[FMC 14] English Football, Classic Style

I've noticed there aren't very many threads here describing FM Classic careers. I think I'll give it a go.

At this stage of my life--with a wife, three kids, and a career--I've been forced to conclude that I don't have the time to immerse myself as completely in the full FM experience as I might like. My dreams of playing out a long career have been just that: dreams. It's simply too difficult to allocate the hours--as enjoyable as they are--to making significant progress while I'm playing the full-featured game.

I tinkered with FM Classic 13 a little bit last spring, but never really gave it a chance. Since then, I've bought FM 14 (yes, I know I'm an edition behind), and today I took my first look at FM Classic 14. I think we have ourselves a winner.

I've decided I'm going to manage in England, starting at a lower level and seeing where my football journey takes me. I'm not sure if I'll turn out to be a journeyman who takes the reins of one club after another, a career boss with a statue in his honor outside the grounds of the club he led to glory, or something in between. I might decide to add new countries to my game and take my talents there, or not. I guess we'll find out what happens.

Here's where the story will begin:

Bishop's Stortford Football Club is located in Hertfordshire. They play in the Skrill South, the sixth level of English football.

The Blues are predicted to finish in the middle of the table this season. We have a wage budget of £2,945/week, with about £200 available. We have no money for transfers, so unless I sell a player or two, I'll be entering the season with, basically, the team I have in front of me now. Several of the most talented players in the team are out of contract, and as tight as our budget is right now, if other clubs come around with contract offers, I might not be able to keep them. If that happens, I'll have to look for some low-cost replacements.

Once our pre-season friendlies have been completed, I'll introduce you to the squad that will represent the Blues in league play.

I know a Classic career might be a rarer sight on the forum here, but I hope at least some of you will enjoy following along.

17 August 2013

Today, the Blues begin their Skrill South campaign, hosting Sutton United at Woodside Park. Here are the players who make up the squad as the season begins. Both the first team and the reserves are listed here.

Goalkeepers

Both keepers are young and promising. Cowler is the number one, but I'd have no problem with Wright between the posts, either.

Defenders

Two of the most talented defenders on our original roster, Johnny Herd and Sean Francis, were lost to bigger clubs when I couldn't afford to meet their contract demands. Herd is now with Aldershot, and Francis signed for Dartford.

Herd's departure opened up a spot at left back, which I filled by signing Murray. He's a solid veteran and a leader, and he's our vice captain. McNaughton will be everpresent in the center, paired with either Valentine or Farmer. I signed both of these promising youngsters to play the position Francis vacated. Miller will be the right back; both he and Murray are capable of pushing forward as wing backs or playing more defensive roles. Quinn is my newest signing, putting his name to his contract just today. He can cover anywhere in the back line, and is good at DM©, too.

Defensive Midfielders

I often play a 4-1(DM)-2-2-1 with this side, so a solid defensive midfielder is a must. Church is younger, bigger, and stronger, but he's a non-contract player who has been courted by other clubs. Symonds is a tough, tenacious player who's been in good form during the pre-season. They will both see plenty of action. Quinn and Murray aren't as comfortable here as they are in the back line. Their ability and potential ratings are based on their play as defenders.

Midfielders

We had a midfielder called Matt Johnson on our original roster, but he accepted a very generous offer from Eastleigh, one of the richer clubs in our league. I was planning to pair him with Prestedge in our central midfield. Prestedge is an active player with good skills for this level, and he is the club's captain. Unfortunately, he'll be sidelined for five or six more weeks with a twisted ankle. I've been starting Milbourne, who is our most promising young player. My assistant, Paul Hilton, has a good eye for talent, and he says Milbourne could be a good League 2 player one day. Murphy, another of the unattached players I signed this month, looks like he might be a bargain at £25/week. Again, players like Quinn, Symonds, and Church can cover here if they're needed, and so can Baker, who is better suited for an attacking role. Sackey is a utility man who can play anywhere on the right side or in the middle. I like having a plug-and-play fellow like him in the team.

Attacking Midfielders

Baker can play on either wing; he's right-footed, so playing him on the left intrigues me. He is especially deadly on set pieces. Adams is currently the first choice on the other side, but there's a player you'll meet in a moment who isn't listed as an AM (even though he's proficient there) who is the regular starter. Murphy and Prestedge can also move up to AM© if I want to use one.

