[FM11] The Berwick Beauties

[AK22]

Background

Loaded up 11.2.1

All Scottish leagues with a Large Database (9000 Players)

Normally, I play Journeyman careers, but thought I'd like to do a different challenge until all the creases have been ironed out with the job reputation problems etc.

Aim

Within 10 seasons, take a Scottish Division 3 team and get them into Europe.

Season 2010/11

I decided to start at Berwick Rangers. Berwick-upon-Tweed is actually classed as a English town, where the town is split over two banks of the river. However, due to their location, it was deemed necessary for them to play in the Scottish league system to make travelling shorter for their fans. A bit more club background.

I signed a two-year contract on £230 per week. The board wanted a mid-table finish, seems reasonable.

In summary, I inherited a decent squad and I thought with a few new faces we would be competitive. I brought in 1 defender, 3 midfielders and 2 strikers to try and baulk up the squad. I released all the deadwood and completely re-organised the backroom staff. I also brought in another midfielder in the January window. Here's the summary.

As I thought, we were competitive. Montrose aside, I thought any of the other 9 teams in the league could get promoted. We were up near the top all season, but like the other teams, we were consistently inconsistent. With 8 games to go we were top with a nice 6 point advantage over the pack.

We then went on to bottle it with only 1 win in the next 5 games. When ended up finishing 2nd behind Annan, losing out on automatic promotion by a single point. The playoffs beckoned, contested between Airdrie, Albion Rovers, Clyde and Berwick. We beat Albion 1-0 home and away to set up the final against Clyde. I was confident as we had beaten them 6-2 already this season.

We won 2-1 at their ground and survived a nervous 1-1 draw at our place. We were promoted!!!

The board was delighted, so were the fans!

I was awarded Manager of the Year, and my star striker was announced as Division 3 Player of the Year.

Season Summary

3rd Division 2nd P 36 W 21 D 6 L 9 GD +27 PTS 69
Challenge Cup 2nd Round (v Morton)
Co-op Cup 1st Round (v Ross County)
Scottish Cup 4th Round (v Ross County)

Biggest win 7-0 (v Montrose)

Finances are good and I sign a new contract on £575 p/w.

NB. Please note I am halfway through my second season when writing this up, so apologies if a bit sketchy. Wanted to make sure I could commit to the save before writing anything up!

[AK22]

2011/12- Season 2 Berwick Rangers

The media predicted us to finish 8th in the 2nd Division. I thought this was more than possible and would be aiming top 5. Made a few transfers and once again re-shuffled my backroom staff. The board had allowed me to scout the whole of Europe now, so I was hopeful that I might be able to attract some decent players to the club even if we are still Semi-Pro.

After some encouraging pre-season friendlies, we started well in the league, remaining unbeaten for the first 10 games. Our defence seemed to be pretty robust but we were struggling to score. However, we did manage a 4-0 win over a respectable Peterhead side.

November 13th 2011 was a momentous day for Berwick Rangers. It was the day they reached their first ever Cup Final. We would play Dumfermline in the ALBA Challenge Cup Final. On paper, we should not have had a chance. In REALITY we never had a chance. We lost 2-0 in a one-sided affair. The 12000 ticket sales, prize money and TV revenue will really help with the finances

At the half way point of the season, we are still sitting top of the table even after losing a couple of games. We also have a 4th Round Scottish Cup tie at home to Partick Thistle. I'm hoping this will attract the biggest attendance at Shielfield Park under my regime. The finances are still looking good and I'm well under my wage budget too. Job status very secure.

[AK22]

Season 2011/12 cont...

Unfortunately, the much anticipated Cup match vs Partick didn't get the attendance I hoped for, but it was still a decent performance against a bigger full-time team.

Now we were out of all the cups, I was happy to focus on the league. I was confident of getting a Top 4 finish and getting into the play-offs again. I also sign a nice shiny new contract. I also got approached by Peterhead after they sacked their manager after a takeover. I'm staying put tho...

With 5 games to go we had secured our playoff place, but our form was all over the place so I wasn't too sure where we would finish. We had a tricky run-in, having to go away to Peterhead, Ayr and Alloa as well as playing our main promotion rivals, Dumbarton, at home.

We played really well to win 2-0 away at Peterhead, but bottled-it in a feisty encounter with Dumbarton losing 2-1. This result levelled us and Dumbarton at the top of the table. Our goal difference was significantly better so we just had to match their results in the last 2 games to go up automatically as champions.

We lost 1-0 to Ayr and then scrapped a lucky 0-0 with Alloa. Dumbarton lost both of their games, so we were promoted by 1 point! It hard to believe that a team that only won 5 out of their last 14 games were good enough to win the league. The standard is pretty poor and inconsistent to say the least!!!

It will be Berwick first season in Div 1 since the 1980/81 season.

I was really pleased with my defence this season, having conceded the least amount of goals in the division. Hopefully this will continue next season. I will also need to add a consistent goalscorer as my top goalscorer only scored 11 goals this season.

Fans Player of the Year was Matty Hughes who was the rock in my defence. I get Manager of the Year again.

Season Summary

Division 2 1st (P 36 W 16 D 15 L 5 GD +23 PTS 63)

Co-op Cup 1st Round (vs Dumbarton)

Challenge Cup Runners Up (vs Dunfermline)

Scottish Cup 4th Round (vs Partick Thistle)

It will be a lot tougher next season in the First Division playing against big full-time team such as Dundee and Dunfermline, so I hope with a few decent signings, we won't be the whipping boys of the league.

[FeargalSharkey2010]

Scotlands good fun

[AK22]

Quite enjoying this save so far. Seasons are flying by, shame I have to go back to work on Tuesday...

[AK22]

Season 3- 2012/13 Berwick Rangers

Euro 2012- Winners Italy against England after extra time.

I am not overly confident going into the season. We are predicted to finish bottom by the media, and we are big outsiders for promotion. The board agree and ask to battle against relegation, which seems fair enough to me.

Transfers wise, I bring in 3 decent-ish players but nothing outstanding for this level. My scouts are not unturning the gems they were in previous seasons, so unfortunately I am going to have to battle with the small young squad I've got. As in previous seasons, I let a lot of useless players go on frees and also get in some new staff, including a new Assistant who will hopefully help develop my young squad. Finances are still good and I'm way under the wage budget, I just wish I could find some players to bring in!

We start the season well with 2 cup wins and a 3-2 win in the league away to Greenock Morton where we were 3-0 up! After 2 defeats in the league, we then go and win 2-0 in the cup away to Queen of the South who were a SPL side last season. They were all over us but I'm pleased with the snatch 'n' grab style victory. Next up in the cup are Celtic. Ironically, we outplay Celtic but still lose 2-0. What goes around comes around springs to mind. The gate receipts are a handy sweetner though!

After 9 games we are doing much better than expected but it is close. A couple of bad results will see us slip down the table quickly. Dunfermline, who are bottom, were the media favourites to win the league, so this proves how unpredictable Scottish football is (or how bad the media are)!

I'm also really pleased to see a big increase in attendances. We're now averaging 1500 compared to the 400/500 who were coming in to see us in Div 2 and Div 3. Only downside is that stadium is starting to fall-down...

[AK22]

It seems that my team has a taste for cup football. After a 4-2 victory against Brechin, we face Dundee in the ALBA Challenge Cup final. This is the second successive season we have reached this final. It is played in Stavengar, Norway, which I find a bit weird... We claim a priceless 2-1 victory, hanging on by the skin of our teeth for the last 10 minutes.

Berwick Rangers win the ALBA Challenge Cup. The board are very non-plussed about it but I'm happy with the silverware in the trophy cabinet.

In other cup news, we reached the Quarters of the Scottish Cup but lose on a replay to Motherwell. The highlight was a 2-1 win over SPL side St. Johnstone in the 5th round. We were all over them!

I'm concerned that the stadium is still falling down... We only rent the stadium and the board are reluctant to buy the stadium. However, they have agreed to improve the training facilities, which is better than nothing.

In the league we finish 6th. I'm happy with this but it could have been higher. We were in the top 3 for 2/3 of the season, went off the boil towards the end. It's going to be difficult to get promotion from Div 1 as only 1 team gets promoted to the SPL and we are slightly out of our depth at the moment. With an average age of 22 I will be looking for some experienced players in the off-season.

I get Manager of the Year which I think is quite harsh on the Dundee manager. My goalkeeper gets in the Div 1 Team of the Year and my temperental Argie striker is voted Player of the Year by the fans. It has taken him 3 seasons to find his scoring boots!

Everyone is happy so I sign a new 2 year contract extension which I hope will give me job security to build for the SPL.

2012/13 Season Summary

1st Div -6th (P36 W16 D7 L13 GD-4 PTS 55)

ALBA Challenge Cup- Winners

Co-op Cup- 3rd Round (vs Celtic)

Scottish Cup- Quarter Final Replay (vs Motherwell)

Bring on next season, hoping for another year of consolidation.

