How many tactics do you need?

After months (game time) of trial and error, I stumbled across a tactic that seemed to work. 3-4-3, direct, with all three strikers as target men set to 'run on to ball' and suddenly I was scoring for fun. won 4-1, 4-2, 2-1, lost 2-1 and then won 7-0 away. this was against a mixture of clubs near the bottom and near the top. (The 4-2 was away at second place!)

Then I lost 2-1, and have lost three more on the bounce, getting hammered every game.

I know in previous incarnations, you could stop the results collapse by changing formation, but usually lasted longer than four or five matches before you collapsed.