Strikers

Woodall is my first choice when I play a single striker. He's best as a target man or a defensive forward, and he has the best technical skills among our attackers. Akurang is a tower of strength in the box, and if I team him with Woodall, he plays the "big man" role. Enver-Marum is the player I referred to above, who can (and does) play in all three attacking midfield slots. He will be unavailable for about a month, as he's injured his ankle, too. I like Asante, who provides lots of pace and approaches his craft with a professional attitude. Elmes can fly, and he's as good a finisher as we have in the team. Fagbohun probably won't play a first team match all season. I've got a lot of my salary budget tied up in these guys, as Woodall, Akurang, and Enver-Marum are our three highest earners.

Sky Bet sets our odds of winning promotion at 25-1, with Eastleigh and Ebbsfleet joint favorites at 6-1.

8 October 2013

The Skrill Conference South plays a 42-game season, so we are coming to the quarter pole this week. I'd like to be higher up the table, but we're almost exactly where the "experts" predicted we'd end up. There are 22 teams in the league, and fortunately we're not so far down that I have to mess with the screen shot in order to get us into the picture.

The board isn't thrilled that we're already out of the FA Cup, but we had a difficult draw, away to Ebbsfleet...for the second time in three weeks. We looked a lot better in the league game than we did in the Cup tie.

Due to injuries, I haven't been able to put my preferred first eleven on the pitch a single time. In late August, Callum McNaughton bruised his thigh and missed three weeks. Two weeks later, just as Reece Prestedge and Liam Enver-Marum were about to return to action, Harry Baker twisted his knee. He's just now returned to training. Ashley Miller is out with broken ribs, and Enver-Marum hurt his wrist lifting weights. It will probably be two more weeks before either of them is ready to play.

With so many of our players on the physio list, I spent some time looking for some players who could come in and provide us with some cover at very little cost. so On 26 August, I brought in Eddie Nisevic on loan from Brackley. He's 22, and he's a solid, all-round player; he's a lot better than an emergency gap-filler. The fans wouldn't mind seeing me relegate Fred Murray to the bench and play Nisevic at left back, but I think Murray will turn things around and be just fine.

Our scout also found an 18-year-old Welsh free agent, Josh Green. He can play right or left back and defensive midfield, and he will cost us only £5 a week. We haven't needed him yet, but since Barry Quinn is the only healthy player I have who can play right back, it's good to have Josh in the team.

I'm struggling to find a formation that works well for this team. I have two good strikers in Brad Woodall and Cliff Akurang, and I'd like to get them both on the field. However, if I do that, I'm almost locked into a formation that uses right and left midfielders, and my wingers seem to all be better at playing AM® and AM(L). Woodall started the season on fire, but he's cooled down a little now.

On another note, I'm enjoying playing Classic more than I thought I would. I use the instant result/match plan option most of the time, and I'm working on creating match plans that work well.

Really nice thread

I look forward to seeing your progress, and I'm especially keen to hear about any Match Plan experiences.

Good to see another FMC update, good luck with Bishop's Stortford.

Really nice thread

I look forward to seeing your progress, and I'm especially keen to hear about any Match Plan experiences.

Thanks very much, RT, and thank you for linking my thread to the general discussion page for FM Classic.

I've had some interesting experiences with Match Plans, and I'll share my experiences in my thread.

Good to see another FMC update, good luck with Bishop's Stortford.

Thanks, Maw. Once you read my next update, you'll see that my days with Bishop's Stortford might be numbered. I hope they'll keep me around, because I'm starting to like it there.

30 December 2013

It's not looking like a very Happy New Year for me or the Blues. The season is roughly half over, and we've dropped seven places on the table since early October. Over that span, I've gone 1-3-7, which has not endeared me to the good people at Bishop's Stortford Football Club.

We had a decent little run in the FA Trophy, but that's over now, too, courtesy of a very good Weston-super-Mare side.

Dwight Gayle of Crystal Palace, one of the supporters' favorite "old boys," described our match on the 28th, away to Sutton United, as a "must-win" fixture. We lost, 0-3, but somehow I escaped being sacked.

