dafuge's FM11 challenge

[MikaelS]

If you don't find the team you want after a few hours of reloading, re-holiday. I'm not entirely sure why, but this seems to affect who goes up for me. I'm guessing the reputations of the non-league teams don't actually stay exactly the same as the game progresses through the first season, so in some saves it will have gone down a bit for your desired team making it harder to get, and in others up a bit. I had this save where I kept getting Nantwich every 15th reload or so, then holidayed again and didn't see them even once for the several hours of reloading it took to get Banbury.

It does make sense and I've thought of it several times. I am actually on my 3rd holiday save. Perhaps I should give number 4 a go..

[spankie]

In a 3rd qualifying round of the FA cup against Basingstoke and my right back decides to do a Rio, only with a lot more force. He almost hammered it into the net under no pressure at all D
I conceeded a late equalizer because I made all my subs and my DM got injured.

Still I did beat them 2-0 in the replay.

[Jaffa]

I've just realised I didn't post a profile picture for my game,

I know it's a bit llate in the day but here it is anyway

I'm 8 games into the season, W3 D3 L2 and sitting 7th. To say my form is inconsistent would be accurate, appears like many others on here.

[Cerneo]

Matlock Town Season Review (12/13)

Table
Graph

Season Review: Another fun season, really enjoying the new features SI has added. Everything went well from day one it might not look it on the graph but most of the season we had quite a few games in hand due to some nice cup runs and so not so nice weather and pitch conditions. The squad impressed me, I was planning for at least one more season in the BSP because I lost a lot of players I wanted in the first window to bigger sides, but once we got underway I knew we had a good shot at for at least making the play offs.

For the cups we started off with a good showing in the FA cup until I got a bit carried away resting starters we should of advanced another round, the FA Trophy more than made up for it though as we destroyed everyone we faced.

Cups:

FA Cup
FA Trophy

Team Info:

Finances

Transfers

Squad

Team Report

My Screen

Players:

D. 'Moody' Mooney - S: Love this guy, no matter how we are doing hes always in a bad mood. He seems happy we won promotion though so maybe hes not entirely insane.

M. Rigters - S: Really active player who set up a lot of goals, however he did miss games due to little injuries along the way.

S. Thornton - MC: The anchor of the team all season, this guy was simply epic at being the 'pass before the pass', great creative force and solid defensively as well.

Videos:

Playoff Final

FA Trophy Final

At a glance:


Next Season: Improve the defense.

[Cerneo]

I am on the verge on giving up. I want to play my new FM game but all I do is reload, reload, reload

Keep it going will make it all the sweeter when you get them.

Good luck.

[oldhammad]

A quick update - as you can see, I'm doing pretty poorly, although I've managed to safely negotiate my way through to the final round of qualifying for the FA Cup - I'll play York.

[Quavis]

Chippenham Town Mid-Season Update - Blue Square Bet South - 2011/12

With the season now officially half over, Chippenham Town currently find themselves mired in 15th place. We are 10 points clear of the relegation zone, but 11 out of the final playoff spot.

It has been a season of inconsistency. Our strikers by committee seem to be doing a decent job at making sure we score at least one a game. However, the defense has been shakey all year and 1 goal hasn't been enough to even earn a point with a draw. The goalkeeper situation is still up in the air as my current keeper continues to be unable to hang onto the ball and it is costing me points.

League Table
League Positions Graph

Top Goalscorer - Started as a super sub, but earned his starting job.
Best Avg Rating - Another striker who made his way into the side when injuries hit. His only problem so far is he can't seem to play a full 90 minutes.
Best Midfielder - Just recently signed, he has made an instant impact in his play maker role. Great passing and has brought out the best in my strikers.
Best Defender - Great in the air. A big strong back to lock down the middle. If only I could clone him I think the defense would get much better. He needs to work on his anticipation and positioning though.
Worst Goalkeeper - DO NOT SIGN. Despite handling of 14, he just can't seem to hold onto the ball. Hes probably cost me 6 points by now, and injuries to my backup are the only reason hes still in my side.

FA Cup
Unlucky draw saw us miss out on any easy games and we crashed out at our first opportunity.

FA Trophy
We did record one win in this competition, but then drew rivals and BSP club Bath City. It was a hard fought game, but an own goal and a late winner were enough to send us packing.

Finances - 40k in the red already... OUCH. If this keeps up I may be forced to sell my best players this summer to try and balance the books a bit.

Goals for the remainder of the year:
With both cup runs already over, the league is the only thing left to play for. The season goal remains the same, qualify for the playoffs! I still think its possible if we can put together a decent unbeaten run. Hopefully some of the teams ahead of us will slip up in the upcoming fixture congestion and we can make up the ground.

I'm still looking to bring in 1-3 very good players to push the squad over the top. The talent pool available is still very strong and I'm just hoping they will talk to me soon. I'm mainly looking for a new star goalkeeper, a second lock down CB, and an every day very pacy striker for up front.

[Willy Wonka]

Quick January update.

After 4 losses in our first 6 games, the form's picked up dramatically and we're now in with a chance of promotion. We're churning out 1-0s and 2-1s most of the time but I'll settle for that as long as we get points on the board. I signed 25 players and they're starting to gel.

Michael O'Halloran has been my best player by a distance, 14 goals in 25odd appearances and 7 assists too. It's nice to have a source of goals because we can't defend for toffee. In midfield Sam Hewson's been pretty great, 8 goals and 5 assists to his name.

