are expecting some decent crowds this season as the club have sold over 2000 season tickets this year.

The Contracts of both of my scouts was up at the end of the season so I decided to let them go and attempt to find a better one. The best applicant was
who was signed to join the backroom team.

was called up to Republic of Ireland u21 squad and is being watched by Scottish first division side Morton.

SQUAD

Another set of youngsters has been promoted from the youth Academy. There don't seem to be too many that are good enough to break into the first team. My staff tell me only
and
have the potential to be as good as my
players. I let a few fringe players leave this summer, they will be listed in the end of season update. I only have one Goalkeeper in the squad so i will be sending my scout out to find another one as his first priority.

PRE SEASON

This seasons friendlies resulted in 4 wins, 2 draws and a loss. There were no injuries and we didn't manage to get any big teams to come.

EXPECTATIONS

The media have predicted that we will finish 21st this season. The board just want us to try to avoid relegation this season. I think we will be good enough to stay up. The bookies have priced us at 20-1 with little chance of gaining promotion.

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Wow two very good seasons! - I think a consolidation season is on the cards. Mid table would be very good but I bet you would take staying up right now. :)

Good luck.

Thanks, i would be delighted with a nice safe mid table finish this season. Back to back promotions can sometimes mean you progress quicker than you can strengthen your team and you bounce straight back down.

Some good progress here WH. Another promotion this season? I know this is a long term career with the Bulldogs but what if a big team come in for you...would you be tempted?

I think this league is a bigger step up than the previous promotion so i'm not expecting the same success. I think we will be good enough to stay there, but it might take a few seasons to go up again.

I have another game on the go to quench my thirst for big money transfers, so i will resist the urge to move in this one.

Glad you decided to give FM10 another Fukien chance ;)

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH BLUE SQUARE PREMIER DIVISION

BulldogsFINAL.png

SEASON UPDATE - 2011/12

Media prediction - 21st

Board expectations - Fight Bravely against relegation

SEASON SUMMARY

  • League

Although somewhat hit and miss, our starting form far exceeded our expectations. It was a case of win one, lose one for the first few games and it wasn't until the 10th game of the season until we got our first draw of the season. We were sitting proudly in 3rd place by this point having proved we could compete with teams in the higher league.

In mid October we lost midfielder Kerr for 3 weeks with a twisted knee, Our form had already dipped as we were on a four game winless streak, but despite this we were still sitting in a comfortable 9th position in the league.

By the end of October, and after 3 fruitless months of searching, my scout had finally found a suitable goal keeper to compete with Gibson. Despite stiff competition for his services i managed to sign him up (see Lee burge in the Incoming Players section). Our form against these higher reputation sides continued to impress and we finished the month in 6th position after some good results.

Form continued to fluctuate and we had to fight for every point, but the Bulldogs were doing much more than was expected of them and sat in a comfortable 10th position nearing the half way point of the season.

A string of poor results just after mid season was a worry as we dropped to 13th position. We had to improve to stay clear of a relegation fight.

Just as we seemed to be digging our way out of trouble, club captain Harry Hogarth broke his arm and the specialist confirmed he would miss 7 weeks. Things got worse on the injury front. Over the next few games we lost other key players including Kinsella (see incoming players) for 4 weeks , Zabek for 3 weeks and Burge for 6 weeks.

Our squad players stepped in during the injury crisis and did very well to help us cope with the loss of 4 of our best players. Form was not outstanding but we were picking up enough points to guide ourselves away from the relegation fight. In fact we were in 8th with just 10 games remaining and still had a chance to reach the playoffs.

Some fairly good form kept us roughly where we were for the remainder of the season. We ended up in a comfortable 9th position in the league. This was a fine performance considering we were expected to struggle this season. I'm pleased we managed to prove we are worthy of a place in this league after 2 quick fire promotions.

  • Cups

We got through the last F.A.Cup qualifying round quite safely after beating Southern Premier League side Brackley away. The First round proper was a different story as we were drawn against High Flying League 1 Side Wallsall. The League side comfortably won this one 2-0 at the Kennel. Man City eventually won the FA.cup for the second year in a row after beating Man Utd in the final.

The Fa Trophy came at the wrong time for us. We were in the middle of our mid season slump in form and Lost 2-0 at home to fellow Blue Square Premier side Barrow. Cambridge Utd made it 2 in a row by winning this years competition.

TRANSFERS

  • Outgoing

No fewer than 11 players were allowed to leave at the start of this season when their contracts were up. They were only bit part players and all left on
.