Perhaps I've been trying to do too much. I've brought in three new loan players: winger Kiernan Hughes-Mason from Welling United, midfielder Kyle Dixon from Notts County, and midfielder Jon Adams from Swindon. I might need to let the current squad gel a little; I've read that while tactical familiarity isn't an issue in FM Classic, bringing in too many new faces might keep a squad from playing well as a team.

Dixon, who was far and away the most talented player in the side during his month here, proved to be an absolute bust. We took two points from the five league matches Dixon played in. He didn't want to renew his loan, and I'm not sure I wanted him to.

I've also been tinkering quite a bit with Match Plans, and I wonder if I've done more harm than good. In the beginning of the season, I was choosing one of the basic templates (Play for the draw, Go for a big win, Smash and grab, etc.) After my last update, I began creating custom Match Plans that incorporated team shouts. As you can see, the results were NOT good. I'm not sure if the bigger part of the problem was the tactics and shouts, or the fact that Bishop's Stortford aren't a very good side. For the last match, I simply used Instant Result with no Match Plan, and the result was a steaming pile of suck.

For now, I think I'll go back to basic Match Plans, and see what happens.

I also had another feature I'd read about come up in my game. On 22 December, assistant manager Paul Hilton suggested that I hold a team meeting. It supposedly went well, but the players' morale didn't seem to change. They didn't race onto the pitch, filled with renewed determination to seize the Conference South by the throat. I'm hanging onto my job by what seems to be a slowly unraveling thread.

If I do get sacked, I'll be in fairly good company. Brendan Rodgers was sent packing from Liverpool on 14 November, as the Reds languished in the middle of the table. His replacement, Marcelo Bielsa, hasn't done any better.

However, today in my inbox appeared an interesting item of news. The manager of Eastleigh, Richard Hill, was sacked today. Eastleigh, you may remember, were the sports books' joint favorites at the beginning of the season, so they've been underachieving.

Guess who is "currently odds-on favourite to be offered the job?"

Yours truly. mirrorfootball.com have my odds listed at 5-2, which isn't exactly odds-on, and Peter Shirtliff is listed at 6-2.

I confess; I would be seriously tempted if I were offered the Eastleigh gig. I might even express a bit of interest, and see what happens next...

10 January 2014

The plot thickens...

I took a closer look at the situation at Eastleigh, and it intrigued me. They are a professional club, the only one in the Conference South. I'm not usually one to throw my allegiance to the biggest, richest clubs, and in our league, Eastleigh's payroll looks like it dwarfs everyone else's. However, the club is worth only a little over £60K; Bishop's Stortford is worth almost four times that much. Incidentally, two of the clubs in the league, Concord Rangers and Hayes & Yeading United, are worth the princely sum of £1 each.

A quick look at their team lists showed me that there's quite a bit of talent in the club, more than I would expect for a team lying 13th in the table. According to the job advert, the new manager will be expected to lead the team into the top half of the league. That seems like both a reasonable goal and an enticing challenge to me.

I decided to see what happened if I expressed some interest in the Eastleigh job, knowing that if I did, I was probably giving Bishop's Stortford the green light to send me out of town. Immediately, a journalist from the Non-League Paper asked me to confirm my interest in the job, and I did. Very quickly, a representative of an independent supporters' group told the media that a majority of BSFC supporters wanted to see me go, and if Eastleigh wanted me, they could have me.

On New Year's Day, we played Gosport at home, and lost 0-1 on a penalty. I also submitted an application for the Eastleigh job.

The Bishop's Stortford board was disappointed to learn this, which surprised me. I figured they might be just as glad to be rid of me as the supporters were. The Eastleigh people were flattered by my interest and, honestly, that flattered me.

The media declared that our next fixture, away to Basingstoke on the 4th, was probably do-or-die for my career at Bishop's Stortford. By now, the lads' morale was horrendous, and they went out and played like it, losing 0-3. Amazingly, I wasn't sacked. Still in charge, I took the club to Boreham Wood, where we entertained the crowd with a 4-4 goalsfest. That result was enough to keep me employed.