Out of both cups already, which is annoying as I'd have liked the finances to cover my overflowing wage budget (currently £1.3k over).

[Jaffa]

Probably dodgey because of his eccentricity being really high at 17 Quav

[Satio]

I'm really going to try and grab the FA Trophy this year. A big big ask. But I want that bit of silverware.

[Quavis]

Probably dodgey because of his eccentricity being really high at 17 Quav

Yeah I hadn't had much experience with that stat before. I was mainly looking for handling/one on ones/ reflexes, and he looked stellar in those categories. Now I know better!

[TugSafc]

Sitting just above the relegation zone after 6 games, hopefully results start to pick up soon as my team should be starting to fit in and gel with each other.

[Gypsum]

Just had an epic FA cup qualifying match with my BSS Chippenham against BSP side Farnborough (especially meaningful for me being an Aldershot fan!). Drew the first match 2-2, with a brand new signing Reece Caira making his professional debut in central midfield and bagging both goals. Then in the replay I went 2-0 down early, came back to 2-2, then Farnborough missed a penalty on 89 minutes. I go behind early in extra time, then we score twice to seal the win at 4-3. Stunning performance from my team, especially late on when we threatened to run away with it. They have really picked up their goalscoring with a change of tactics to turn a run of draws into wins.

I've tried to upload the highlights but it's failed twice, so i'll give it another go later.

[Yidd0!]

In pre season. Looking disastrous so far. Lost 3-2 to reserves (player of mine got sent off lol) and got torn apart by Redditch. Looks like its a fresh tactic needed here....

[jordanswinburn]

Tuesday 13th March 2011 - Former Real Madrid and Bolton Wanderers defender Iván Campo signs for FC United.

[Millsy]

I have just started a game with northwich. Never done a challenge before so i'll see how it goes. Could anyone upload a fc united game as i'd like to give that a go.

[Satio]

Check the saves game thread, Millsy. Must be one in there.

[jordanswinburn]

I have just started a game with northwich. Never done a challenge before so i'll see how it goes. Could anyone upload a fc united game as i'd like to give that a go.

Here you go

[Jaffa]

Stick with the might Trickies Millsy!! FC United it going with the crowd

[Quavis]

o.O I just got offered like 10 players from premier league squads during the january transfer window. No idea where they think I'm going to get the 500k+ they want for them though. I'm sure even if they offered them for free the players wouldn't sign for me lol. Its probably because I've started to compile my possible free transfer list for next summer.

Edit: I was tempted by the "Interact with board" button so decided to try it on one of them. Unsurprisingly my board was unwilling to provide me the 275k i asked for :P

[Jaffa]

Bloody Histon in my game are immense, unbeaten and 10 points clear at the top of the table...anybody else getting that?

[jordanswinburn]

Bloody Histon in my game are immense, unbeaten and 10 points clear at the top of the table...anybody else getting that?

11 points behind with 8 defeats on my game. Hyde are leading the league.

[Millsy]

Cheers for the reply savio and the upload jordanswinburn.

I am going to stick with them for now jaffa but i support man u and would love to make fc united an elite team.

[Jaffa]

Ok ok, no need to repeat yourself !

[TugSafc]

After a bad start and keeping the faith in the team and tactics we have now won 5 out of 5 and have climbed to 10th in the table, looking quite good now

[Quavis]

Bloody Histon in my game are immense, unbeaten and 10 points clear at the top of the table...anybody else getting that?

Are you talking season 1 in the BSP or season 2 in the BSN? In season 1 on my game histon is mid-table in the BSP (11th). If its season 2 and they were relegated season 1 on your game that might explain their domination.

[Jaffa]

2011-2012 so yes season two...they're taking names

[Jaffa]

Reeling Histon in now, deficit is down to 5 points...ROLL ON THE TRICKIES MACHINE! (thats Northwich Vics for everyone else)

[HaffieBhoy1]

Absolutely class challenge Dafuge, never tried this before but thought i'd give it a go, and i'm already scouring the web looking for a Tonbridge Angels top! Doesn't look as if anyone else has took the Tonbridge mantle, so i'll be their proud ambassador!

[pickemgenius]

Hendon Dons Preseason Report 2012/13


New Signings(9k/week budget, already at 9.6k )
DL-Bradley Garston-18-$130/week-Instant upgrade over previous left back, and cheap also.
DR/MR-Jacob Hronec-20-$425/week-upgrade at right back where I intend to use him at.
ML-Sebastien Carole-29-$550/week-c/p upgrade at ML, I expect tons of assists from him.
GK-Greg Fleming-25-$230.week-I really have no idea how I got this guy and for so cheap, cause his stats are great.
Greg Fleming
ST/ARM-Marceo Rigters-28-$750/week-Although hes an accomplished Striker, I don't see myself using him there too often. Going to set up many goals.
ST/AMC-Nikola Saric-21-$600/weekAnother 15 pace/10+finishing guy, highly aggressive, should score alot.
MC/DM-Ian Herring-28-$200/week-Really underated(1.5 stars), his attributes make for a great DM, and solid MC.

Everyone is on a two year contract except Ian Herring.


Interesting Friendly Results-
Hartlepool (L1)- 2-1 victory
Peterborough(CH)-0-1 Loss-Peterborough goalie made 4 saves. 47/53 possession.