[AK22]

2013/14 Berwick Rangers- Season 4

So after a solid mid-table finish last season, I was hoping to build on this and aim for the top 3. The media consider us long-shots and the board only wanted me to avoid relegation which I thought was definately achievable with the squad I've assembled. Finances were looking good overall and I still had a fair chunk of my wage budget to play with. For once, I decided against whole-sale changes in my backroom staff and kept things as they were. The reason being I don't think I could get anyone better in for the level we are at the moment. My training facilities have been upgraded to 'adequate' and the board have agreed to improve the youth facilities, after I had to convince them 'basic' was not good enough!

We had an amazing start with the pre-season friendlies, including a 3-0 win over Rangers. I couldn't believe this! We started well in the league and after 9 games we were 2 points clear at the top of the table. Teams are finding it difficult to score against us, and now with 4 decent strikers, the team look more potent in front of goal compared to last season.

For the third season in the row, we reach the ALBA Challenge Cup final. Now I'm not sure if this cup really means anything to the participating teams in real life, but I'm really proud of this achievement. For some reason, this season's final is played at the Stadion der Stadt St.Polten which is in Austria?!

Anyway, in a close game against Ayr, we win 1-0 to defend the trophy. The fans are really pleased but the board aren't too bothered again. Do they even care at all? I would have thought I would have made it on to favoured personnel by now. On a negative note, my promising winger gets injured in the final and is now out for 4 months. Rubbish!

At the half point, here's a summary of my transfers so far, and in the league, we are still top with a four point lead and having only conceded 8 goals. I'm waiting for the wheels to fall off....

[AK22]

2013/14 cont...

Well what a season this turned out to be! After our success in the ALBA Challenge Cup, we draw Hearts in the Scottish Cup Quarter Final. In a very competitive match, we beat them 3-2 but only just hang on for the last couple of minutes. In the Semi-Final we draw Dumbarton, who are in Div 2. We are favourites, which I think is a bad omen. I think we're better suited as underdogs and I am nearly proven right as we scrape a 1-1 but go on to win on penalties after missing our first two spotkicks. We are through to the Scottish Cup final!

Meanwhile, in Division 1, we continue our good start and remain top of the table all season. However, after a couple of poor results, we didn't clinch our promotion and the Division 1 Championship until Matchday 35 where we beat second-place Ross County 3-0. SPL here we come! We set a record for the most amount of points in a Division 1 season. The board, fans and players are delighted and I'm finally on the favoured personnel list! In the end, we end up winning by 11 points. A great result with the best defence in the league! This is a record high for Berwick too.

Cheekily, Inverness CT make an approach for me. Even with huge budgets and a big wage increase, I tell them where to go!

So last game of the season is the Scottish Cup final against Rangers. I don't think we have a chance so decide to try and play attacking football to try and catch them out. In our historic final, we lose a close game 1-0 but I am pleased with the effort the players have put in to make a competitive match. However, it seems that we might have become slightly too agressive in our plight!

To my surprise, we have qualified for the Europa League. As Rangers had qualified for the Champions League, we get their Cup Winners place. I thought it would have gone to an SPL team? We are going to have a lot to balance next season, and Europe may be too much of a distraction as I will want to just concentrate on staying up!

I'm named Manager of the Season again. Two of my players make Team of the Year. The fans decide our solid centre-back should be Player of the Year but I'm convinced it should be our creative young winger, even though he missed 4 months with an injury. He is definitely one to watch!

Completely out of the blue, we are hit with a £7m bill to install undersoil heating to our stadium to comply with SPL regulations. This hits our finances hard and sends us seriously into the red. We also have to ground-share with non-league side Tranent at Foresters Park while this work is completed. They only have a capacity of 2300 so our gate receipts are going to be horrendous next year too. Oh, and the board decide to pull the plug on my youth facilities expansion too. I can't wait to get back to Shielfield Park (in 10 months time!)

Luckily, the board restructure the debt (Chairman Loan £5m) and re-negotiate some sponsorship deals, so are just back into the black in time for the new season but I'm not convinced its enough money to make us competitive.

Season Summary

Scottish Division 1: Winners (P36 W23 D7 L6 GD +35 PTS 76)

ALBA Challenge Cup: Winners

Coop Cup: 2nd Round (vs Queen Of The South)

Scottish Cup: Runners Up (vs Rangers)

Next season really is going to be groundbreaking for the club. First ever season in SPL and Europe, as well as the renovations to Shielfield Park and financial constraints, I really do not know what to expect! But I'm looking forward to it!

[AK22]

And I've just received the 'Scottish Hero' Steam achievement too!

[Nobby_McDonald]

Well done AK. Maybe now you can renew Berwick-upon-Tweed's war with Russia now you are in the Europa League.

[tommy1872]

good read keep it up

[AK22]

Well done AK. Maybe now you can renew Berwick-upon-Tweed's war with Russia now you are in the Europa League.

Mmm, not sure we're ready to take on the whole of Russia yet, maybe next season! What about FC Baku of Azerbaijan? Does that count?!

[Nobby_McDonald]

I take it you are not aware of the war between Berwick-upon-Tweed and Russia then?

http://www.culture24.org.uk/history+...orian/art38768

[AK22]

Haha, that's a good story. I bet the Russians were quaking in their boots anticipating the invasion of the Boarderers!

[RichG]

I thought the mayor of Berwick had invited the Russian defence minister to Berwick and had lunch to discuss a ceasefire lol

It was on Coast on BBC1 last year and they discussed it. Russia did agree to a mutual restraint on military offensives

[AK22]

2014/15 Season 5- Berwick Rangers

After our promotion last year, my main aim for this season was just to maintain our SPL league status. Thankfully the board decided to turn the club professional which means I can get more full time players/staff on the books. Unfortunately, with the board investing in the stadium, we have very little money to play with. However, I'm sure the TV revenue will come in handy!

Season expectations are low and I've got very little money to play with in terms of wage and transfer budget. I decide to transfer all my transfer budget into the wages pot so that I can bring in a few new faces on free transfers. I'm hoping the lack of transfer activity will help keep the team gelled and, hopefully, will work their backsides off (Blackpool-esque!). Title odds are the worse I've ever seen!

Finances
Wages

2014 World Cup News- England win 3-2 against Brazil in the final, including 2 goals from Connor Wickham (of Ipswich IRL). I quite concerned that Gareth Barry is still playing for England in 2014! FIFA has announced that 2022 will be in China (bad luck Qatar!)

Back to Berwick now. After being Runners-Up in the Scottish Cup, we find ourselves in the Europa League Qualifying Rounds and another historic moment for the club.

We dispatch FC Baku of Azerbaijan 4-3 on aggregate in the 2nd Qualifying Round. Next up a 2-1 agg win over KuPS of Finland. However, our 'Amazing European Adventure' end with a 2-0 agg defeat to Racing of Spain. I'm sure the fans enjoyed their first ever Euro-trip and it was fun while it lasted!

In the league, the fixture list computer was quite kind to us giving us 7 home matches in our first 11. This meant there was some games I was hopeful we could win...and we did!

The highlights were a 5-0 over St. Johnstone and a 1-0 win at Hearts. At the half way point we were sitting a very respectable 5th. The defence seems to be holding up quite well to the pressure from the SPL strikers, however, my main concern is that my strikers are struggling to find any kind of form. I doubt we can continue to scrape 1-0 wins for the rest of the season. On a side note, cheeky Bottom-of-the-table-St Mirren offer me a job...no chance!

[AK22]

2014/15 cont...

Our good form in the league continued into the New Year. My mentality of trying to have a go at the opposition was paying off in the most, especially in a 4-3 win away to St. Mirren and 2-0 win away to Aberdeen. We also had a magnificent 2-1 win over Celtic in Scottish Cup 5th Round, however, they got their revenge the following Saturday in the league!

Come the end of March, the upgrades at Shielfield Park had been completed. We can now boast of having undersoil heating and a capacity of 8765 (6000 seats).

When the league split at the 33 games point, we were sitting 6th so would play in 'Champions Group'. We took 5 points off the 5 teams above us, which was reasonably satisfying, meaning we finished our 1st season in the SPL in a very respectable 6th overall.

Cups were a bit disappointing this year. We couldn't reproduce our normal cup performance and went out in to Dundee on a replay in the Scottish Cup Quarter Finals. This was the first time in 4 seasons we hadn't been in a cup final.

The fans decided our young centre back would be Player of the Year. I tend to agree with them as he was our most consistent player averaging 7.13 and chipped in with 5 league goals too. Here's the Team of the Year. As you can see, scoring goals have been a problem I will need to rectify.

After our Europa League endeavour, we have moved up to 186th best team in Europe! And it seems the other Scottish teams are doing well in the continental competitions too.

Just as I started to prepare for next season, this little gem dropped into my inbox. As Scotland had a good Fair Play record, there will be 6 Scottish team in Europe next season. I also decided to sign a new contract with a payrise and a 2-year extension and I will finally get my Youth Academy!

I also won another Manager of the Year award too. I'm going to have to build a bigger mantelpiece!