I read somewhere that one way to raise a club's morale in FMC is to schedule a friendly against a smaller, weaker opponent. I had already lined one up, inviting Great Wakering Rovers to Woodside Park for a match on 9 January, two days after the Boreham Wood fixture. I fielded a rotated squad, and we won 2-0. Even the lads who hadn't played seemed pleased with this outcome, and everyone's morale ticked up a bit.

Today, I opened my inbox and there was a job offer from Eastleigh.

Chairman Stewart Donald is offering me a £575/week contract, through June 2015. I would be charged with helping the team "achieve a respectable league position." I would have a £50,000 transfer budget at my disposal, but with the club paying £18.54K in weekly wages on an £18K budget, I won't be able to sign anyone unless I sell someone first.

(In contrast, I'm working with a £2,955/week wage budget at Bishop's Stortford, and I'm spending all but one pound of it.)

I'm literally going to sleep on it, and decide tomorrow.

It's a shame that it isn't going well, as that is the case I would suggest taking the Eastleigh job especially as it looks likely that another bad result or two could see you in the job centre anyway.

Good luck in your save. I will be following this.

It's a shame that it isn't going well, as that is the case I would suggest taking the Eastleigh job especially as it looks likely that another bad result or two could see you in the job centre anyway.

Thanks for the comment and the advice, Maw. I'm honestly surprised I didn't get sacked after that bad loss to Basingstoke. Possibly the support I received from Dwight Gayle and Martin Hayes, two of the club's most popular former players, helped keep the board off my back.

10 January 2014

My thinking about the Eastleigh position turned out to be a lot like Maw74's. I spoke to Stewart Donald, negotiated a better offer for myself, and am now the new manager at Eastleigh, on £625/week.

There's one alarming thing about my new club, and it literally appeared the DAY I took the job. Look at the value of the club...Eastleigh joined the Clubs Worth Less Than The Money In Your Pocket category!

After peeking under the financial hood a little bit, I decided that the biggest reason for this sad condition is the fact that the club's wage bill is so high. Eastleigh has paid £672K in wages this season, with a turnover of £240K! I'm not an economist, but I can tell this isn't a sustainable condition, and I'm not sure how FM is going to handle it. I don't think I'll be held accountable for it; after all, the board sets the wage budget, and I'm staying under it, so I'm doing my part.

At any rate, I'm the new man in charge at Silverlake Stadium.

Good luck in your save. I will be following this.

Thanks, tyro. I've never had a job with a club with a financial situation like this, so it will be interesting to see how it turns out.

Eastleigh are a terrific club to manage at that level and an £18k wage budget is huge. If it is all spent, that means there is a lot of deadwood there so good luck getting rid of them...

All the best!

The Spitfires, in Very Few Words

Here are the players I'll be managing at Eastleigh. I was delighted to see that Paul Hilton was willing to move with me from Bishop's Stortford. He's a very good assistant manager for this level.

Goalkeepers

Dickinson: Former Southport man in the twilight of his career.

Dovey: He's only played once all year, and with his potential, that seems to be a big mistake.

Flitney: A decent number one, nothing spectacular. Will share his net a little more now.

Defenders

Beckwith: Solid veteran center back, but not getting younger. His big contract might make him expendable after this season.

Carter: In on loan from Gillingham. Currently starting at left back, covering for the injured regular.

Courtney: I like his versatility, but he's an expensive luxury since he doesn't play much. On the transfer list.

Dillon: About to return from a torn groin muscle. I'll get him some playing time if I can, due to his potential for development.

Evans: Needed more at M©; see below.

Green: Also on the injured list, recovering from fractured ribs suffered just before Christmas. A decent, though expensive, option at D(L).

Martin: Talented, but less determined than I'd like. Starting at D© for now.

Rowe-Turner: See Martin, but more talented and less determined. Hasn't had a good season; can he turn things around? If not, he's too pricey to keep.

Solomon: Insurance at all the back line spots.

Spence: Currently starting at D® while the first choice is injured. He's played well, though, and deserves a good, close look.

Todd: Yet another injured defender. Provides leadership; he's the club's vice captain. He'll have to demonstrate he's worth another contract, though.

Vidal: An ankle sprain will sideline him until late February. When he's back, he'll start at D®.

Midfielders

Is it me, or do we seem really, really thin here? If I profiled a player with another position group, I won't include him here, too.