Media Expectations:24th
My stated expectations: Mid Table finish ($9k/week+6k transfer)

What I actually expect: Ok so the difference in wage budget between mid table finish to promotion and winner(both the same) was
$250... so on the off chance I don't get promoted, I will have at least made expectations. I totally expect to get promoted this season.
I don't know why anybody would tell the board their goal is to avoid relegation in the first few move ups, because you're really only inhibiting
yourself by giving yourself less $ to work with. Usually I go mid table since that's the first jump in cash usually. *shrug*

[Jaffa]

I've played this challenge now each time spanning the last 3 releases Haffie, and before that I think it was Gundo's European challenge I used to play.... enjoyed it everytime no matter though and I've been playing the FM/CM games a LONG time.

Playing a challenge such as this just gives the game a whole new dimension, and adds that extra bit of motivation to succeed.

[Supermas2]

Hi all, have had a go at different challenges over the years but not done this one for a good while, and never got too far when I did - so think its time to change that.

Decided to give it a go as Leamington - only problem was in my haste to get started I forgot to take my manager screenshot on the first day - so Ive got it from July 11th as long as thats okay?

Attributes

Personal info

Have been playing earlier today, but this is first time Ive got internet today. Started fairly steadily and we're in 7th place after 8 games. Strangely at home we have been poor and have only just won our first home game - whereas away we have a record of P4 W3 D1 L0 !

I dont think we are going to win too many prizes for our style of football this season - I've gone for tall strong CBs (one of them is 6' 7"), decent pace out wide and the target man, quick striker combo up front. I'm hoping that, despite us not being technically too good, the physical attributes of those players can help us overachieve.

It was hard to attract any staff to the club, never mind decent ones, so I dont think I can rely on my scouts too much!

Good luck to everyone else taking part

[HaffieBhoy1]

I've played this challenge now each time spanning the last 3 releases Haffie, and before that I think it was Gundo's European challenge I used to play.... enjoyed it everytime no matter though and I've been playing the FM/CM games a LONG time.

Playing a challenge such as this just gives the game a whole new dimension, and adds that extra bit of motivation to succeed.

Totally agree Jaffa, I'm always starting a game in the lower leagues but this gives lower leagues an extra dimension, and the motivation to succeed is incredible! Seen this challenge on the forums for a few years now but never had the urge to play, but finally after going for it, I think this will be the only save I have until FM2012!

[jordanswinburn]

Just beat league leaders Hyde 4-1, which took us up to 4th with 2 games to go.

[Elnaith]

Banbury United Season Review (11/12)

Table
Graph

Season Review: A season that started off very erratic bur promising, then the team had a downer near the end, but managed to recoup themselves in the end.. Leading to:
Penalty shoot-out win in the Play-offs!
For the cups we started off with a good showing in the FA cup until second round where we lost to a L2 team, whilst deserving more. The FA Trophy saw us through to the Semis, where we lost to BSP AFC Wimbledon, hampered very much by the tiredness of my squad. Which was a theme that bothered us the whole season, even with rotation it was hard to have a fully fit team due to cup replays, and fixture congestion.

Team Info:

Finances

Transfers Strayed over Wage Budget with 500, but managed to have a profit due to cup runs mostly.

Transfers pt. 2

Players:

The Underperformers:

Botond Antal - Scouts loved him, coaches loved him, but he never impressed me. He did manage to be a good penalty stopper (though the Playoff final were both misses from the opponent.) But he is probably replaced next season.

Nathan Rooney - Really good stats, but not the rating to show for it.. Still he proved a strong part of the team, and I'm sure he will be there next season.

First Half Key Men:

François Kompany - First half of the season was amazing, with many assists and general good play. Last half was less good, but still managed to play good enough to feature player of the year shortlist.

Callum Bagshaw - First half of the season was also amazing, topscorer, and overall great player, became noticeably worse in second half, but still scored a goal in Play-off Final.

Second Half Key Men:

Nathaniel Jarvis - First half of the season was poor, with me regretting signing him for such a high wage.. But he skyrocketed the second half, and managed to become league topscorer, and player of the year.


Fraser Kerr - First half of the season was decent, nothing more. But he really motivated himself for second half, with some goals and good performances leading him to convince me he could lead the defence in absence of Albrechtsen.

Overall Performer:

Jacob Albrechtsen - Great Defender, wanted by L1, L2 and even one time a CH club.. But I hope he remains faithful.


Next season goal: New GK, new FBs, and stay up or better.

Interesting tidbit: I have won Manager of the Season award, without ever becoming Manager of the Month. Wonder how many Steam profiles have the Boss achievement but not the Top of the Class one

[jordanswinburn]

Congratulations on promotion Elnaith. I hope to do the same now that I've secured a playoff position with a game to go

[timers]

Just won the Blue Square Bet South with 2 games in hand! Broke a record for most points in a season, at 82 now.

This is my 2nd season.

Further results to come once season is fully complete.

[Jaffa]

Congratulations both Timers and Elnaith.

On a side note, Albrechtson is awesome... jammy bugger, my scouting must be rubbish, he's not in my game at the moment !

[TugSafc]

We hit form, 7 wins in the league in a row and it takes us upto 2nd in the league, loving this game

[jordanswinburn]

We did it! After beating Histon 5-2 in the second leg of the semis, we (Or should I say Samuel Ameobi) beat Boston 3-1 with Ameobi scoring a hat trick. We're going up!

[timers]

Weymouth - 2012/2013 Season Review

Finished 1st with 85 points. Promotion is shocking to everyone after finishing 12th first season.