  • Incoming

At the start of the season my scout recommended Midfielder
as a player to sign at all costs. The 19 year old Former Everton player apparently has the potential to be a star at League 2 standard.

My scout spent months looking for a goal keeper before he found one good enough to add to the squad.
is 18 and a former Coventry City player who was released last season and has been looking for a new club. I had to fight off interest from a couple of clubs In Northern Ireland to sign him.

STATISTICS

  • Top scorer

16

  • Most Assists

9

  • Most Man OF Match

8

  • Highest Average Rating

7.32 from 38 apps

Squad Statistics

FORMER PLAYERS

N/A

PLANS FOR NEXT SEASON

Evaluate the new youth players.

Get rid of the deadwood.

Strengthen the squad with some more unemployed youngsters.

Try to push on after last seasons fine performance.

British Bulldogs Summary

Season	Team		     League            Position     Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

09-10	BULLDOGS   Isthmian Premier Division	      3RD            Promoted > playoffs
10-11    BULLDOGS   Blue Square South               1ST           Promoted > champions. F.A. Trophy Semi Finalists.
11-12    BULLDOGS   Blue Square Premier             9TH

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH BLUE SQUARE PREMIER

BulldogsFINAL.png

2012/13 PRE SEASON

NEWS

I was offered, and signed a new contract for £625 per week which runs until 2015.

League 2 side Grimsby offered me their managers job but i turned them down. They also offered £625 per week.

We signed a new kit sponsorship deal this season. Unfortunately it was only worth £12k per season compared to last deal of £40k per season. But this one lasts for 5 years instead of just 1.

Championship side Watford were showing interest in one of my strikers, I didn't expect it to amount to anything as he was only a bit part player for my squad so i couldn't see how he was going to get a game in the Championship. But to my surprise they offered £85k so i decided to let
leave. He is the first of my young team to get a move to a big club so it'll be interesting to see how it turns out for him.

SQUAD

Another set of youngsters has been promoted from the youth Academy. Unfortunately my staff tell me only
looks good enough to make it into the first team squad.

I decided i needed to bring a couple of players in to strengthen the squad. I have signed 4 unemployed young players already and I'll update on how those go in the season update.

Here is a list of players fighting it out to be involved in my
.

PRE SEASON

This seasons friendlies resulted in 4 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses. There were no Injuries to report. Manchester Utd and Newcastle reserves came for friendly games to help boost the bank balance. We had crowds of 7000 and 5000 respectively. We even managed to get a draw against Newcastle reserves after a thrilling late comeback.

EXPECTATIONS

The media have predicted that we will finish 18th this season. The board want us to achieve a safe mid table position this season. I think we will be good enough to do that as we managed it last season. I'll be looking for a push toward the play off positions this season .

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Cracking career update WH, I am rapidly becoming a Bulldog fan myself!

Thanks mate, glad your enjoying it. The Bulldogs will be all i have left to support soon as my team in real life (King's Lynn) will be closed down on wednesday. :(

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH BLUE SQUARE PREMIER DIVISION

BulldogsFINAL.png

SEASON UPDATE - 2012/13

Media Prediction - 18th

Board expectations- Safe mid table position

SEASON SUMMARY

  • League

The season worryingly started off with 2 losses which i put down to the new players getting used to our counter attacking style of play. We soon sorted ourselves out and put together an impressive run of form which included 7 wins from the next 9 games. With a quarter of the season gone We were sitting in an impressive 3rd position.

Thankfully our medical room was not in use as often so far this season, the only Injury worth a mention was the loss of Rob Reid for 4 weeks with a twisted ankle.

We maintained strong form as the season started to settle down. We proved to be a difficult team to beat as we reached the half way point in the season having only lost 4 games. We were in a strong 3rd place only 4 points behind Leaders Brentford.

I seemed to be making a name for myself as a manager as i was Linked to 3 more league 2 jobs with Tranmere, Southend and Bury all interested according to media reports. I released press statements to deny my interest in taking over these teams.

We were proving to be one of the better teams in the league this season as we went on a fine run of form through the middle of the season. We were unbeaten in the last 12 matches winning 8 of those games.

Relegation struggler's Barrow tried to bring that run to an end with some bully boy tactics, A Late tackle resulted in fractured ribs for Hetherington, who was then ruled out for up to 2 months. Kinsella was also caught late and will miss 3 weeks with a twisted knee. To add insult to injury, (pardon the pun) Left winger Zabek then strained his knee ligaments and will miss 2 months. We managed to beat Barrow and were 2nd place in the league on the same points as leaders Brentford. Mansfield were a couple of points behind but still had 2 games in hand.