Collins: A very solid anchorman; by far the best choice when I play a DM© (which I often do). His high salary makes him a question mark for next year, though.

Evans: Good enough to start at D© or M©, and young enough to be a part of my future plans here.

Johnson: I had him at Bishop's Stortford for two days. I'll give him a chance at M©, since he's young-ish and he's played well when given the opportunity.

Osborne: Stop me if you've heard this one before. He's out with a bad ankle. Part of the future plans here, though.

Reason: Can play effectively at M© or AM©. Smart and skilled; if he had pace, he'd boss the league. First team.

Robinson: On loan from Luton. Big and strong, decent with the ball, not very fast. Has potential, though.

Southam: The captain. Tough, determined, but what pace he might have had is now gone. Still useful.

Attackers

The wages of Eastleigh's strikers alone would exceed Bishop Stortford's entire wage budget. Most of these blokes aren't dewy-eyed youth, either.

Fleetwood: The side's best front man. Good pace, good technique, good work ethic. Can play a little AM(L) and AM®, but isn't comfy there.

McAllister: Transfer list. Scored 17 times for Eastleigh last season, but hasn't produced when called upon this year. We can't afford to pay him this much to sit.

Odubade: Physical tools are there. Angry about something. Can play AM(L) and AM®, so he'll get a chance. Will need to justify his big paycheck, or he's gone.

Strevens: Strong, good in the air, but slowing down. Can still score goals.

Wilson: A younger version of Strevens, best as a target man. He's not fast now, and he's only 19.

Here's how the Spitfires have produced in league play this season:

Eastleigh are a terrific club to manage at that level and an £18k wage budget is huge. If it is all spent, that means there is a lot of deadwood there so good luck getting rid of them...

All the best!

Thanks, Daz. You're right; there is a LOT of money being spent with little return right now. It seems to me that there would be less expensive, equally productive options out there, so I think it's safe to say that (1) most of the 30-somethings are playing for next year's contract and (2) they'll have to play better than they have in order to be offered one.

Let's hope you don't take Eastleigh the same way as Bishop's Stortford.

Let's hope you don't take Eastleigh the same way as Bishop's Stortford.

You and me both. Thanks for stopping by!

Looks like you have inherited a good squad at Eastleigh, just a shame the club cannot afford them. Are you going to keep the players and get them up quickly, or restructure the squad and be more realistic in your aims?

Good luck!

Looks like you have inherited a good squad at Eastleigh, just a shame the club cannot afford them. Are you going to keep the players and get them up quickly, or restructure the squad and be more realistic in your aims?

Good luck!

Thanks, Kidshiva. I don't think there's any way the club can sustain its current financial situation, so right now I'm leaning toward cleaning house and working on building a less expensive squad that can still contend for promotion in 2014-15.

I'm actually about £100 under the club's wage budget right now. Martin, Strevens, Fleetwood, and Vidal are under contract through 2015. Together, they earn £3300/week. Everyone else's deal expires in June 2014, so I'll be able to free up a lot of money.

When I look at my Board Confidence page, the minimum expectation for our performance in the Conference South is "Win promotion." In the email I received from the chairman when he offered me the job, he said I would be expected to lead the team to a "respectable league position." We've claimed six points from our first four league games under my tenure (a win and three draws), but my Job Security percentage is in the mid-40s. It looks like that reflects the original expectation for the season, not the standard I was given by the chairman. My job security status is Secure, however, which looks like it's a reflection of the chairman's expectations.

18 February 2014

We've enjoyed a good run since I took over at Eastleigh. Despite having five different defenders injured at one time or another, we're on a run of 10 games without a defeat. We're slowly climbing the league table, but we're not gaining much ground on the teams ahead of us. When I took the job, Eastleigh were four points out of the promotion playoffs--I didn't realize they were that close to contention. Now we're three points out.

Sutton United are the hottest team in the Conference South right now. They've accumulated 19 points since the midpoint of the season. Eastbourne Borough (18) and Bath (17) have also played very well. We have 16 points over that span, tied with three other clubs: Weston-super-Mare, Boreham, and Havant & Waterlooville. The clubs in the top half of the table are all pulling away from the rest.

We are also still in the running for the FA Trophy, which the board is very pleased to see. My Eastleigh debut was the Third Round victory away to Brackley, and the most exciting match of my tenure was the Fourth Round replay, when we scored twice in extra time.