League Table: http://screencast.com/t/6bhxRBNOTa
Squad (Sorted by rating): http://screencast.com/t/orXOWEAEsK

To note, I did go out in both the first rounds of the FA Cup and FAT so perhaps this had something to do with my league consistency (with no distractions). Though this disappointed the board, being in the BSP next season should be nice.

Updated sig to reflect final position:

[Quavis]

Hendon Dons Preseason Report 2012/13


New Signings(9k/week budget, already at 9.6k )
ST/AMC-Nikola Saric-21-$600/weekAnother 15 pace/10+finishing guy, highly aggressive, should score alot.

Nikola was another one who was awesome for me last year in the BSP/L2. His pace just causes loads of defenders trouble and hes got the finishing/composure to put them away when he gets in behind the defense. Hes currently on my shortlist, but wont talk to me yet He seems to always have fairly high contract demands, but is well worth it imo! Great signing!

Congrats on promotion Elnaith and timers!

[timers]

I also was of course Manager of the Season, and Koroma got player of the season. 21 goals/13 assist, not bad.

[Quavis]

I hate the January transfer window! All the bigger teams again start making free agent offers and my shortlist options for future signings who wont talk to me have gotten smaller. Its getting late in the year now and players should be starting to get desperate. I've offered a contract to an ex-Tottenham youth keeper to hopefully replace Mr. Butterfingers. My #1 striker prospect (the above mentioned Nikola Saric) is still availible and I'm hoping to bring him in as soon as he starts talking to me.

[jordanswinburn]

FC United of Manchester
Season 1 - 2011/12 – Blue Square North
Preseason - Media Prediction: 21st
The Journey Begins

Club Info

Swinburn returns to FC United. After my success in last year’s challenge, I decided once again to go with a place that feels like home in the FM world. The board wanted me to attempt to avoid relegation. So, in true fashion, I aimed higher. My aim was to finish in the top half.

The Season
The season was a bit of a rollercoaster ride, despite never dropping below 10th. We had big wins, but equally big losses. Eventually we pulled the act together and secured 4th place. Our cup runs weren’t so good, going out of the FA Cup in the 2nd Qualifying Round, and the FA Trophy in the 2nd round. Star players include Omar Koroma, James Poole and Greg McDermott. Honourable mentions go to Samuel Ameobi and Dean Deagle who also put in top performances.

FC United v Histon | Histon v FC United

FC United v Boston United

Blue Square North Table | Position Graph

Transfers | Squad

Confidence | Finances

FC United Awards

Fan's Player of the Year
Omar Koroma
It’s no wonder Omar is Fan’s Player of The Year. 20 goals to his name, 43 appearances, 12 assists, 7 Man of The Matches. Most of this from the right wing. He had an average rating of 7.21. Great season from him.

Top Scorer
James Poole
26 goals in 48 games. He only just claimed Top Scorer, with Omar Koroma just behind on 20, playing on the wing. Nevertheless, Poole played a very important role in our promotion. His form dipped in the later stages of the season, which led to Samuel Ameobi occasionally getting picked ahead of him. Next season will be a very important one for Poole, as he'll face stiff competition to keep his place.

The Jordan Swinburn Award (The Surprise of the Season award)
The 7-1 thrashing of Bradford PA

The Millward Player Choice Award (Manager's Player of the Year)
Greg McDermott
Greg had a great season. 46 games, 6 goals and 12 assists from a defensive midfield role. Whilst Poole and Omar Koroma had higher average ratings, without Greg, the team wouldn't have been the same. That was demonstrated when he was out injured for a few weeks. He scored a few fantastic goals and hopefully he can keep that up next season.

Goal of the Season
3rd – Samuel Ameobi v Stafford
2nd – Greg McDermott v Bradford PA
1st – Greg McDermott v Hyde

Next Season
My aim for next season is to stay up, simple as. Doing better in the cups would be nice too. Keeping our star players is a must, but it looks like we’re really going to have to strengthen to stay up. My outside aim is to get to the playoffs, but we’ll have to see how we do.

Career Overview

Season          League                League Finish     Achievements
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2011/12         Blue Square North         4th           Promoted - Playoffs

[timers]

Nice writeup Jordan. I will definitely be following your progress. Detail like that is great. Komora finished with 21/13 for me, he's great

[Quavis]

Congrats on promotion jordan! Will be great seeing FC united move up through the leagues!

For those of you that have been promoted already, are you getting lots of interest in your players from other teams? Has anyone sold anyone for good money yet or are teams much more penny-pinching that previous years?

[jordanswinburn]

Up to the usual again. 23 ins, 14 outs. I personally feel that I've made some outstanding signings here. I found that if you look at the released players in the Premier League from the year before, some of them are still available, and still as good.

I've just got Jan Sebek, Arsenio Hafhuid, Ignasi Miquel, Cedric Evina, Nick Ajose, Ryan Fredericks, Omar Elabdellaoui, Richard Bryan, Jeffrey Monakana, Nikola Saric and Fabio Borini, all using that method. Also managed to pick up Francisco Duran from Sheffield Wednesday.

I'm 2k over my budget, but I've still got cuts to make.

(Which turned out to be unnecessary when I asked my board for more wage budget)

[timers]

Can anyone tell me exactly what forces a team to move from PT status to FT? Like what actions can lead one there?

[timers]

Jordan, how are you checking those released from the Premier League quickly?

[jordanswinburn]

Jordan, how are you checking those released from the Premier League quickly?

Go to one of the clubs, say Man City, check their outs and they are all listed there. Then, when you're finished with that team, use the arrow by the logo to change to the next one and still stay on the transfer section. I check the last season's ones too.