Season Summary

SPL: 6th (P38 W16 D8 L14 GD-4 PTS56)

Co-op Cup: 3rd Round (vs Hibernian)

Scottish Cup: Quarter Finals Replay (vs Dundee)

Europa League: 4th Qualifying Round (vs Racing)

Next season my main aim is to get my hands on a striker thats going to score 20 goals a season. Hopefully we will retain SPL status and I would be really pleased to reach the group stages of the Europa League. Hopefully we should increase our average attendance from the 3785 we got for this season as we'll get a full season with the bigger capacity at Shielfield Park. This should help increase the bank balance to a position where I can continue to improve the squad and the facilities.

[AK22]

2015/16 Season 6 - Berwick Rangers

After our top half finish last season, I was hopeful of more of the same. I wanted to get in a few new faces to freshen the team up but not too many to unsettle the balance. The board just wanted to avoid relegation. Odds were lower this season at just 200-1! Worth a quid on, right?! I just wished the board would be slightly less thrifty, as even with a decent balance sheet, funds were hardly forthcoming!

Finances

Wage Budget

Transfer Summary

Unfortunately, we didn't make to the groups stages of the Europa League as I had hoped. We got knocked out by Stuttgart in the 4th Qualifying Round. We were completely outplayed as expected, but somehow I felt slightly disappointed by our performance. Oh well, we might make the Group Stages eventually!

We were competitive again in the league. We would go on a nice run of 5/6 games unbeaten and then get too cocky and then lose 2 on the bounce. Highlights included beating Hibs 5-2 and Rangers 2-1 at home. The defence seemed as tight as last year but we were scoring more goals. We were always in top half but nowhere breaking the 'Old Firm' monopoly at the top of the table. At the 'Split' we were sitting 3rd. However, we only won 1 of our 5 Champions Stage matches so ended up finishing 4th and qualify for Europa League action again. This is an improvement of 1 place on last season and we gained 8 points extra too. (Don't mention the cups this year- naff!)

League Table

Team of the Year

Fans Player of the Year and my Player of the Year had to go to my young Italian midfielder, Alessandro Caputo. I picked him up on a free transfer from Milan and has got a great right foot for free-kicks and corners. The 18 assists he got certainly proves this points, and at only 21, should have a positive future at the club as long as I can keep the vultures at bay. I also win Manager of the Year again and the team get 'Overachievers' in the SPL.

Season Summary

SPL: 4th (P38 W18 D10 L10 GD+17 PTS64)

Europa League: 4th Qualifying Round (vs Stuttgart 1-6 on agg)

Co-op Cup: 3rd Round (vs Inverness 0-1)

Scottish Cup: 5th Round (vs Rangers 0-1)

Improvements to training and youth facilities were completed and (at last) a Youth Academy was established in November. Hopefully, I might get less gash coming through the youth team now! The board have promised to improve further too!

I'm disappointed that 2 of my most experience first team players did not want to renew their contracts and will leave on frees in the summer. How dare they!

Neil Collins - A real rock at the back who will be hard to replace. Off to Cardiff.

Don Cowie - Had a habit of chipping in with an odd goal when we really needed one. Off to Coventry.

Next season I will need to invest heavily in the squad. Potentially, it could be weaker due to the departures of two key players, and it is apparent we are not going to get anywhere in Europe with the players we've got and certainly won't be challenging Rangers and Celtic for the league anytime soon. As the average attendance was up to 5025, I'm hoping that the stadium might get expanded too if I'm lucky!

[Nobby_McDonald]

Nice improvement AK.

[433tom]

Congrats on a second solid season in the SPL. Nice pickup with Caputo.

[EvilDave]

For just six seasons this is awesome progress, won't be long before you break the Old Firm at this rate! KUTGW, good luck next season

[rlipscombe]

making some real progress with Berwick there... good luck breaking up the big 2.

[AK22]

making some real progress with Berwick there... good luck breaking up the big 2.

For just six seasons this is awesome progress, won't be long before you break the Old Firm at this rate! KUTGW, good luck next season

I think it's going to take a good 3/4 seasons to get anywhere near top 2.

Unfortunately, there is such a big gap in finances/quality, so it's going to be a gradual building period while hopefully making some inroads in Europa League too to help with the funds.

[AK22]

Euro 2016 (Hosts: France)

Surprising to see Bosnia & Herzegovina in the knockout stages. Spain demolished the Italians 3-0 to win the Euros for the 3rd time in their history. Once again there was an Englishman in the final as Martin Atkinson was the referee!

[433tom]

Euro 2016 (Hosts: France)

Once again there was an Englishman in the final as Martin Atkinson was the referee!

Good one.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Blimey, Spain thumped everybody.

[AK22]

2016/17 Season 7 - Berwick Rangers

After finishing 4th last term, I was hopeful that we could consolidate our position in the top 4. The board were only after a safe mid-table finish and our title-odds are starting to drop quite considerable now to 33-1. However, we lost a few decent experienced players over the summer due to them not renewing their contracts or wanting to move to bigger clubs. I guess the players were using us as a shop-window to move on somewhere better. On a side note, Hearts offered me a job with them. Lots of money to play with there, but I'm committed to Berwick and the challenge ahead with them.

Facilities Overview

Finances

Wage Budget

With a lot of players wanting out, I had to get a lot of new faces in. I knew this would be risky as I didn't wanted to unsettle the team too much, but I still had to make sure we would have a squad that could compete at the top of the league.

12 new players joined the club for a total of £1.2m (the most money I've spent- got a bit sweaty over this!) The stand out player was:

Manuel Gill - signed for a club record £525k from Real Madrid. I hoped he would be a creative force in midfield. Potentially World Class!

Transfer Summary

The new players took a while to settle in and gel with their teammates (as expected) but as my tactics remained un-changed from last season, we managed to scrape together enough results to hover between 3rd-6th for the first half of the season.

Unfortunately, the 'European Dream' didn't materialise this season either. We got knocked out by Spurs in the 4th Qualifying Round (again!), talk about being drawn against one of the best teams in the competition (they reached the Semis!). Completely outplayed 5-2 in the first leg, we at least managed an morale boosting 2-1 win at home for the second leg.

In the New Year we really pushed-on and performance improved big time, we won 11 out of 14 between February and April. The highlights included a 5-0 win away at Hibs, a 3-1 away win to Hearts and a 4-3 away win against Dundee United (we were 3-0 down at one stage and launched a miraculous recovery!)

At the split we were sitting a comfortable 3rd. Celtic had already won the league but we were just 2 points behind Rangers, who were having a shocker by their standards.

Our last league game was at home to Rangers. They were 1 point ahead of us but we knew if we beat them we would leap-frog them into 2nd and grab the Champions League spot. We didn't! The players completely bottled it, so ending on a lacklustre note, we finished 3rd and once again will be in the Europa League next season.

In the Scottish Cup, we made the final where we faced Celtic. However, there was no silverware on the horizon once we went down to 10 men and faced an up-hill battle. The 2-0 defeat was a pretty fair reflection of a dismal performance by us. Well at least we all had a nice day out at Hamden Park!

Season Summary

SPL: 3rd (P:38 19-10-9 GD: +16 PTS:67)

Co-op Cup: Quarter-Finals ( 1-3 vs Celtic )

Europa League: 4th Qualifying Round ( 4-6 vs Tottenham Hotspur)

Scottish Cup: Runner's Up ( 0-2 vs Celtic)

Team of the Year

Season Summary

Outstanding Players

Kirk Broadfoot- On a free from Rangers. Does the business at the back and scored 7 goals when forward for corners/free kicks.

Khalid Yilmaz- Picked up on a free from Brondy. Managed to chip in with 10 goals from midfield. Only 21 so could be a future star.

Alessandro Caputo- Continued his form from last season with 17 assists mainly from set-pieces.

Domingo- Fans Player of the Year and also top scorer in SPL. He also wins PFA Player of the Year. This little beauty cost me £425k from St. Johnstone and with 33 goals in 39 appearances has to be my best signing and, hopefully, the goal machine I need over the next few seasons (he's only 23). Only downside is that he gets booked nearly every match so keeps getting suspended! Lots of clubs starting to sniff around now though.

I also signed a 2 year contract extension with a pay increase to £3500 per week. Big time Charlie now!

Board also agree to improve training and youth facilities once again.

I think next season we might struggle to keep hold of some my star players, especially Domingo and Manual Gill who I reckon could play for top European teams. I also need a new keeper, and possibly, a centre-back as the defence wasn't as strong this season as I would have liked. I also hope that the Europa League draw is slightly more favourable to us so that we can make to the group stages... please... PLEASE!!

[AK22]

Blimey, Spain thumped everybody.

In their 7 games Spain scored 23 (9 from Fernando Torres) and conceded only 3. Dominant!

[Nobby_McDonald]

Edging ever closer with Berwick.

[Matt123456]

Pshhh, Scotland, they're practically a European Giant!

Great work, the progress you've made has been nothing short of miraculous . And I feel your pain about losing to Stuttgart!!