I was able to find a good attacking midfielder who was willing to come to us on loan, without our club having to cover any of his salary. Mark Wright will be with us for the remainder of the season. He's a 31-year-old veteran who spent several years at Walsall and at Shrewsbury, and he comes to us from Braintree. Wright will appear regularly in our first team.

Slowly but surely, our injured players are working their way back to fitness. Chris Dillon and Jamey Osborne are back on the pitch, and Mike Green and Javan Vidal are training again and will return to action soon. Chris Todd is probably two weeks away from being able to make a contribution. Unfortunately, Jamie Collins was diagnosed with a sports hernia that will sideline him until April, and Dan Spence will be out for a week or so with a groin strain.

Yemi Odubade has rediscovered his scoring touch, and at this rate, I might make an effort to find the money to renew his contract for next season. However, his attributes are beginning to slide a little bit, which concerns me.

On the whole, though, I'm very happy with how things are progressing at Eastleigh now.

I forgot to mention my first return to Bishop's Stortford as manager of Eastleigh. We won 1-0 on a late goal by Ben Strevens, even though we didn't play a particularly good match. Their new manager is Barry Blankley, and he hasn't been able to get the Blues off the bottom of the table, either. His record is 1-1-3 since he took the job there.

They've brought in a couple of decent players on loan, but the results have remained pretty much the same.

Good to see some much better results for you, could be on for some silverware and nicely placed to make a push for a play-off place.

Also it is always nice to beat your former club.

That's a great run of form, all still with Instant Result?

Good to see some much better results for you, could be on for some silverware and nicely placed to make a push for a play-off place.

Also it is always nice to beat your former club.

Thanks, Maw74. I'll take a 1-0 lead into the second leg of the FA Trophy Semi Final, which we'll play at our grounds. Luton and Forest Green are playing in the other Semi Final. All three of those clubs are in the Skrill Premier, so they're a level above us. I'm glad most of our players are getting healthy in time for the stretch run. Keep your fingers crossed for them to stay that way!

I don't have any ill will toward Bishop's Stortford. Under the circumstances, I'd have thought about sacking me, too. They'll be lucky to avoid the drop.

That's a great run of form, all still with Instant Result?

Thanks, RT. I managed the team myself at Bishop's Stortford, but otherwise, I was using Instant Result. Sometimes I gave the team a preset Match Plan, other times I didn't.

I'm curious about something; I posted about it on the general FMC subforum, but nobody has replied. If I set a mentality and give team instructions to my side from my Tactics page, and use Instant Result with no preset Match Plan, will the team use the mentality and team instructions I've set? I know I can pick the starting XI for an Instant Results match, so I wondered if other instructions I gave the team and its players carried over, too.

Would any of you know if that's the case? Thanks.

22 February 2014

I planned to wait and post updates at the quarter marks of each season, but we drew, 1-1, with Macclesfield Town in the second leg of the FA Trophy Semi Final. We win, 2-1, on aggregate, so we're off to Wembley for the Final!

Our opponent will be Luton Town. Matt Robinson won't be able to play in the Final, since he's on loan from Luton.

The match will be 23 March, and hopefully we'll bring back the Trophy.

Good luck for the final mate hope you win it!

I'm curious about something; I posted about it on the general FMC subforum, but nobody has replied. If I set a mentality and give team instructions to my side from my Tactics page, and use Instant Result with no preset Match Plan, will the team use the mentality and team instructions I've set? I know I can pick the starting XI for an Instant Results match, so I wondered if other instructions I gave the team and its players carried over, too.

Would any of you know if that's the case? Thanks.

Yes, it is the case that as long as you set no Match Plan, then your set up, including Mentality and Team Instructions, will be used. I'll reply in the FMC forum too so hopefully Lucas will chip in, but I believe the only influence the AssMan have is with substitutions when using Instant Result with no Match Plan.

Good luck for the final mate hope you win it!

Thanks, Becks. Luton will be tough. They're in the middle of the table in the Skrill Premier, and they had a tough Semi Final against Forest Green Rovers. Luton drew the first leg at home, but went down 2-3 and had to come back. They won the away leg 4-2 and advanced to the Final, 6-5 on aggregate. Otherwise, they've been in good form lately.