[Quavis]

Jordan, how are you checking those released from the Premier League quickly?

For players release before june 25thth in our first season (already unattached when we start) I don't know of any easy way. I tend to go through EVERY player and check histories at the start, but thats not fast :P

For players whos contracts expire june 30th, there should be a window that comes up on the 30th thats titled "English clubs release players" or something similar, with a button that takes you to the english transfer history screen. That screen lists player name, what club they used to play for, and what club they currently play for. I guess now that I think about it, this screen is always there, and so theoretically could be used to find the players released first year. This would mean that I'm an idiot for going through manually lol. Oh well, I guess you always learn something each year!

[timers]

Go to one of the clubs, say Man City, check their outs and they are all listed there. Then, when you're finished with that team, use the arrow by the logo to change to the next one and still stay on the transfer section. I check the last season's ones too.

Wow howd you find some that want to enter negotiations. FC United must have a good rep.

[Quavis]

Wow howd you find some that want to enter negotiations. FC United must have a good rep.

Thats where the >1000 reputation helps. They are much more willing to talk to you earlier. However, even with low rep teams its a good idea to shortlist them. If they aren't offered contracts, they will slowly lower their requirements, and eventually the want to get back into football will overcome their egos and they will talk to anyone

[jordanswinburn]

Wow howd you find some that want to enter negotiations. FC United must have a good rep.

I was quite surprised with the sheer number of quality players that wanted to sign! I think the fact some of them have been released over a year helped greatly though.

[vikeologist]

There's an even easier way of finding out where players have been released from. On any player search

Views

Custom

Customise current view

Then you can choose the firlds that you want to see; in this case adding 'last club'. The big advantage is that on the search screen you can have your ass man only show the players who will be interested in your club.

If this post has been helpful; pay it forward. I want a Folkestone save!!!

[jordanswinburn]

Hayes & Yeading in my first Blue Square Premier game. Time to test the big signings out, except for Saric, who got injured 3 days before the game

The teamsheet includes 5 players who were regulars last season... something a little rare in my case.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FC United 4 - 2 Hayes & Yeading

That went pretty well, apart from their two penalties, and their goals. They got a penalty in the 5th, which they missed. They then got another in the 32nd, which Sebek saved. It didn't matter though as we went 4-1 up by HT.

Evina scored an easy goal. Koroma got a double, before getting injured. And Oguzhan Ozyakup scored this beauty.

[TheEnglishHombre]

Man, you guys fly through the seasons. Gonna be at this challenge through about FM15...

5 games in so far with Kendal Town, and I think I've figured out the secret. Get the other team down to 9 men through red cards and injuries. Even then, only scraped a 1-0 win against Worcester by banging one in from about a yard after a mess of a cross. Think Swiss goal against Spain in the WC, except maybe a little uglier.

That win put me up to 17th, 6 points from 5. Useless going forward; Got a couple of decent flair players but no good target men, so I'm trying to play a 4-4-1-1, without much luck. Seems the best system on paper for the players I have, but I think I'm making it too fancy. Few signings seemed to have locked down the back pretty well, as I've only conceded 1 goal from open play. Getting pretty sick of giving up pens, though...

EDIT: News Article called my last win a 'Vintage Display'

[Scooty_BAFC]

Starting this challenge with Nantwich, the only sub 1000 rep team I managed to get promoted in about 50 reloads.

Profile Pic

[Welsh Wizard]

Welsh Wizard - Colwyn Bay - BSN - 2011/12 - Season 1



Club Info
Facts
Facilities
Stats
Squad General
Squad Stats
Transfers Part 1
Transfers Part 2
Finances Summery
Finances Wages
Manager Overview

Loads of players in and loads out.
Finances are looking well with the cup run and the board decided to build a Youth Academy which will cost £450k and will take 3 months to finish.
Wages are really high and above what I'm allowed so can't get anyone in before selling a load before hand.
The squad is pretty big which is hard to maintain with no reserve league so I have to make matches for them.
Will be looking too offload a few.

Key Players

Chris Fagan - Just crazy stats with 38 Goals in 40 starts and 13 assists. Runs at defences or justs slides through the gaps before finishing or putting in decent crosses. Managers tried to target him and it work in making his morale go down but he still usually scored.

Nathianiel Jarvis - Very similar to Fagan just wasn't as prolific for some reason.

Larnell Cole - The ex-Man United youth player was the main link between the attack and mid. With the attack playing the same roles and staying high up the pitch, Cole had to support the attack with runs in the box as well as feeding the forwards which he did very well and cemented his place in the starting XI after being a bench player at the start.

Laurence Gaughan - Solid in defence and formed a good partnership with man to follow

Fraser Kerr - A Rock.


Predicted:- 22nd
Finsih:- 1st

Table
Previous Standings Graph

A great season finshing miles ahead of the other teams , getting top early on and maintain form and Finished unbeaten in the league. Managed to concede less than a goal a game and reached the 100 goals mark in the league. Won the League early in March and had a double figure amount of games left which I used to blend some of the recent signings due too the increase in rep.

Team Stats
Player Stats

Basicly Fagan and Colwyn Bay ran the show.



3rd Round

Results



2nd Round

Results

Other Leagues and Competitons

Man United won the Prem again after Chelsea had won it last season with Liverpool being the main challenger just behind by a point. Arsenal and Chelsea took 3rd and 4th respectively. City 5th Fullham 6th.
FA Cup was won by Chelsea beating City 5-0 in the final.
Arsenal won the League Cup vs United 2-1.
Real won the Champions League vs Marseille.