[safcrhys]

Great read mate, keep it up.

[AK22]

2017/18- Season 8 Berwick Rangers

Board expectations were a lot higher for this season. They wanted us to compete alongside the top teams and gain European qualification but at least they backed us with a bigger transfer and wage budget. The media predicted us to finish 5th and the title odds dropped a bit more to 14-1. Season tickets increase by 148.

Facilities Overview - Still pretty basic but the training/youth facilities are continuously being improved by the board which is encouraging.

Finances - Looking good.

Wage Budget - Still not competing with the Old Firm but not bad for this level.

With the increased expectations, the pressure was on to get the results this season. Unfortuately, my star midfielder Manuel Gil, decided he wanted to become 'big time' so I offloaded him to Steaua for £3m with 20% of next sales too. Not bad for someone that cost me £525k the previous season.

Transfer Summary

Key players to arrive were:

Tomas Rodriquez (Free) - Arrived from Boca. I hoped this tall Argentine would form a deadly strike partnership with Domingo.

Nikos Argyriou (Free) - This Greek international GK arrived from Olympiacos. A big improvement on my current crop of keepers.

Elias Marchetti (£775k) - A fair chunk of the budget spent on this right midfield player from Bordeaux. Good workrate and stamina.

Stuart Armstrong (£925k) - Signed from St. Mirren, this former Scottish youth player should be the ideal replacement for Manuel Gil in midfield.

Europa League

After an amazing 5-1 agg victory over CFR Cluj, we made the group stages of the Europa League at the fourth time of asking. The draw was reasonably favourable to us as we missed the big guys and drew Olympiacos, Nancy and Spartak Moscow (war with Russia back on!).

We had a couple of wallopings away to Olympiacos and Nancy but, in contrast, the highlight was our magnificent 5-1 win at home to Olympiacos. All in all, we didn't embarrass ourselves and a 3rd place was a satisfying end to our campaign.

SPL

Another solid season from our perspective but the most interesting story was the fall from grace that Rangers suffered. By them finishing 4th, it gave us a good chance of clinching their usual Champions League spot. Unfortunately, it was not to be as Hearts beat us to it by 1 point. Their 3-0 victory over us in the SPL Champions Group turned out to be the crucial result. A total of 71 points was an improvement of 4 over last season. Another encouraging note was the couple of 'Old Firm' victories, a 2-0 win over Rangers on the last day of the season and a 4-3 goal-fest against Celtic.

Scottish Cup

We sailed through the opening rounds without any trouble. Having drawn Celtic in the Semi-Finals, I was sure that our cup run would come to an end here. We gave as good as we got and lucked a 1-0 win to take us through to the final to face Hearts. This was to be our third Scottish Cup final under my command. Once again, (it was not third time lucky), we lost 2-1 in a very mediocre game where it seemed most of my players were already on their summer break!

Key Players

Domingo - Once again this goal machine was SPL Top Goalscorer and also won Scottish Football Writers Association Player of the Year. He was voted Fans Player of the Year and scored 33 goals in 43 appearances in all competition. This guy could end being a legend (if I can keep hold of him!)

Tomas Rodriguez - Started well with 12 goals in 28 games until he broke his leg in January and missed rest of the season. One to watch as long he can get his fitness back.

Luca Ruggeri - This striker had already been with me for the previous 3 seasons. He finally found his scoring boots with 19 goals this term. Blows hot or cold, though, nothing inbetween. Either cabbage or caviar.

Alessandro Caputo - This guy loves the club and is extremely consistent in his performance. 16 assists over the season was another good return.

Stuart Armstrong - Working in the 'Engine Room' with Caputo, he chipped in with 14 assists.

Liam Cooper - My best defender who was ever-present in the SPL. At 26, he's starting to get itchy feet and I haven't been able to convince him to stay so may be sold in the summer.

Team of the Year

Overall Best Eleven

I get awarded Manager of the Year (not too sure why the Celtic manager didn't get a mention for winning the league!?) and our improvement in Europe sees us climb the rankings to the 191st best team. SPL doing well too, moving up to the 12th best competition.

Season Summary

SPL: 3rd (P38 20-11-7 GD +20 PTS 71)

Europe League: Group Stages (3rd in Group L)

Co-op Cup: Qtr Finals (1-2 vs Rangers)

Scottish Cup: Runner Up (1-2 vs Hearts)

Next season, my main concern is the defence. Having conceded 46 goals in the league, it is certainly not strong enough to be contending for top honours yet, even in Scotland! However, unless everyone decides to decides to leave, I will be making minimal signings in the summer so that the squad harmony remains good.

I've also convinced the board to buy the stadium (I say convinced, I told them I would leave if they didn't!). Even though we are still not selling out Shielfield Park (Average Attendance up to 5343), a capacity of 8500 (6000 seats) will not be enough if we are to consistently challenge the Old Firm.

[AK22]

Pshhh, Scotland, they're practically a European Giant!

Great work, the progress you've made has been nothing short of miraculous . And I feel your pain about losing to Stuttgart!!

Great read mate, keep it up.

Thanks. Really want to start competing with the big boys soon. Europa League group stages are a must from now on to keep income high

[deltablue]

Well you're already getting there or thereabouts, even if that last step up tends to be very tricky indeed.

[433tom]

I can smell a top 2 finish coming.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Beaten by some Nancy boys.

[AK22]

Well you're already getting there or thereabouts, even if that last step up tends to be very tricky indeed.

I can sense we are getting quite close to a breakthrough but as the squad has a young average age, a bit of experience might be needed to help guide them to the top.

I can smell a top 2 finish coming.

Hopefully next year will be the one. I'd settle for a Scottish Cup win instead though.

Beaten by some Nancy boys.

Some people pay for that privilege, I got it done for free!

[RichG]

KUTGW AK22 a great save so far. I always enjoy a good Scottish save.

Nice developments going on to build the club up. Lets hope you can match Celtic on day for support. With all those developments you need to keep a keen eye on the finances though.

[AK22]

World Cup 2018 (Hosts: Russia Holders: England (!))

Unfortunately, England did not prevail in the defence of their trophy after a meek performance against hosts Russia in the 2nd Round.

Unbelievably, Mexico steam-rolled to success, knocking out Brazil, Italy and Germany on their way. A 30 year old Chicarito popped up to score the winner in the final. They will defend their trophy in China in 4 years time.

[AK22]

Brief 2018/19 midseason update

Full details will come later in season summary, but its going well so far!

After beating Spartak Moscow in the qualifying round, we received a reasonable group in the draw.

We put in some decent performances against teams with higher reputations than ours. We needed a bit of help from Parma on Matchday 6, but as they beat Stuttgart, we went through the knockout stages in 2nd place where we will face PSV. (Full draw) I doubt we'll beat them, and to be honest, we've exceeded expectations and I intend to focus on the league as a priority.

In the league, things are looking good too. Celtic and Rangers have made a shaky start to the campaign and we (and Hearts) are taking full advantage by leading the pack.

We have been very impressive at times. Goals have been flying in and the defence is looking pretty sturdy too.

We've had a few long term injuries which is testing the squad depth, so I will be looking to strengthen, if possible, in the January window.

Up next, we've got a HUGE six-pointer against Hearts in the league and a Co-op Cup Semi Final against Aberdeen. I will also be hoping that the 'Old Firm' don't make too much of resurgence in the run in to ruin the dreams of Champions League football. Hopefully my young team will show a bit of bottle and character and a shiny trophy will be waiting for us in May!

[Nobby_McDonald]

I see you overcame the Russians. Berwick seem to be good at fending them off.

[AK22]

I see you overcame the Russians. Berwick seem to be good at fending them off.

A sharp poke in the eye with a stick seems to do the trick!

[RichG]

Nice going AK22 hang in there and stop the old firm. Well Rangers anyway

You need to hammer the board to get the ground up. I would forget the youth and facilities for a year or two.

You are gonna need 20,000 to get to the next level and maintain your push or Celtic and Rangers will peg you back as your wage bill increases year on year. Are you averaging 90%+ now? If so I would get knocking on the boards door.

KUTGW mate

[prayer]

Don't fancy joining me in the Highland and Junior leagues? Nice work getting to the SPL!!

[AK22]

Don't fancy joining me in the Highland and Junior leagues? Nice work getting to the SPL!!

Don't think I could face the Highlands, I'm a bit of southern-softy I would imagine Berwick would be cold enough for me!

[greenwhitearmy]

Good luck with the current season, are Celtic and Rangers still as dominant as they are now?

[Deisler26]

Well done on your progress dude. You can conquer Europe!

[AK22]

Good luck with the current season, are Celtic and Rangers still as dominant as they are now?

Celtic or Rangers have won the league every season so far but last season Rangers finished 4th with Hearts breaking into the top 2 and they look like maintaining it this year. Hopefully, we will soon and make it a 'Big 4'. The biggest battle will be competing financially long term as the Old Firm get attendances of 40000/50000 and we get 7000 on a good day!