After the Barrow game our form did drop, Our unbeaten run ended in the next game and we went on a run of 4 games without a win. We were really missing our injured players, but still refusing to roll over, coming from behind more than once to secure a point in the next 2 games. With 3 quarters of the season gone we sat in 3rd position and looked odds on to secure a play off place.

My scouts assessment of Young midfielder Raines (see incoming players) ability level and huge potential seem to be spot on as he has been called up to the England U19 squad having only just turned 17. Just after this good news we lost Striker Zamaradi for 3 months with a Torn Hamstring, thats the end of his season.

Our end of season form was somewhat worse than we had produced so far. An inability to finish teams off, coupled with a loss of concentration to allow opponents to score late goals, caused us to drop far too many points. Brentford and Mansfield were both very strong teams so i don't think we could have won the league but we only kept hold of our play off place by the skin of our teeth, finishing in 5th.

The play off semi final against Mansfield continued in the same vein. We were a goal up and conceded 2 second half goals in the first leg. Then were unable to score in the the second leg.

Overall a good season and a nice improvement on last season. Just a shame that our end of season form was a let down. We threw too many points and only won 4 games in the last 18

  • Cups

We comfortably beat York city to progress to the F.A Cup first round. Bradford City from the Coca Cola Championship were our opponents. We gave them a good scare in their own back yard but they eventually out muscled us to win 3-2. Man Utd (Last years beaten finalists) lifted the cup this year.

In the F.A Trophy we beat lower league sides Burnham and Altricham to progress to the 4th round. Rushden were too strong for us and beat us 3-1. Rushden went on to win the Trophy.

TRANSFERS

  • Outgoing

Danny Ryder went to Watford for 85k as mentioned in the pre season report. Francesco Ventura was allowed to go to Dartford, we will get 30% of any future transfer fee. 3 other youth players were free

  • Incoming

19 Year old Striker
spent 3 years in Blackburn's youth team before he was released. He was brought in to replace Danny Ryder.

, a 19 year old former Reading youngster, came in to strengthen the back line.

19 Year old Midfielder
made 6 Scottish Premier Division starts for Rangers before he was released.

My scout found 16 Year old midfielder
and he joined to make The Bulldogs his first club. Reports say he is already one of the best players in the squad and has potential to be a star in the English Championship. Defiantly one to watch.

STATISTICS

  • Top scorer

20

  • Most Assists

11

  • Most Man OF Match

10

  • Highest Average Rating

7.30

Squad Statistics

FORMER PLAYERS

was put straight into Walford's reserve side and placed on the loan list. They obviously see him as one for the future.

British Bulldogs Summary

Season    Team             League                        Position                  Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
09-10    BULLDOGS   Isthmian Premier Division                3rd                   Play off winners > Promoted
10-11    BULLDOGS   Blue Square South                        1st                    Champions Promoted
11-12    BULLDOGS   Blue Square Premier Division             9th
12-13    BULLDOGS   Blue Square Premier Division             5th                    Lost in Play Off Semi Finals

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Very interesting concept, and great work.

Might do something similar, but, with a normal team from level 10, e.g. Give them good academy/Training facilities but not sign any players over a certain age. It'd make for an enjoyable save.

Interesting.

I'm currently doing The FM 'Give Youth A Chance' thread in CSE which is fantastic. No signings allowed at all and you start in Level 10 and hope to go upwards :thup:

Loving this btw, will continue to read :)

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Thanks for the comments guys.

I'm finding this quite fun to play and it adds a real chalenge to the game.

I think we have found our level as a good non league side. It looks like it will be hard work to get into the football league, but thats the next challenge. Would be great to turn professional as i think the full time training would help to develop the youngsters faster.

@JamesWibbs You should be able to find some editor tips here to help you out. (i don't want to turn this into an editor help page.)

I hope to have my pre season finished today so will post it up later or tomorrow.

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH BLUE SQUARE PREMIER

BulldogsFINAL.png

2012/13 PRE SEASON

NEWS

There was still more media speculation about Jobs as I'm linked with a move to Hereford and Crewe.

The Bank balance hit the £1m mark this summer thanks to a combination of good crowds and low wages.

There is lots of interest in Midfielder
including Premier league side Peterborough' and Scottish premier side Falkirk.

SQUAD

Another set of youngsters has been promoted from the youth Academy. 3 players,
,
and
look like they could eventually have the potential to make it into the first team according to my staff.