Aims for Next Season

1. Stay Up
2. Get rid of dead wood
3. Hire some decent staff
4. Sign some decent wide men

Season          League                League Finish     Achievements
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2011/12         Blue Square North         1st           Promoted - Champions.

[oldhammad]

Woop, dominated York 3-0 away to reach the FA Cup proper!

[Bohinen]

Hi all,

I have read about this challenge for many year, and finally I thought I would try this:-)

Went on vacation to June 25th as stated, but the holliday did not stop. I manually stoppet it June 30 and took over Tooting & Mitcham:-)
Does the late start disqualify me? Hehe!

3 games into the season. 2 losses (3-1 and 1-2) and one victory (1-2)

Looking forward to the rest.

-B

[pickemgenius]

HENDON DONS 1st Half Report- Season 2012/13 BSP

League Position: 2nd


Games which I choose to go into detail:

Game #1: Cambridge United

Another 1st game manager telling me I'm going to drop. OH REALLY AGAIN I SAY?!

EKONG MUST BE STOPPED also he says. Ekong might be my Jack Metcalf from last year who I signed at BSP and was using him in the EPL still. Hope so.

Former Hendon Legend Gary McCann tells me we need to respect Brian Saah.

ok enough pregame junk.

Seemingly every game I choose to comment fully on Gary "Goal" Noel hits a scorcher from 25+yards this time in the 41st minute.

In the 45th minute Nikola Saric scores a header off a fine cross by Ritgers. 2-0 lead. This team looks really really good.

Fleming looks REALLY GOOD.

Francis Zenaba in for Will Packwood in the 63rd minute.

Brian McGroary in for Sebastien Carole in the 72nd minute.

Rhema Obed in for Jacob Hronec in the 82nd minute.

Platt scores for Cambridge in the 82nd minute.

Right after I set my guys to waste some time, Nikola Saric scores again from a great Gary Noel assist to make it 3-1.


Recap:

I will now be totally shocked if this team doesn't get promoted. These guys played really smoothly together,
and the new guys have made an immediate impact.

Game #3: Stockport who have won both their games and in first with a +4 GD.

Boring 0-0 at half. Saric has 3 fouls already though

Brian McGroary on for Sebasiten Carole and Michael Ngoo on for Jason Norville in the 62nd minute.

Jason Norville scores(right before hes getting subbed for lulz) in the 62nd minute after the goalie rushed out too much.

Jordy Brouwer(another FM10 favorite of mine) scores in the 70th minute 1-1.

Will Packwood in for Nikola Saric in the 78th minute. Ritgers moves up to the striker position.

Boring 1-1 draw to bring the record up- to 1-2-0

5-4-0 after 9 games. Too many draws, but at least no losses yet.

A terrible loss to Southport(23rd) in the 10th game.

Nikola Saric is out for four weeks.

Board AGAIN can't find a parent club.

Game #12: Port Vale-currently in 8th

Almond scores off a corner for Port Vale in the 15th. 0-1

Taylor scores for Port Vale off of a cross. 0-2

A terrible performance as it ends 0-2.

FA Cup 1st round draw @Ipswich. Which I lost 3-0. Apparently we were expected to do well here? riiiight.

FA Trophy(which is a must win imo) 1st round draw against Blyth. Which was won 5-0 yay!

2nd round FA Trophy at Home against Welling. Should win this one.

Record after 23 games:

Wins: 13
Draws: 6
Losses: 4

tl;dr

[vikeologist]

Folkestone isn't coming up, so I guess it will have to be Bradford Park Avenue, screenshot.

As a Bradford City fan, maybe this is treason, but what the hell.

Programme wouldn't stop until 30 June, so that's when I took charge.

[Lanthal]

flamin' hell how's that for expectation? West Ham sacked Grant and signed a new manager and a day later i get a report saying that the new manager is under pressure and could be sacked if they have a bad result!

[Cerneo]

I am starting to hate agents....some really wild wage demands.

However assman is turning up some really amazing talent so feeling optimistic about my first season in L1.

[Yidd0!]

FC United of Manchester Pre-Season Report 2011/2012

Well, my previous post stated that I drastically needed a tactics shift. I was right, after realising that I had my creative freedom + free role to LW tactic set (from my Spurs save) I decided it would be best to remove that. This happened after my reserves beat me (sigh) and loosing 1-0 to Redditch in pre-season.

Tactics change, players arrive, fun beings.

Fagan, Montano and McDermott arrive. Fagan bags two easy goals and Montano does this to announce his signature for FC United. Then he does this against Bath.

McDermott being solid as per usual.

Pre season continues without a hitch, set all pre match to team building and all goes well.

First league game in charge - FC United of Manchester 0 - 0 Altrincham

All in all a slightly dull affair, both sides creating chances, but the real hero's being the Goalkeepers. Glad we kept a clean sheet against a team set to top the league by the end of the season, which means something is definitely working in defence.

Blue Square North game 2: Alfreton Town 0 - 0 FC United of Manchester

Another 0 - 0 that saw us hit the post and bar twice. Should of won but nevermind, looks very encouraging. Glad we kept another clean sheet, looks as though our defence really is rock solid, if a little slow at times. Wing backs were the driving force, each setting up chances - Quistin providing a gem of a cross for Montano to volley against the bar; would of been an early candidate for goal of the season. Fagan causing problems for their defence, hustling and closing down, chasing after every loose ball like a greyhound.