I like that story of yours and as I play FMC for exactly the same reasons (but with only 2 kids claiming their fair share of my time...) I feel kind of "at home" here...

And yes, I am too especially interested in your experiences with Match Plans/ Instant Results. Keep up the great story and good luck at Wembley!

Yes, it is the case that as long as you set no Match Plan, then your set up, including Mentality and Team Instructions, will be used. I'll reply in the FMC forum too so hopefully Lucas will chip in, but I believe the only influence the AssMan have is with substitutions when using Instant Result with no Match Plan.

Thanks, RT. I'll reply in more depth in the FMC forum.

I like that story of yours and as I play FMC for exactly the same reasons (but with only 2 kids claiming their fair share of my time...) I feel kind of "at home" here...

And yes, I am too especially interested in your experiences with Match Plans/ Instant Results. Keep up the great story and good luck at Wembley!

Thanks for stopping by, vossmaj. My oldest is nearly 11 now, and he's intrigued by Football Manager. He really got into the World Cup this summer--the whole family did--and he's started watching the Premier League with me on Saturday mornings, so he knows a lot of the players in the highest levels of world football. He's been asking a lot of questions about the lower levels in England, and I've had fun finding the answers with him.

22 March 2014

I'm not going to post the league table, because our match with Eastbourne Boro was the only one of the 36th round that's been played yet. It's still nice to see us 6th in the table, although that will possibly change as everyone else plays their match this weekend while we're at Wembley.

I lost my first match as manager of Eastleigh last month, at home to Chelmsford. We were down to 10 men at the end of the match, after Duane Courtney was shown his second yellow card, but the score was already 2-3 when that happened. We might have rallied for an equalizer if we'd been at full strength; I'll never know.

The draw seems to be the house special for this club. We've lost only nine matches, fewest in the league. We've drawn 13 times, which is two more than any other club. I do like the recent trend, however, and hope it continues through tomorrow.

Ben Strevens is in very good form. He has 16 goals in the league now, placing him fifth in the Conference South. He's got one more than Brian Woodall, the striker back at Bishop's Stortford. Strevens has netted 22 times in all competitions.

We are a feeder club for Southampton, and our scouting staff informed me that they had a player who was willing to come to Eastleigh on loan. He's a 17-year-old defender called Joshua Debayo, whom Southampton considers a "decent young player." For us, he's a lot more than that, and he'll play regulary at left or center back.

I'll be managing the team myself in the FA Trophy Final. I don't want to leave this one in the hands of Instant Result. After all, you never know when you'll have another chance to manage a team at Wembley.

Cool, I am looking forward to that for my son, too. But as he only turns 2 next month I guess I will have to wait a bit for him to watch football with me. At least I was finally able to convince him to wear his new Bayern Munich socks now. Took me some time...

My daughter (4) loved the World Cup but mainly for the event of it of course with all the family being together and cheering and all...

Cool, I am looking forward to that for my son, too. But as he only turns 2 next month I guess I will have to wait a bit for him to watch football with me. At least I was finally able to convince him to wear his new Bayern Munich socks now. Took me some time...

My daughter (4) loved the World Cup but mainly for the event of it of course with all the family being together and cheering and all...

My younger daughter is also 4, and she appreciated the same things about the World Cup that your lil' girl did. Her older sister is 7, and she's started playing herself after watching the World Cup. My wife enjoys watching at least part of most matches with the kids and me, too.

Lucky you, mine doesn't

So I try to squeeze in both, fm and watching the real stuff...

I wonder how you got all these updates done.

So come on, Eastleigh, and grab that thing in Wembley!

Good luck at Wembley.

Lucky you, mine doesn't

So I try to squeeze in both, fm and watching the real stuff...

I wonder how you got all these updates done.

So come on, Eastleigh, and grab that thing in Wembley!

We had a holiday on Monday here in the USA, and unfortunately I came down with a bug that kept me home on Tuesday and Wednesday. I had some time to play FM, but otherwise it was a very unpleasant experience.

Good luck at Wembley.

Thanks! It's the second trophy final I've reached as a FM manager. I won the Luxembourg Cup in one of my saves on FM13.