I decided not to bring any other players in during the summer as i didn't want to unsettle the squad. But i have got my eye on another striker who is refusing to sign another contract with his current team. I have some frustrations over the form of
who i signed last summer. He will be given another chance this season but if he doesn't take this chance i will be letting him go.

Here is a list of players fighting it out to be involved in my
.

PRE SEASON

Pre season didn't go so well with 3 wins and 4 losses. No big teams came for a friendly this time. Then we had a huge blow as probably our best player
strained his knee ligaments and will be out for 2 months.

EXPECTATIONS

The media have predicted that we will finish 9th this season. The board want us to achieve a respectable league position this season. I'll be looking for a push toward the play off positions again this season .

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH BLUE SQUARE PREMIER DIVISION

BulldogsFINAL.png

SEASON UPDATE - 2013/14

Media Prediction - 9th

Board expectations- Respectable league position

SEASON SUMMARY

  • League

We started off well and were in good goal scoring form. We scored 4 goals on 3 occasions during the first quarter of the season and were in 3rd position at this point.

We carried on in the same vein, then as the season neared the halfway mark, club captain Harry Hogarth suffered a sprained ankle after a nasty fall and will be missing for 7 weeks. Then while still reeling from the first injury news of the season, Striker Ian Foster fractured his cheek bone in an accidental collision and was ruled out for a month while he received specialist treatment.

The halfway point of the season arrived and we were still going well. Although playing well, we are too inconsistent so far to look like contenders for the league as Crawley and Mansfield are not dropping many points. We are still in the playoff positions, holding an impressive 4th position in the table.

League 1 side port Vale offered me their managers job with a £675 per week contract. I show my loyalty to the team and supporters by turning it down. That offer was only an extra £50 per week for a big League 1 club like Port Vale. maybe my financial deal here at the Bulldogs is better than i gave it credit for. I'm not really sure what the going rate for a full time non league manager is.

5 wins from 7 games in an unbeaten December saw me named manager of the month.

With 3 quarters of the season now gone we were still battling it out at the top. We sat in 5th place but were only 3 points off top spot and had a game in hand. Worryingly we had not scored a goal in the last 3 games and i was scared that we were going to go on an awful barren run like we did in the closing stages of last season.

Luckily we kept our heads this season and our end of season form was quite good. We were in second place and with just 3 games to go we secured a play off place. All was still to play for with just 4 points separating the top 3. Wrexham were top and Crawley just behind us in 3rd. Early challengers Mansfield had fallen apart and recorded an incredible 12 losses in the last 15 games.

The penultimate game of the season was away to league leaders Wrexham. We were 2nd, just 2 points behind. If Wrexham won they were the league champions. If we won it put us into the driving seat for the the final game of the season. Our away form had been our only weakness of late and Wrexham were on a 7 game unbeaten run at home. So it was going to be a tough one to win.

It was end to end stuff and Wrexham were on top in the first half. I was pleased to go in 0-0. I gave the lads a talking to and let them know how important it was. We went out second half and played a blinder. 2-0 was the final score. We move to the top and dreamed of a place in the Football league while Wrexham continued to grumble about being denied a stone wall penalty.

The last game of the season was at home to already relegated AFC Wimbledon. This was a chance to turn on the style and see us crowned champions in front of our home fans. just short of 4000 had turned up to watch.

The occasion got to my young squad and despite creating many chances we were unable to score. The game ended 0-0 and we waited nervously for the Wrexham result to come in. The score flashed up on the scoreboard and Wrexham had lost 2-0. The Bulldogs are the champions!

I won my second manager of the month award for our fine April form.

Although we only took the lead at the end, i think we were worthy of the winners trophy. We had not dropped out of the play off positions since the 3rd game of the season and finished as the top scores and the least conceded.

I won the
for this season too.

  • Cups

F.A. Cup saw us win 4-3 in a scintillating game against Chester to reach the first round. We were drawn away to L1 high fliers Swindon. Against all odds we scored 2 goals in the last 6 minutes to pull off a shock win. Then we were brought back down to earth when L2 relegation candidates Lincoln beat us 1-0 at the Kennel. Arsenal won this years competition.

In the F.A Trophy we beat Macclesfield and then Bromly before Dagenham and Redbridge knocked us out after a replay in the 4th round . Grays were the eventual winners.

TRANSFERS

With my scout struggling to find any unemployed players that are good enough to add to the first team i decided to bring in
to help him out. Cole will be looking after England, Wales and Scotland while
concentrates on Ireland and N.Ireland.