Summary

All in all, I am definitely encouraged by the start we have made in our first campaign in the BSN. Think once we get that first win, the rest will fall into place - I have built a strong squad; one that could win this league or be thereabouts by the end of the season.

[darren1983]

Didnt get to play at all yesterday due to being at work all day (11 am -1am) due to cod black opps coming out but have today off and gonna spend it in bed playing my FC United save.

When I left it on Sunday I was 5 games into season 2 and joint top of BSN about to play FC Halifax who were top.

Also a massive well done to all those that have got promotion or just stayed up in first season (like I somehow did)

And a big Good Luck to those that have just started or just about to start

[jordanswinburn]

The first 10.0 rating of my game! Fabio Borini slots 5 past Eastbourne Boro in our 5-0 win! I hope he keeps that up

[Terk]

Getting into the business end of the season now. After the period of just 13 points from a possible 36 over the New Year period and through January, we've now picked up five wins and a draw from our last seven games. 7 games left, we're sitting 4th, 6 points ahead of Alfreton who are 6th. Telford will almost certainly take the title.

[Terk]

I do love a good volley

[KLH84]

And after putting 14 seasons into Heybridge Swifts quest for glory on '09 it's time to give this another shot.

Hastings United this time - i've been pushing for Folkestone but after missing the whole of Spooks last night I've given up reloading and gone for the next closest team.

Profile here - and so it begins.

PS Especially enjoying the fact that there is already mutual hatred between myself and Redknapp.

[Yidd0!]

I do love a good volley

Quality goal mate. There should be a 'club goal of the season' put on the end of every end of season report.

Something like 'Heres *team x* best goal of the season'. Maybe put them in a separate thread (like the saves) and have some sort of award next year for overall goal of the dafuge 2011 challenge? :P Would be mental.

[Yidd0!]

And after putting 14 seasons into Heybridge Swifts quest for glory on '09 it's time to give this another shot.

Hastings United this time - i've been pushing for Folkestone but after missing the whole of Spooks last night I've given up reloading and gone for the next closest team.

Profile here - and so it begins.

PS Especially enjoying the fact that there is already mutual hatred between myself and Redknapp.

Lol, always nice to know Alex Ferguson automatically hates me.

[Terk]

Quality goal mate. There should be a 'club goal of the season' put on the end of every end of season report.

Something like 'Heres *team x* best goal of the season'. Maybe put them in a separate thread (like the saves) and have some sort of award next year for overall goal of the dafuge 2011 challenge? :P Would be mental.

I'm definitely going to be awarding my own Marine Goal of the Season in each of my reports.

[Yidd0!]

Lol, think that goal has already clinched it!

[jordanswinburn]

Quality goal mate. There should be a 'club goal of the season' put on the end of every end of season report.

Something like 'Heres *team x* best goal of the season'. Maybe put them in a separate thread (like the saves) and have some sort of award next year for overall goal of the dafuge 2011 challenge? :P Would be mental.

I second this idea. I already put the top 3 goals in my report, so I'd like a collective one!

[Willy Wonka]

3 games left of the season and I'm 2 points behind 1st placed Tamworth. They have the easier run-in. Gonna be a close one.

[Yidd0!]

Have any of you been able to find a remotely decent Ass Man? Mine is a coach I promoted but want rid of. Also, I cant seem to get my assistant to choose player instructions for opponents? :s

[Hans Bwixs]

Guys, I am going to start this tonight. Heard about the Dafuge challenge for the past few seasons now after browsing the forums and looks like a tasty challenge.

Anything I need to know as a newbie ?

Cant wait to get started

[Hans Bwixs]

P.s Anyone that can recommend a team that has not been selected yet ? There seems to be too many FC Uniteds :P

[KLH84]

Anything I need to know as a newbie ?

Don't expect to have much of a life once you start...

[Hans Bwixs]

Don't expect to have much of a life once you start...

Better inform the girlfriend then

[Yidd0!]

Yeah, I feel kind of cheap going for FC United - but who knows... Maybe I'll get bored and start again as a diff team sometime (this WILL happen when Croydon Athletic come up.)

Stuff to know...... umm, in my experience I've got a few things you should know:

1. Dont expect to be promoted every season- It's bloody difficult, hence why it's called a challenge
2. Dont go mental on bringing in players - They'll eat your wage budget like a fat person eats cake
3. Take your time when searching for players
4. Make sure you get at least one decent scout
5. Make sure you get a decent Ass Man (still need one of those)
6. Drink plenty of Red Bull (I got Thursday and Friday off work - I'll be buying tonnes and playing as long as my body will let me)
7. Dont try anything fancy in tactics - going 4-1-2-1-2 or asymmetrical bollocks will only backfire, bottom end clubs need bottom end tactics (4-4-2/ 4-2-4/ 4-3-3) with a big target man and a nimmy runner (see Crouch/Defoe style)

Hope that's useful.

[Hans Bwixs]

Yeah, I feel kind of cheap going for FC United - but who knows... Maybe I'll get bored and start again as a diff team sometime (this WILL happen when Croydon Athletic come up.)