Well done on your progress dude. You can conquer Europe!

Thanks for your optimism! Unfortunately, we are still a good few years away of becoming as big as Barcelona

[RichG]

Just to give you some hope i did a 55 season save game test once and Dundee United and Ayr United broke the Glasgow hold on the league. Dundee United ended up winning something like 15 titles in the last 25 seasons and had an avg attendance of 55,000 and a massive stadium. Ayr won about 5 titles in the same period and had a 31,000 seater stadium.

Rangers got relegated after about 45 seasons and Celtic were struggling really bad and in the bottom half.

[B.W.G]

Looking goood so far, hope you can carry on your progress

[AK22]

Just to give you some hope i did a 55 season save game test once and Dundee United and Ayr United broke the Glasgow hold on the league. Dundee United ended up winning something like 15 titles in the last 25 seasons and had an avg attendance of 55,000 and a massive stadium. Ayr won about 5 titles in the same period and had a 31,000 seater stadium.

Rangers got relegated after about 45 seasons and Celtic were struggling really bad and in the bottom half.

Cheers- that'll be something to look forward to. I can only dream of a 55000 attendance, though it is going up slowly each year!

Looking goood so far, hope you can carry on your progress

Thanks again. Just had a bit of March wobble though. Details later tonight, hopefully!

[AK22]

Going into March, I was confident that we would win a trophy this season.

Then this happened....

Out of Europe after a battering against Besiktas, beaten in the Co-operative Cup Final against Celtic (and reduced to 8 men), taken to a reply in the Scottish Cup Quarters against Inverness and two bad results in 2 big 6-pointers in the SPL. Wheels completely fell off, without notice!

We have recovered slightly to leave us still in the title hunt at the split.

Historically, 72 points would give you 2nd place and qualify for the Champions League. I reckon we'll need 80 this season. Typical! Especially as we've got the jitters!

Final 5 games: Hearts (h), Rangers (a), Inverness (a), Celtic (h) and Aberdeen (a)
...and Hibs in Scottish Cup Semi-final.

Wish me luck!

[Nobby_McDonald]

Good luck.

[AK22]

2018/19 Season 9 - Berwick Rangers

Once again the board wanted us to compete near the top of the table and do well in the domestic cups. They also wanted to us to get to the Group Stage of the Europa League. Media predicted us to finish 4th and title odds were 10-1. Season tickets increased by 158 to 1517.

Facilities Overview - The board have agreed to buy the stadium. Hopefully, we will be converted to all-seater and they will be willing to expand.

Finances - Still good. Received £2m in sell-on clauses too

Wage Budget - Increased again

Transfer Summary - Spent £1.5m on a few players including 2 loan deals from Chelsea and Arsenal

Key players to arrive were:

Tomas Hubocan (Free) - 32 year old Slovakian CB joined us from Toulouse. Should be the experienced rock I need to stabilize the defence.

Matteo Iovino (£675k) - 21 year old giant of a centre-back joined from Sheriff. Hopefully will form a good partnership with Hubocan.

Cristian Di Biase (£45k) - 23 year old signed from Brescia. I've been watching him for 2 seasons waiting for him to be interested in joining us. Good all round MC.

Batista (Free) - No not the wrestler. He joined us in January from Fluminese. At only 19, this defender is one for the future.

Before a ball could be kicked in the new season, I got approached by Rangers to take over at Ibrox. Good wages and budgets, but I thought that the team I had built at Berwick had more potential than what was on offer at Rangers.

Europa League - 2nd Knockout Round

We dispatched Spartak Moscow 3-1 on agg in the 4th Qualifying Round to ensure we got to the Group Stages. Having finished 2nd in our group, we were drawn against one of the bigger team in the 1st Knockout Round. We dispatched PSV 4-2 at home and 2-0 away. These 2 amazing victories pitched us against Besiktas. We got our arses handed to us and lost 5-1 over the 2 legs. I was still extremely satisfied with our performance, especially those against PSV. Really encouraging for future European expeditions.

SPL - 2nd

We were in touching distance of winning the SPL this season. 84 points would have won the league 7 out of the last 8 seasons so we were extremely unlucky. Going into the last game we had to hope that Hearts didn't win and we got a strong win against Aberdeen. We did our part but so did Hearts as they beat Rangers 4-2 to claim the trophy. This would be the first non-Old Firm winner since Aberdeen won in 1985, that's 34 years!! The strangle-hold has been broken, unfortunately, not by us!

We had a major wobble in March which lost us the title but there were a lot of positives to take from our league performance. We had the 2nd best defence and the 2nd best attack which led to some amazing results. The highlights included 5-0 wins over Motherwell and Dundee Utd, and 3 victories over Celtic - 4-2 and 4-0 home wins and a 1-0 at Celtic Park.

Cooperative Insurance Cup - Runners-Up

In a very bad tempered final against Celtic, we took it to extra-time and ended up with 11 yellow and 3 red cards. Due to their 3 men advantage, Celtic took us apart in extra-time and beat us 4-2

Scottish Cup - Winners

Having knocked Celtic out in the 5th Round, we had another great opportunity to reach the final for the 4th time in Berwick's history. Having needed a replay against Inverness in the Quarters, we then demolished Hibs 5-0 in the Semis to set up a final against Hearts. This was to be a rematch of the last season's final where they beat us 2-1. This was not to be repeated this year as we claimed a majestic 4-0 victory to avenge our SPL disappointment and claim the Scottish Cup for the first time in the club's history. Everyone was delighted with the achievement and I will want to defend this amicably next season!

Key Players

Domingo - SPL Top Goalscorer for the 3rd year in a row. 25 goals in 49 games isn't as many as previous seasons but it's still pretty impressive!

Alessandro Caputo - Fans Player of the Year. 20 assists over the season with an average rating of 7.37 was another great return. I rejected offers of over £4m throughout the windows but I might sell if I get an offer of £6m.

Matteo Iovino - Appeared in SPL team of the Year alongside Domingo and Caputo. 9 goals from corners and average rating of 7.32 represented a great start to life in Scotland for this young Italian.

Stuart Armstrong - Scored SPL Goal of the Season.

Team of the Year

Overall Best Eleven

Season Summary

SPL: 2nd (26-6-6 +49 84)

Europa League: 2nd Knockout Round (1-5 v Besiktas)

Cooperative Insurance Cup: Runners-up (2-4 vs Celtic)

Scottish Cup: Winners (4-0 v Hearts)

In no uncertain terms, this was a great year for Berwick Rangers and we've moved up 101 places to 92nd in the UEFA rankings, the SPL moves up 1 to 11th.

I expect to challenge for the title again next season (my 10th season in charge), and with Champions League football coming to Shielfied Park for the first time in history, I expect the stature of the club to continue to grow. Average attendance was up to 6405 but we still did not sell-out our stadium for any match which is still quite a concern but at least it is still going up gradually. I will be intrigued to see what the board will do once they have purchased the stadium. I've also signed a new 2 year contract extension.

Transfer wise, I will be hoping to keep the core of my team together and bring in a left-sided midfielder and maybe a left back if I can find someone better than I have already.

[RichG]

Grats on winning the cup mate. Silverware is always a bonus.

Have you asked the board to expand the stadium? Find out if it is a council or financial problem.

Next season could be the big one

[greenwhitearmy]

Next season will be the one 10th season lucky? eh

[RichG]

I just noticed all you sponsorships expire next season as well.

That could be a real financial boost if you have a good season this year. Maybe jumping to a total of £1m + if you can strike it lucky

How funny would it be if Scotland got 3 ECC places and 4 league EC places. That would make that 7th place like a mini league of its own. All the bottom teams fighting for that one spot for Europe to turn the club around

[AK22]

Grats on winning the cup mate. Silverware is always a bonus.

Have you asked the board to expand the stadium? Find out if it is a council or financial problem.

Next season could be the big one

Board's not interested in expanding at all. Keep being told that 'the current one is biggest enough for a club of our stature'. Even the guilt trip of 'all the things I've done for this club' didn't work- they didn't batter an eyelid! However, they have found it necessary to take out a £2.6m loan to improve the training facilities!

Just played first game of new season and had first ever stadium sellout. Promising times ahead!

Next season will be the one 10th season lucky? eh

Fingers crossed!

[AK22]

I just noticed all you sponsorships expire next season as well.

That could be a real financial boost if you have a good season this year. Maybe jumping to a total of £1m + if you can strike it lucky

How funny would it be if Scotland got 3 ECC places and 4 league EC places. That would make that 7th place like a mini league of its own. All the bottom teams fighting for that one spot for Europe to turn the club around

Sponsorship is now totaling £755k per year which is above average for the league. If I remember correctly, Hearts get the most at just over £1m.

In coefficients news, if Scotland can climb 1 more place to 9th then the SPL will get another Europa League place. I think this will happen this season or next. We need to get it to 6th for a 3rd Champions League spot so still quite away off, even though I would love it if the SPL overtook the English Premier League.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Impressive progress. Champions League next season.