  • Outgoing

Curran was the highest profile one but he was no longer good enough for our first team.

  • Incoming

19 year old
was brought in to strengthen the striking options and replace Hitchcock who failed to impress. He has a good scoring record with 22 league goals from 50 games. Although this was at Welsh Armature level for Brickfield Rangers. He had left the club after refusing to sign any of the numerous contracts offered to him.

STATISTICS

  • Top scorer

24

  • Most Assists

23

  • Most Man OF Man

6

  • Highest Average Rating

7.22 from 40 apps.

Hetherington also won the Blue Sqare Premier Player of the season award.

Squad Statistics

FORMER PLAYERS

was moved into Walford's first team squad toward the end of the season but still has not played for them.

British Bulldogs Summary

Season    Team             League                     Position                 Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

09-10    BULLDOGS   Isthmian Premier Division              3rd              Play off winners > Promoted
10-11    BULLDOGS   Blue Square South                      1st                Champions > Promoted
11-12    BULLDOGS   Blue Square Premier Division           9th
12-13    BULLDOGS   Blue Square Premier Division           5th             Lost in Play Off Semi Finals
13-14    BULLDOGS   Blue Square Premier Division           1st          Champions > Promoted into football league.

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Thanks LCFC,

It's a big jump but if we can stay there for a few seasons we might be able to strengthen and push on. But i'm just glad we will now go full time so i can do more training to develope the players.

I'm putting together a 5 year review of most of the competitions in football during my game time. Should be up in a day or so.

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH COCA COLA LEAGUE 2

BulldogsFINAL.png

2014/15 PRE SEASON

NEWS

We received a total of £90K due to Birmingham , Middlesborough and West Ham Gaining promotion and not needing their parachute payments. More money came our way in the form of £265k for TV rights.

The club decide to go full time. I now have to negotiate contracts for my young players to turn professional.

I was offered a new 4 year deal (until 2018) for £675 per week which i signed.

I advertised for a new coach to help with training now we are full-time. 2 of the applicants looked very good so i signed them both. They were
and

We sold nearly 4500 season tickets for the coming season.

SQUAD

Another set of youngsters has been promoted from the youth team. 16 Year old
looks like he is probably the best player ever to come out of the youth system. My staff tell me he is already better than our current first team keeper and has the potential to be far superior.

I will add to the squad if my scouts can find some suitable players. Turning pro will give me a good chance to sort through the squad to decide who gets a new contract and who is no longer needed.

PRE SEASON

Pre season was fairly good. We won 4, Drew 3 and lost 2 of the friendly matches. Sunderland came for a friendly to interest the fans, 7800 turned up to watch. On the down side, Chest and thigh injuries to Kerr and Rivers will see them both miss the first 3 weeks of the season.

EXPECTATIONS

The media have predicted that we will finish 24th this season. The board just want us to try to avoid relegation this season. Thats my 1 aim this season, to stay up. I hope we will be good enough to stay up as relegation could mean a mass exodus of players. This would have a devastating effect on the club. With our transfer policy it would probably take years to rebuild.

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Thanks Paggioram, I don't think we have any Youngsters good enough to be future internationals just yet, but you never know we might just be able to produce a few now we are full time.

The links need to look like this [noparse] Text [/noparse] to give you this Text note: this link leads nowhere but just to show what it should look like.

Added instructions in your thread now.

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH COCA-COLA LEAGUE 2

BulldogsFINAL.png

SEASON UPDATE - 2014/15

Media Prediction - 24th

Board expectations- Attempt to avoid relegation

SEASON SUMMARY

  • League

The first quarter was quite a surprise as we were 13th place (mid table) and competing well against some big clubs. Apart from one 3-0 loss to Accrington the games had all been close. If we could finish the season here and now i would be over the moon. I really don't want to get drawn into a relegation fight.

Form continued along the same level as the early season. At the halfway point we were still going far better than expected and occupied 9th position in the league table. In this league the top 3 get automatic promotion which means 4th to 7th position contest the playoffs. If we continue with this sort of form we could have an outside chance of pinching a play off position.

Just after Xmas i was approached by Blackpool with regards to taking their managers job. They were 1st in L1 at this point and it seems that they were without a manager since the end of 2012. Their assistant manager had lead them to the top of the league, you would have thought they would give him the job. I turned the job down, Any other save and i would have taken it. The wage on offer was £875 per week.