Stuff to know...... umm, in my experience I've got a few things you should know:

1. Dont expect to be promoted every season- It's bloody difficult, hence why it's called a challenge
2. Dont go mental on bringing in players - They'll eat your wage budget like a fat person eats cake
3. Take your time when searching for players
4. Make sure you get at least one decent scout
5. Make sure you get a decent Ass Man (still need one of those)
6. Drink plenty of Red Bull (I got Thursday and Friday off work - I'll be buying tonnes and playing as long as my body will let me)
7. Dont try anything fancy in tactics - going 4-1-2-1-2 or asymmetrical bollocks will only backfire, bottom end clubs need bottom end tactics (4-4-2/ 4-2-4/ 4-3-3) with a big target man and a nimmy runner (see Crouch/Defoe style)

Hope that's useful.

Thanks for the advice pal, will take it all on board

1 hour 45 minutes till hometime

[Satio]

Yiddo, you summed it up nicely.

I'm hoping for promotion this year after failing miserably last year and one thing that is for sure is that I need promotion - my wage budget is crippling the club week in, week out.
The season started well, shooting up to second 12 games through, sitting in and around the playoffs but we have dropped off the pace just over the half way mark so I'm looking for a spark to bring us back up to winning form.

Ed: Just had this funny bit of news pop up - Didnt know the grim reaper supported Guiseley.

[Terk]

2. Dont go mental on bringing in players - They'll eat your wage budget like a fat person eats cake

Or do go mental bringing in players and then pray for a good cup run to rake in the cash. That's what I did with Canvey on FM10 and it's going to be my MO with Marine as well. I just can't stop myself from signing players

7. Dont try anything fancy in tactics - going 4-1-2-1-2 or asymmetrical bollocks will only backfire, bottom end clubs need bottom end tactics (4-4-2/ 4-2-4/ 4-3-3) with a big target man and a nimmy runner (see Crouch/Defoe style)

Amen to this, absolutely. I very much doubt I'll deviate from 4-4-2 until I get the Football League at the very earliest, probably more likely to be when I get into League 1 or the Championship.

I would add, pace is king. If you can get players with pace, it will go a long way to masking their technical deficiencies. It was the best piece of advice I received last year and it is so far doing me well this year too.

[Yidd0!]

Hehe no problem. Have you checked the dafuge save file thread which saves you from having to go forward a season? Already has saves for most of the teams that are available too, so you can pick who ya want!

I'm out at 4:30, pregnant fiance will need to be looked after for a while, but she'll be in bed by about 7/8, then its straight forward gaming for the rest of the night, then same tomorrow night, then 4 day freaking weekend woooooo!

FC United will be in L2 by Saturday....

[Yidd0!]

I would add, pace is king. If you can get players with pace, it will go a long way to masking their technical deficiencies. It was the best piece of advice I received last year and it is so far doing me well this year too.

Hope that's useful.

Course, forgot about that.

Yeah to reiterate that, pace is 100% king when looking at forwards. Best thing I did was sign Chris Fagan, play him as an attacking forward, set him to run at players and turn OFF long shots. Turns into a beast.

Also, its down to common sense for the players you bring in. Unless your a masterful tactician, you will have to bring in at least 6/7/8 players to really give you a chance of fighting up the top end of the table. Take a look at who some of us have signed and make some decisions from there as to who you bring in.

Make sure you have a good keeper. No matter how good the rest of your team is, if your keeper is as capable as Massimo Taibi - then you'll loose plenty of matches. You know what they say, a good GK will get you 15+ points a season.

[Hans Bwixs]

Hehe no problem. Have you checked the dafuge save file thread which saves you from having to go forward a season? Already has saves for most of the teams that are available too, so you can pick who ya want!

I'm out at 4:30, pregnant fiance will need to be looked after for a while, but she'll be in bed by about 7/8, then its straight forward gaming for the rest of the night, then same tomorrow night, then 4 day freaking weekend woooooo!

FC United will be in L2 by Saturday....

Where is this save file thread Yiddo ? Didnt realise there was one, will save me an hour or two holidaying

[Terk]

Pace is key for wingers too. If your winger can roast the opposition full back for speed then he'll have far more time and space to make use of a crossing ability that is a little lower.

Yidd0 makes a good point on keepers as well. At this level the two stats that I prize in keepers are aerial ability and one on ones. No matter who you have in defence, you will give up plenty on one on one chances, it's the nature of the beast at lower levels. And you'll also have to deal with plenty of crosses, so if you can get a keeper who does decently in these two areas *cough*JamesGilpin*cough* then you'll be off to a good start.

[Yidd0!]

http://community.sigames.com/showthr...d-(-w-Large-DB) should be all you need.

[Terk]

Did anyone say run of form? Secured our play-off spot with three games left, now to try and secure second place to get a better semi final

[Satio]

big scorelines aswell, Terk. Good job. My turn, I hope.

[Terk]

I hope so too, Satio. Fortunately for me this run of form has been perfectly timed, if we can carry it through the final three games and into the play-offs then we might actually be able to sneak promotion out of what has at times been a very frustrating season.

[Scab]

Also, I cant seem to get my assistant to choose player instructions for opponents? :s

It means they have no suggestions to make/implement. Get a better assistant.

[Jaffa]

I posted a quick progress update last night when about 8 games in, well, resumed play today and my run of form has been phenomenal. 18 games in the league now unbeaten (ok I'm out of the FA Cup and FAT..but who cares).

Table

[darren1983]

The people that have that FM Base sig thing to show progress - how do I get the team ID needed to do it?

[Jaffa]

The bloody irony of it, I post a gleeful update and then go and lose the very next game 3-1. You have to laugh !

[Yidd0!]

It means they have no suggestions to make/implement. Get a better assistant.

Bugger.

Can anyone suggest a better Ass Man?