[433tom]

Great job. I'm betting you win the League next season.

[AK22]

Just had this great little news item pop up to celebrate my 500th game in charge...



Nice little touch by SI

[RichG]

nice going 500 is a fair milestone.

[433tom]

Great stuff... 9 years would be a record for me. You going to make it a 1000 with Berwick?

[Flamers]

Well done, just caught up on this. Quite a rise there!

Flamers

[AK22]

nice going 500 is a fair milestone.

Great stuff... 9 years would be a record for me. You going to make it a 1000 with Berwick?

Well done, just caught up on this. Quite a rise there!

Flamers

9 years is a record for me too. Normally I get itchy feet if I spend more than 5 years at any one club.

That saying, there is still quite a challenge here with Berwick. My 10th season is going well but I would like to continue the improvement to the league rep so we can start to attract the big names and be able to compete in Europe eventually.

[RichG]

yeah 10 years is a max for me. Not really gone to 15 or 20 before.

You have a good challenge so should make 20 seasons easy

[Deisler26]

Congrats on the 500 games and the cup win!

[B.W.G]

Congrats on the win, hope you can get the league title for your 10th season in charge

[AK22]

2019/20 Season 10 - Berwick Rangers

So somehow my reputation had risen to 'World Class'. Not really sure how but I had to live up to this! Champions League expectation were low enough (as they should be!) to just reach the playoff but the Board wanted continental qualification in the league and decent domestic cup runs. The media predicted us 4th again but with title odds of 3-1. Season tickets grew quite considerably by 379 to 1896.

Facilities - The board have completed the purchase of the stadium but are still not willing to 'splash the dash' on any expansions. Training facilities have been improved again.

Finances - Really healthy for a club of our stature. Board paid off some of the outstanding loans too.

Wage Budget - Plenty of room to maneuvre here

Transfer Summary - Spent £2.7m on a handful of players. Decided to cash in on my captain, Gregory Vernier. £2m for an average right back seemed good business. However, I will miss him and the 232 appearances he made.

Key transfers

Christopher Drazan (£2.4m) - My record signing. Desperate for a good ML and this guy from Brest seemed to fit the bill.

Wilfried Wamba (Free) - This FC joined me in January on a free from Malmo. A proven goalscorer in Sweden with 68 goals in 99 appearance, I was hoping he could replicate this in Scotland.

Champions League - Group Stages

After exceeding expectations and dispatching Bursapor (4-3) and Sporting Lisbon (4-2) in the Qualifying Round, we were drawn a very tricky group of CSKA Moscow, HSV and Real Madrid. We had no hope of qualifying from this group, and hopes of finishing 3rd were extremely slim. We were absolutely battered and only won 1 point in a 1-1 draw in Moscow. Real Madrid taught us a lesson in the Bernabeu and whooped us 7-1 courtesy of a Higuain hat-trick. Well, the TV money will come in handy and I'm sure Cristiano & co enjoyed their day out in Berwick!

SPL - 1st

Champions! It couldn't have gone much better to be honest and we had it sewn up with 3 games to go. To celebrate it in style, we beat Celtic 5-1 at Celtic Park. We only lost 3 games over the season including a 6-3 drubbing away to Celtic. That blip aside, we performed when we needed to and had some great results along the way including wins over the other big teams Rangers, Hearts and Celtic.

Co-op Challenge Cup - Runner-Up

Once again, we reached the final. Once again, we lost to Celtic. At least we finished with 11 men on the field this year...an improvement!

Scottish Cup - Winners

Double Winners! We had to do it the hard way, knocking Celtic out in a thriller in the 4th Round and then Rangers at Ibrox in the Quarter Final. Our reward for this was a fairly straightforward final against Dundee of 1st Division. After we scored after 36 seconds, Dundee surrendered, and Wilfied Wamba went on the score a hat-trick.

Key Players

Domingo - After Vernier departure, I had no hesitation in making Domingo my club captain. Even after missing 4 weeks through injury, he still managed to pick up SPL topscorer for the 4th season in a row! 85 goals in 123 league appearances is legendary! 27 goals in all competitions this season. In SPL Team of the Year.

Alessandro Caputo - Won Scottish Football Writers Player of the Year and also Fans Player of the Year at Berwick. 29 assists in all competitions and an average rating of 7.34 - very consistent. In SPL Team of the Year.

Tomas Rodriguez - Form dipped in the New Year but still had a good return of 15 league goals in 33 games.

Wilfried Wamba - Having joined us in January, it took him a few weeks to break into the team. When he did, 11 goals in 18 games was enough to earn him SPL Signing of the Season.

Matteo Iovino - Another great season at the back. Good average rating of 7.22. In SPL Team of the Year.

Nikos Argyriou - My star GK. 16 clean sheets in the league kept things nice and tight at the back. At the age of 27 he should just be entering the peak of his career.

Team of the Year

Overall Best 11

Season Summary

SPL: 1st (28-7-3 +53 91)

Champions League: Group Stages (4th)

Co-op Challenge Cup: Runner-Up (0-2 v Celtic)

Scottish Cup: Winners (3-0 v Dundee)

A great season for us. Doing the double was an amazing achievement for a club like Berwick, even though the Board said it was always likely (once the trophies were in the cupboard!). I'm SPL Manager of the Year again and an icon now too!

Next season will be interesting as Dundee Utd had a tycoon takeover halfway through the season. They have increased their club finances quite considerably and are now considered rich . If they start throwing money about left, right and centre, it will be difficult for us to compete. Hopefully, they will do a Man City and make some iffy signings that don't gel too well, as I would like to retain the trophies we won this season. An improvement in Europe wouldn't go a-miss too even though we're now up to the dizzy heights of 84th best team in Europe! SPL remains 11th best league.

Other goals for next season include trying to expand the stadium. We had 8 sellouts this season and an average attendance of 7410, so it must be surely on the cards soon; a capacity of 8765 is not good enough for the Champions of Scotland! I also need to focus a bit more on youth recruitment as we have only 3 homegrown players which is making the squad selection for European competitions a bit tricky and I also need to name 3 outfield players under 21 in the squad for SPL matches.

[AK22]

I have now completed 10 seasons of 'Project Berwick' so here's a summary of what has happened in my 9 days of game time! Enjoy stat-lovers!

Berwick Rangers Roll of Honour

2010/11 2nd Scottish 3rd Division

2011/12 Winner Scottish 2nd Division, Runner Up ALBA Challenge Cup
2012/13 6th Scottish 1st Division, Winner ALBA Challenge Cup
2013/14 Winner Scottish 1st Division, Runner Up Scottish Cup, Winner ALBA Challenge Cup
2014/15 6th Scottish Premier League
2015/16 4th Scottish Premier League
2016/17 3rd Scottish Premier League, Runner Up Scottish Cup
2017/18 3rd Scottish Premier League, Runner Up Scottish Cup
2018/19 Runner Up Scottish Premier League, Winner Scottish Cup, Runner Up Co-op Insurance Cup
2019/20 Winner Scottish Premier League, Winner Scottish Cup, Runner Up Co-op Insurance Cup

Manager Awards

SPL Manager of the Year - 2014/15, 2015/16, 2017/18, 2019/20
SPL Manager of the Month - Feb 2017, Sep 2018, Sep 2019, Feb 2020, Apr 2020, May 2020
1st Division Manager of the Year - 2012/13, 2013/14
1st Division Manager of the Month - Oct 2012, Aug 2013, Mar 2014
2nd Division Manager of the Year - 2011/12
2nd Division Manager of the Month - Sep 2011, Nov 2011

3rd Division Manager of the Year - 2010/11

Manager Stats

Overall Record : P 507 W 279 D 107 L 121 GS 871 GC 559 GD +312 Win Ratio : 55%

Time At Club : 3642 Days
Total Career Earnings : £1.1m Fees Paid To Agents : £2.4m
Players Bought : 84 (£6.55m) Players Sold : 2 (£8.75m) Players Released : 118
Highest Transfer Fee Paid : £2.4m for Christopher Drazan (22/07/19 from Brest)
Highest Transfer Fee Received : £3.0m for Manuel Gill (11/07/2017 to Steaua)

Major Competitions

World Cup

2014 England (2nd Brazil 3rd Spain Hosts Brazil)
2018 Mexico (2nd Germany 3rd Spain Hosts Russia)

European Championship

2012 Italy (2nd England Hosts Poland)
2016 Spain (2nd Italy Hosts France)
2020 Spain (2nd Italy Hosts Spain)

Champions League

2011 Chelsea
2012 Chelsea
2013 Atletico Madrid
2014 Real Madrid
2015 Real Madrid
2016 Atletico Madrid
2017 Chelsea
2018 Lyon
2019 Chelsea
2020 Juventus

Europa League

2011 Schalke
2012 Inter
2013 CSKA Moscow
2014 Palermo
2015 AC Milan
2016 Liverpool
2017 Liverpool
2018 Barcelona
2019 Sevilla
2020 Arsenal

Scottish Premier League

2010/11 Rangers
2011/12 Rangers
2012/13 Rangers
2013/14 Celtic
2014/15 Rangers
2015/16 Rangers
2016/17 Celtic
2017/18 Celtic
2018/19 Hearts
2019/20 Berwick

Scottish Cup

2011 Rangers
2012 Inverness CT
2013 Rangers
2014 Rangers
2015 Motherwell
2016 Rangers
2017 Celtic
2018 Hearts
2019 Berwick
2020 Berwick

[RichG]

Grats on the double. Makes up for the painful defeat in the bernabau against Madrid. You look set to dominate scotland now as Rangers look set to collapse. Just Dundee Utd stand in your way

KUTGW

[AK22]

European Championship 2020

Hosts: Spain
Holders: Spain

Spain successfully defended their trophy with a 2-1 victory in the Nuevo Mestalla, Valencia. Bojan was the top scorer with 6 goals, this chap did well too!