Although we were still punching above our weight, a drop in form where we only recorded one win in 8 attempts saw us fall to 14 position in the league. But the youngsters dug in and a run of 4 wins on the trot moved us back up to 9th position by the time 3 quarters of the season had been completed. We were on the same points as the 7th position side and in with a realistic chance of making a play off place.

Our recent run of fine form resulted in me winning the Manager of the month award for February.

Just to show we are not there yet the next game was a 5-3 thrashing at the hands of Aldershot, who completely tore us apart.

Our form for the end of the season was not as good as the rest had been. We were struggling to break teams down and With my strikers going through some very barren spells i decided to give 20 year old
a chance. Weston has been with the club for 4 seasons since coming through the academy and had spent his time in the youth and reserve teams. He made an instant impact and scored 3 in 3 games to give me something to think about for next seasons striking options.

The final game of the season was at home against the eventual champions Exeter. It finished in a 2-2 draw after a very exciting game which was played out in front of a huge crowd of 7780.

We only managed to win 2 in the last 10 league games which was a bit of a shame but that was not enough to detract from the fine performance this season that saw us finish 9th position. Just outside the play off positions and only missing out by 1 point.

  • Cups

We only played one game in the F.A. Cup. We met fellow League 2 side Luton Town in the first round and were beaten 2-1 at home.

Our First ever League Cup Campaign ended abruptly. It was the first competitive game of the season. We were thrashed 4-1 by championship side Q.P.R.

In the Johnstone's Paint Trophy we lost 2-1 to Oxford in the southern section semi final. We had done well up to that point beating Brentford, MK Dons and Hereford to get that far.

.

TRANSFERS

  • Outgoing

Really Not worth a screen shot. 3 youngsters were released, none of them had made an appearance and all were deemed to be not good enough by my staff.

  • Incoming

19 year old midfielder
was brought into the first team squad. After being assessed by my staff it is thought that he is one of the best players at the club. He made 9 Scottish premier league starts for St. Johnstone before they decided to release him.

STATISTICS

  • Top scorer

12

  • Most Assists

16

  • Most Man OF Man

11

  • Highest Average Rating

7.25 from 49 apps

Squad stats

FORMER PLAYERS

played 10 times for Watford this season and scored 2 goals. Watford were relegated so maybe he will get more chances in the coming season.

PLANS FOR NEXT SEASON

My plans remain the same as last year. Just to stay in the league. I will be looking for a simular position if i can get it.

British Bulldogs Summary

Season	Team		     League                  Position            Achievements
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

08-09	BULLDOGS   Isthmian Premier Division             3rd            Play off winners > Promoted
09-10	BULLDOGS   Blue Square South                     1st            Champions Promoted
10-11	BULLDOGS   Blue Square Premier Division          9th
11-12	BULLDOGS   Blue Square Premier Division          5th          Lost in Play Off Semi Finals
12-13	BULLDOGS   Blue Square Premier Division          1st          Champions > Promoted into football league.
14-15	BULLDOGS   Coca-Cola League 2                    9th

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH COCA COLA LEAGUE 2

BulldogsFINAL.png

2015/16 PRE SEASON

NEWS

The Bulldogs attendance was the 4th highest average for league 2 last season at 5600. It shows we have the fan base to continue to progress through the leagues.

Ground maintenance costs somehow shot up last season. In 2013-14 season it cost £70k for the season. Last season it was just over £500k. I really don't understand why, it can only be because we are now professional as apposed to part time.

Striker Oliver Zamaradi was called up to the Congo National team. He is the first Bulldogs player to be called up for a full international but has not yet won his first cap.

We once again received a share of the unneeded parachute payments which totalled £90k and the TV money was £265k. That should cover most of the Ground maintenance costs for the coming season.

Over the course of last season and this pre season we have acquired 2 feeder clubs. Tooting and Mitcham and Harlow play in the Isthmian Premier League . I have been looking for suitable clubs to send some of my youngsters to gain first team experience.

SQUAD

Another set of youngsters has been promoted from the youth team.
and
look to be the pick of the bunch. Early indications are that they are not good enough to go straight into the first team.

I will add to
if I can. My scouts are having a difficult time finding unemployed players of a suitable standard to improve the squad. I Will be looking to send some youngsters out on loan this season to help with their development.

PRE SEASON

Pre season was not too bad, we won 2 Drew 4 and lost 3.

7500 Turned up for our big friendly against Everton.

Bad news was that Striker foster twisted his knee in the final friendly and will miss the first 4 weeks of the season.