England succumbed to Spain in the 2nd Round (boo!) after losing to Israel and only finishing 2nd in their group. Scotland also made it to the 2nd Round (topped their group with Spain 2nd!) but lost to Denmark.

Euro 2028 will be held in England...Rule Britannia!

[AK22]

Grats on the double. Makes up for the painful defeat in the bernabau against Madrid. You look set to dominate scotland now as Rangers look set to collapse. Just Dundee Utd stand in your way

KUTGW

Cheers! Yes, Madrid was painful to watch. Completely helpless situation in which we were totally outclassed.

I think you might be right about Dundee Utd too, the title odds for next season are quite interesting!

[hrbfcrule]

Fantastic progress

Congratz on finally winning the SPL

[Nobby_McDonald]

Keeping knocking on the door and eventually it will open.

[AK22]

It appears the FM Gods were against me when they made the Champions League draw:



Anticipating a couple of hidings at the Bernabeu (again) and Eastlands!

[Raware]

Excellent progression in this save AK22 . Pity about the Champions League draw but i'm sure there'll be other opportunities! Nice to see yourselves and Dundee United breaking the old firm too!

[B.W.G]

Some brilliant progress just ashame about the nasty looking draw

[AK22]

Excellent progression in this save AK22 . Pity about the Champions League draw but i'm sure there'll be other opportunities! Nice to see yourselves and Dundee United breaking the old firm too!

Some brilliant progress just ashame about the nasty looking draw

Alas, our Champions League adventure has come to an end for this season. But we managed to finish 3rd in the group which included a 2-1 win over Real Madrid at Shielfield Park. I'm sure the 6000 that attended will never forget that moment!

[433tom]

Congrats on winning the League. I smell a Dynasty coming your way.

[AK22]

Season 11 - 2020/21 Berwick Rangers

After the success of winning the SPL and Scottish Cup, expectations were raised by the Board. They wanted us to challenge for the title, semi-final for the domestic cups and group stages of the Champions League. Media prediction was for us to finish 1st. Title odds were at 5-2, joint favourites with money-bags Dundee United. Basically, success was expected and, for the first time, we were not going to be the underdogs. Season tickets increased up to 2500.

Facilities - The board have agreed to expand the stadium, the youth recruitment network and the training facilities. The planning stages will take all season, so the improvements will not be seen until next season at the earliest.

Finances - Champions League revenue really helping here. We're considered rich now but club value still not as high as Old Firm.

Wage Budget - Looking good here

Transfer Summary - Needed to bring in some youngsters to satisfy the 'Age Restrictions' for the SPL and Champions League. Raided my parent club Real Madrid for 3 promising youngsters.

Key Transfers

Alex Lundgren (500k) - Young goalkeeper bought from FC Midtjylland. Hopefully, will be a decent back-up and should be pushing for first team action in a couple of seasons.

Daniel (1.4m) - Young CB signed from Real Madrid. Potential.

Eugenio Grillo (700k) - Young Aussie CB from Sydney FC. Good height and jumping so should be a threat at set-pieces.

Champions League - Group Stages (3rd)

We certainly didn't embarrass ourselves this year. The highlight result of the season was the 2-1 victory over Real Madrid at Shielfield Park. A close 2nd was the 1-0 win in Istanbul against Fenerbahce. These results meant we finished a respectable 3rd in the group and qualified to the Europa League knockout stages. (We only lost 2-0 in Madrid this year too!)

Europa League - 1st Knockout Round

Unfortunately, we didn't last very long in competition. The 3-1 agg defeat against Zenit St Petersburg signaled our exit from the competition and the start of a downward spiral that would last til the end of the season.

SPL - 2nd

We started by beating Dunfermline 6-0 in the opening game, scoring goals for fun and in great form, we didn't lose a game until November. By the half-way stage, Rangers and ourselves had pulled away from the rest of the pack with surprise-package St Mirren doing well too. Dundee Utd's title challenge never materialised but Rangers had a resurgence under new manager Ally McCoist to recover from the 6th position they finished last year. We started to lose our way come February, had a big drop in form, and morale never really recovered which put an end to our title challenge (we lost out by 2 points).

We also had the distraction of a board takeover that was in negotiations all season. The takeover never went through, but the chairman is still looking to leave.

Position Graph

Co-op Insurance Cup - Semi Final

Rangers beat us 4-2 on penalties at a snowy Hampden Park. We should have done better as they went down to 10 men after 65 minutes. My players don't seem to have the same hunger for success as they did previously.

Scottish Cup - Semi Final

Our defence of our trophy was ended by Celtic 4-3 AET. We were 3-1 up at half-time. The rest of the match was torture as we pressed the self-destruct button and handed them victory with a 107th minute penalty.

Key Players

Domingo - Had an average season by his standards but still scored 22 goals in all competitions. Will need to get him firing on all cylinders next season.

Alessandro Caputo - Relieved of his corners taking duties. Still had a decent enough season to be voted Fans POTY. Quite a few clubs sniffing around now.

Stuart Armstrong - Chipped in with 10 goals and 10 assists from midfield. Leaving on a free to Fulham in the summer. Will miss Mr Consistency.

Tomas Rodriguez - Started the season on fire but lost confidence in the new year. Might flog him in the summer if get a decent offer of +£3m.

Khalid Yilmaz - 17 assist, mainly from set-pieces, and 7 useful goals from midfield.

Luca Ruggeri - 13 goals and 14 assists but temperamental and inconsistent. Outrageous demands for new contract so going to sell in the summer.

Team of the Year

Overall Best 11

Season Summary

Champions League : Group Stage (3rd Place)

Europa League : 1st Knockout Round (1-3 vs Zenit St Petersburg)

SPL : 2nd (25-6-7 +50 81)

Co-op Insurance Cup : Semi-Final (2-4 on pens vs Rangers)

Scottish Cup : Semi-Final (3-4 AET vs Celtic)

A bit disappointed to end the season trophy-less. On another day, with a bit more luck, it was perceivable that we could have won a domestic treble. I reckon I will get a decent transfer budget in the summer so will want to strengthen the team to get back in contention for honours again next season. I'll be losing a couple of players on frees over the summer, so will need a CB, MC and a FC to strengthen the core of the team. We will also need to overcome the qualifying rounds of the Champions League, as by finishing 2nd we do not automatically qualify for the group stage. Up to 57th in the UEFA club rankings too.

The takeover saga is still continuing in the background as a slight distraction. There was a mention that the new chairman would be looking to install a new manager; I will be seriously peeved if that is the case. I will be also be interested to see what the new owners will do with the facilities at Shielfield Park. We sold out 16 home fixtures this season with an average of 8207 so demand is definitely growing. I've signed a 3 year contract extension so I'll be difficult to sack now!

[Nobby_McDonald]

You beat Madrid! Blow me sideways!

[RichG]

Good season but no silverware. Just got to hang in there until the developments happen.

Any idea on a capacity?

Gutted Rangers got back to the top. They have just finished 7th in my save. They have turned me down twice so far for the job

[safcrhys]

How many titles have Rangers won mate? Must be close to sixty now.

[AK22]

Good season but no silverware. Just got to hang in there until the developments happen.

Any idea on a capacity?

Gutted Rangers got back to the top. They have just finished 7th in my save. They have turned me down twice so far for the job

Just been informed of my stadium expansion...



FFS! Just replacing a section of the terraces with some seats! That means another season with a capacity of 8765!

[AK22]

How many titles have Rangers won mate? Must be close to sixty now.

They've just won their 59th title. Had 3 dodgy years when they finished outside the top 2 but recovered well under McCoist to pip us to the title last season.

[AK22]

You beat Madrid! Blow me sideways!

We definitely rode our luck but we all need a bit of luck sometimes

[RichG]

lol that sucks man.

Expecting 10,000+ and they kick you in the balls

[AK22]

Season 12 - 2021/22 Berwick Rangers

After being the bridesmaids in every domestic competition last season, I was expecting some improvement and at least 1 trophy to be won. The board expectations were similar to previous years, challenge for the title and semi-finals for domestic cups. They also wanted to reach the Champions League playoff. The media predicted us to finish 2nd and this was confirmed with title odds of 5-2. Season tickets continued to improve up to 2414 (+104) . The board takeover finally happened too. You'll be pleased to know that they will NOT be investing in the club at this time!

Facilities - Aside from the training facilities, everything else is simply not good enough for the stature the club is at now. Investment and expansion required- URGENTLY!

Finances - Still really healthy. Decent transfer budget for this year too- £10m!

Wage Budget - Having to pay more in wages to keep my best players now

Transfer Summary

Key Transfers

Luke Shepherd (£4.2m) - Signed from Chelsea for a club record fee. At 20 years old, this ST should become a key player for the team.

Alberto Serafini (£2m) - This Uruguayan ML was signed from FC Vaslui. Should provide some quality crosses.

Rincon (£1.5m) - Another MC. This Austrian international (half-Brazilian) will add more depth to the squad.

Hasan Dolek (£2.2m) - Only 18 and can play anywhere across the back. Likes a tackle or two!

Champions League - Playoff

After a miraculous comeback against Benfica in the 3rd Qualifying Round (where all of my four strikers got carried off injured!), we were unlucky to draw to Valencia in the Playoff. A 1-0 defeat in the Mestalla was enough to beat us on aggregate and send us into Europa League.

Europa League - 1st Knockout Round

We found ourselves as 2nd seeds in the draw, so I was confident we would reach the knockout stages. We did well in our group and finished a close 2nd to HSV. Once again, though, the draw was unfavourable to us and Man City beat us 5-3 on aggregate to put us back in our box for another year.

SPL - 2nd

Position Graph

For the second season in a row it was a two-horse between us and Rangers. We would take it in turns to top the table but come the end of the season we lost out by 1 point on the final game. We broke the SPL goalscoring record, scoring 94 goals with a goal difference of +60, which was pretty impressive, so were the 5-2 win over Rangers and the 7-0 win over Celtic (note their downfall, they finished 6th and didn't qualify for Europe!). Our downfall was our dodgy away record where we dropped 25 points, something we will need to improve on next season.

Co-op Insurance Cup - Winner

We won this trophy for the first time in my career with a satisfying 2-0 win over Celtic in the final. It was a great performance by us, one where we really stepped up to the occasion (for once!).

Scottish Cup - Runner-Up

We reached the final for the 6th time in my career and it went all the way to penalties. In a nervy shootout, we missed 4 penalties to lose 2-1 to Rangers.

Key Players

Luke Shepherd - 30 goals in his first season was a great return and proved his worth of the £4.2m I paid for him. Fans POTY.

Domingo - In an injury-ravaged season, he still chipped in with 18 goals and is now the Berwick league goals record holder.

Steve Allen - This youngster did well in the first team with 13 goals while covering for injuries.

Alessandro Caputo - Another consistent season, 12 assists. Contract expires next summer and now wants an absurd wage to stay!

Khalid Yilmaz - 20 assists this season. Great delivery from set-pieces. SPL TOTY. Scottish Football Writers Player of the Year.

Daniel Fransson - This beast at the back only missed 2 league games when he was suspended. Good average rating of 7.30. SPL TOTY.

Matteo Iovino - Average rating of 7.32 for the other DC. SPL TOTY

Rafael Sanchez - 14 assists and a good average rating. Clubs sniffing around.

Cristian Di Biase - 13 goals and 15 assists from the centre of midfield. His best season so far! SPL TOTY.

Team of the Year

Overall Best 11

Season Summary

Champions League: Playoff (0-1 vs Valencia)

Europa League: 1st Knockout Round (3-5 vs Man City)

SPL: 2nd (26-7-5 +60 85)

Co-op Insurance Cup: Winner (2-0 vs Celtic)

Scottish Cup: Runner-Up (2-2 AET 1-2 Pens vs Rangers)

At times this season our play was fantastic, creating lots of chances and scoring loads of goals. We had 17 home sell-outs (av att 8215) and the board have agreed to expand the stadium and the youth recruitment. Unfortunately, this turned out to be another terrace-to-seats conversion! Our club standing is still increasing, the club ranking has improved to 41st best team in Europe. Next season, I really want to make some inrodes into latter stages of Europe. Hopefully some of the other Scottish clubs can do the same and help improve the league reputation into the top 10 of Europe. On the homefront, we should be in contention for all competitions again, so it will just be a case of whether we can topple Rangers or not.

[Raware]

Another good season and at least you managed that trophy win this year . Fantastic win against Celtic too; i'm surprised at their demise. Why d'you think they've fallen so much?

[Nobby_McDonald]

Another cracking season.

[RichG]

firstly gratz on another great season. So close again in the league. Winning the cup was nice again also. You ahve a great base for the team now its just a shame the board are sorting the club for you

Secondly sort the chairman out lol. Just putting seats in is not helping you at all. What's you average attendance this season? surely they must see the value of expanding. I got Chesterfields ground from 10,500 to 13,000 and they have just agreed to look into expanding again after I said it would make us fall behind the other teams if they did not do it. And they said yes. They are also developing the youth and training facilities after asking as well.

Keep asking and you will brake them down slowly

KUTGW mate going great

[AK22]

Another good season and at least you managed that trophy win this year . Fantastic win against Celtic too; i'm surprised at their demise. Why d'you think they've fallen so much?

Last year they really had a shocker; 6th was the lowest they have finished since 1964/65 when they finshed 8th! They've just sacked Neil Lennon; I'm surprised it has taken so long as they been in decline for the last 4 seasons mainly down to not 'keeping up with the Jones'' in terms of transfers. Berwick is certainly a better team than them now!

Another cracking season.

Aiming for another title next season though. Damn those pesky Glaswegians!

firstly gratz on another great season. So close again in the league. Winning the cup was nice again also. You ahve a great base for the team now its just a shame the board are sorting the club for you

Secondly sort the chairman out lol. Just putting seats in is not helping you at all. What's you average attendance this season? surely they must see the value of expanding. I got Chesterfields ground from 10,500 to 13,000 and they have just agreed to look into expanding again after I said it would make us fall behind the other teams if they did not do it. And they said yes. They are also developing the youth and training facilities after asking as well.

Keep asking and you will brake them down slowly

KUTGW mate going great

Feels like I'm banging my head against a brick wall at the moment! Patience is not my strong point! I'm majorly envious of your 13000 deluxe stadium too

[AK22]

2022 - Chile

With everything seeming quite stable at Berwick, I accepted the job offer from Chile as a little side-project and dipped my toe in murky waters of international management. I must admit it is extremely unrealistic that a manager in Scotland would travel to Chile for a 2nd job, but it seemed like a good challenge.

When I took over in October 2021, Chile had already qualified for the 2022 World Cup (coming 3rd behind Argentina and Brazil) and were 21st in the World Rankings. For some reason the previous chap decided to quit after doing all the hard work, so it was left to me to revel in the glory of a World Cup campaign!

The squad was quite unbalanced (maybe due to the lack of leagues loaded), no wingers or full backs but plenty of strikers and defensive midfielders. There was a handful of decent players, so I hoped we would give a respectable performance at the World Cup.

Before the World Cup we had to play some pointless friendlies:

Bahamas (A) 3-0
Singapore (A) 7-0
Serbia (H) 0-0
Paraguay (H) 0-1

I really struggled to find a tactic that was suitable for the team but, at least, I had near enough worked out who my best players were.

World Cup 2022

Hosts: China

Holders: Mexico

Once again I was struck by the curse of the draw-masters and handed a tough group with Germany, Portugal and Nigeria. Expectations were for us to make it to the 2nd Round, which would be quite an achievement considering the teams we would play! Our odds for winning were 16-1 with favourites Brazil at evens.

Group H

Germany 0-2
Portugal 2-1
Nigeria 3-2

Our performances were flaky to say the least. It would have been concievable for us to have lost all 3 matches and ended up with the wooden spoon. However, this was not to be the case, and by securing second in the group, set up a tie against Austria in the next round.

2nd Round

Austria 1-4

Shocking! Totally outplayed. At least this defeat saved us the humiliation of being stuffed by Argentina in the Quarter-Final.

Spain would end being victorious, beating Italy 2-1 in the final at the Bird's Nest Beijing Olympic Stadium, with this chap netting the winner. (Defending champions Mexico finished bottom of their group.)

I promptly resigned after we were knocked out. There was never likely to be any long term with Chile and the players didn't seem to adapt well to my style of play. On a positive, I am now fluent in Spanish!

[433tom]

Heartbreaking to lose the SPL by a point. Hopefully you'll win it this season.

[Nobby_McDonald]

One penalty shootout too far for England.

[AK22]

Heartbreaking to lose the SPL by a point. Hopefully you'll win it this season.

Cheers! Hopefully, Rangers won't be as strong this term.

One penalty shootout too far for England.

Mancini has left the England job after the World Cup and now been replaced by...Ancelotti. His record in penalty shootouts is just as bad as England's!

[AK22]

I love my new chairman. I didn't even have to give him the guilt-trip!





New stadium coming my way!