EXPECTATIONS

The media have predicted that we will finish 18th this season. The bookies have priced us at 33-1 and feel we will face a long hard season with relegation a real possibility. The board want us to achieve a safe mid table position this season. I think this is a realistic target as we managed it last season.

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH COCA-COLA LEAGUE 2

BulldogsFINAL.png

SEASON UPDATE - 2015/16

Media Prediction - 18th

Board expectations - Safe mid table position

SEASON SUMMARY

  • League

Worryingly we started the season without a win in the first 5 games. We did eventually win in the 6th game at home to Charlton. We had however only lost one game at this point and averaged one goal for and one goal against per match. With the form from the end of last season taken into account it was just 1 win in 9 games.

With a quarter of the season done our form had improved and we started to pick up some wins. During our winless run we had still been defensively sound and at this point find ourselves in 8th place having only lost 1 game from the first 11 of the season.

The lads must be training hard as Striker Morgan landed heavily and missed 3 weeks with a sprained wrist. Striker Zamaradi twisted his knee and faced 2 months on the sidelines and Captain Hogarth fractured his ribs and was out for 2 months.

Just a couple of weeks later we lost Striker Connelly for 3 weeks with a thigh strain and winger Zabek had to see a specialist about his hip injury and was out for 3 months.

Despite the players lost to injuries we continued to perform well. We won 5 and drew 5 from the next 12 games and scored in every one of them. At the halfway point of the season we were in 11th place. We had a game in hand over most of the teams around us and 3 points would put us into 7th place among the play off positions.

Transfer speculation was rife in January as Midfielder Raines was a target for premier league side Ipswich Town and Championship side Peterborough, But no offers were made.

Also Our goal keeper Lee Burge was attracting interest from Scottish first division side Ross county, their manager had been spotted in the crowd on several occasions.

Winger Zabek only lasted a game and a half after recovering from his hip injury before he sprained his ankle and then missed a further 8 weeks. This season was becoming one to forget for the young winger.

As the season progressed we seemed to maintain if not improve our performance. We still lost the odd one here and there to disrupt any long unbeaten runs. We started to score more goals and rather than drawing games we were winning more often. The big clubs like Charlton and Bradford were running away and we looked unlikely to catch them unless they pressed the self destruct button. We were however climbing up the table and with only 12 games remaining we sat in 5th position with a realistic chance of a play off spot.

Nearing the end of the season Southampton approach me to become their new manager. They were bottom of the Championship and already confirmed to be relegated. They offered £1300 per week. Once again this is a job I would have jumped at if not for the interest in the long term effects of my transfer policy at the Bulldogs, so I turned them down.

The end of season form didn't drop off as we continued to perform better than expectations. 6 wins and 4 draws from the final 12 games meant that we finished in a strong 6th position and gave us a crack at promotion from the playoffs.

In the final game of the season Pell broke his foot and missed the playoffs as he faced a 6 month lay off.

We overcame Aldershot in the 2 legged play off semi final. A trip to Wembley was our reward.

The Final Was against Charlton. We led at the interval after a good first half. Charlton came back strongly and scored 2 second half goals to beat us. We played infront of 51000 fans at Wembley. I can't really complain, Charlton were the better side and were unlucky not to win the league, due to financial problems they lost 10 points and dropped from 1st to 4th in the league.

We were a difficult team to beat and in fact only lost 9 games all season. This was 4 fewer losses than the league champions Bradford. We also conceded the fewest goals of all the teams in the league. We drew 18 games so, although hard to beat we were not strong enough to beat several of these teams.

Just after the season ended, Scottish 1st Division side Kilmarnock Bid £525k for
which my chairman accepted on my behalf. I don't mind too much as I think that is a fair price at more than double his £250k estimated value. I'm pretty sure he was the player with the highest ability in my squad so he will be difficult to replace.

  • Cups

F.A Cup started with a first round win against Crewe who were flying high in L1 at the time. Then we were thumped 4-0 in the second round by L1 side Leicester. Eventual winners were Burnley who beat Championship side Norwich in the final.

The League Cup Campaign ended abruptly again as Championship side Portsmouth beat us 1-0 in the first game of the season. The eventual winners were Chelsea.

The Johnstone's Paint Trophy was much more successful. We beat Luton as well as League 1 sides Brighton, MK Dons, Gillingham and Swansea on our way to the final. Unfortunately this trip to Wembley also ended in defeat, this time a 2-1 loss to L1 side Oldham.

TRANSFERS

  • Outgoing

Several of my youngsters spent most of the season at my 2 feeder clubs. They improved the fortunes of both clubs. Tooting and Mitcham won the Isthmian premier league in their first season back in it since they were relegated in 2013. Harlow made it to the playoff finals but were unsuccessful.

  • Incoming

16 Year old midfielder
was signed as one for the future. If my scout is correct, 18 year old right back
has the potential to be better than any of the other right sided defenders in the squad, but at the moment is below their current level of ability.

STATISTICS

  • Top scorer

  • Most Assists

  • Most Man OF Man

  • Highest Average Rating

FORMER PLAYERS

played 10 times and scored 2 goals for Watford before he was sold to Scunthorpe for £28k. He has not been a huge success since leaving and has dropped back down to our level. He went on to play 9 games for Scunthorpe but didn't score. He will be back in League 1 next season as Scunthorpe finished second and were promoted.

PLANS FOR NEXT SEASON

Try to improve the squad and push for another top 7 position for another shot at the playoffs.

British Bulldogs Summary

Season    Team                 League                  Position              Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

09-10     BULLDOGS    Isthmian Premier Division          3RD             Promoted > playoffs
10-11     BULLDOGS    Blue Square South                  1ST             Promoted > Champions
11-12     BULLDOGS    Blue Square Premier Division       9TH                
12-13     BULLDOGS    Blue Square Premier Division       5TH             Lost in playoff semi final
13-14     BULLDOGS    Blue Square Premier Division       1ST             Promoted > Champions
14-15     BULLDOGS    Coca-Cola League 2                 9TH
15-16     BULLDOGS    Coca-Cola League 2                 6TH         Lost in Play-off Final & JPT Runners up

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Great second season in League 2 there WH :thup:

Anyone on the radar to replace Jason Raines? That's a fairly large fee for a League 2 club to receive. I'd see why you'd be happy with the sale.

Thanks Iacovone, I'm pleased with how the season went. We were quite solid and hard to beat which is half the battle.

I have both my scouts looking for central midfield players to replace Raines. They have found No obvious replacements yet, I think I will have to find somone with potential to be League 1 standard and wait for them to Improve over time with my squad. I think it will be difficult to get anyone of the same standard for free.

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iacovone

iacovone

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I know the feeling WH. Its tough in SA to find players willing to join and be an improvement on the first team. Though I have to admit I've assembled a fairly good squad in two years. Took your planned route of buying a lot of people with the potential to be 'leading' players in the division and stuck with them.

Being hard to beat is now my new favourite ambition in FM. I've got a solid tactic now that really gives me a chance in any game home or away. Its very pleasing. Good luck with the new season :thup:

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WH

WH

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With my transfer policy of only using my academy players or only signing teenagers who are unemployed it's getting difficult. Obviously It's a lot tougher to find players ready for league 2 football than it was at the start in the lower leagues. Players with potential is the way to go for me now.

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WH

WH

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"YOU'LL NEVER WIN ANYTHING WITH KIDS."

BRITISH BULLDOGS - ENGLISH COCA COLA LEAGUE 2

BulldogsFINAL.png

2016/17 PRE SEASON

NEWS

We once again received a share of the unneeded parachute payments which totalled £90k and the TV money was £265k. At the start of our 8th season we have built up a bank balance of £2.8m and only £615k of that was raised through player sales.

My Physio refused to sign a new contract so i replaced him with one of the Italian National teams physios.
looks to be a perfect replacement, so i offered him a 5 year deal.

We had a good level of interest in season tickets again this season. We sold 4705 tickets which raised £1.4m and our bank balance on the day of our first match stands at £3.7m

SQUAD

Another set of youngsters has been promoted from the youth team.
and
look to be the pick of the bunch but are not yet strong enough to go into the first team.

One of my main task was to try to replace Rains in the midfield, I have my eye on a French midfielder who is highly recommended by my scout.

My scouts tell me 2 of my young strikers are better than Connelly who is now 25 years old. Thats too old to be a reserve player so I'm going to let him go and give 19 year old striker
his chance in the first team. This will be his 4th season at the club since coming through the academy, he has scored 22 goals from 43 games while on loan to our feeder club Harlow.

PRE SEASON

We won 6, drew 2 and lost 1 in a pleasing pre season. There were no injuries to report in these games.

EXPECTATIONS

The media have predicted that we will finish 13th this season. The board want us to achieve a top half finish this season. I think this is a realistic target as we managed it last 2 seasons. I hope we will have enough quality in the midfield so that we don't miss Rains too much.

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