23 March 2014

FA Trophy Final

Wembley Stadium

Eastleigh Lineup

GK: Jack Dovey

D: Lathaniel Rowe-Turner, Joshua Debayo, Dean Beckwith, Javan Vidal

DMC: Will Evans

MC: Glen Southam, Jai Reason

AM: Stuart Fleetwood, Mark Wright

ST: Ben Strevens

Attendance: 43,154

I wish I could tell you a story about a thrilling come-from-behind victory, or a splendid match in which Eastleigh asserted our authority early on and rolled on to an easy victory. I would love to tell you about the smile on Glen Southam's face as he lifted the FA Trophy. Unfortunately, Luton midfielder Jake Howells struck for two goals in a five-minute period early in the second half, and it was Luton who went on to lift the cup.

Howells first volleyed in a perfect cross from Kane Ferdinand, putting it just inside Jack Dovey's far post. Dovey was in goal because the usual number one, Ross Flitney, injured his wrist in training in the days before the match. Howells' goal was so well struck that it didn't matter who was between the posts.

Ferdinand set up Howells' second goal, too. A Luton corner was knocked back to Ferdinand at the end of the area, and he nodded it on to Howells, who had the net at his mercy. Both goals were well earned, and they were the only clear chances Luton had.

Final score: Eastleigh 0-2 Luton

You and me both. Thanks for stopping by!

No worries. Toodle pip.

26 April 2014

The Spitfires played their best football of the year when it truly mattered most, and qualified for the Promotion Playoff with a little bit of room to spare. Our hopes of living up to the board's pre-season expectation--promotion to the Skrill Premier--are still alive.

Look at that hat trick from Stuart Fleetwood against Concord Rangers! He found the net three times in 12 minutes. Fleetwood has been thriving as an AM(L) in my latest tactical experiment, and he's under contract for 2014-15, too.

Fleetwood struck again on 5 April in our 4-0 victory over Staines Town. That result put us into the playoff positions for the first time, in advance of our big match away at Sutton United. Again, Fleetwood was among the scorers as we put four goals in.

We clinched our spot in the Promotion Playoff with our 2-2 draw at home to Maidenhead. The season finale, with all three goals coming from the defense, was simply icing on the cake.

Joshua Debayo was a great addition to our side for the stretch run. I was pleasantly surprised that Southampton would send him to the Skrill South on loan, even though they are our parent club and Debayo is only 17.

We will face Ebbsfleet in the Playoff Semifinal, contested over two legs. We'll play the first one away.

10 May 2014

We did it! We've won promotion to the Skrill Premier!

We took a 2-1 advantage into the home leg of the Semi Final, but a gritty Ebbsfleet side refused to back down. At the half hour mark, they led 2-0, and 3-2 on aggregate. That man Stuart Fleetwood scored the goal that put us through, deep in extra time.

Weston-super-Mare eliminated Boreham Wood to advance to the Final, which was played at their grounds. Fleetwood (again) and Dean Beckwith scored for us, not long after halftime, and we held on for the victory. Beckwith, who won 13 of his 16 headers and made 14 interceptions, in addition to scoring, was Man of the Match with an 8.1 rating.

Hey, congrats to promotion and nevermind Wembley. At least it wasn't a last minute "why us?!" kind of moment...

Nice one! I grew up in Eastleigh so I'm always intrigued wwhen I stumble across a thread involving them. Good luck for next season.

Hey, congrats to promotion and nevermind Wembley. At least it wasn't a last minute "why us?!" kind of moment...

Thanks, vossmaj. I had the feeling throughout the match that we and Luton were well-matched. They scored two nice goals, and our chances didn't pan out. We'll face them in the Skrill Premier next season; they finished 12th in the league. Cambridge United were champions, and Forest Green Rovers won the promotion playoff and will go up with them. Tamworth, Southport, Hyde, and Welling United are relegated to the Conference North/South.

Nice one! I grew up in Eastleigh so I'm always intrigued wwhen I stumble across a thread involving them. Good luck for next season.

Thanks, kevhamster. I hope I do your local team proud! I'm curious to see what the board's expectations for us will be as we move up a level.

Here are the stats for Eastleigh's most important players in 2013-14:

Now it's time to start thinking about which of these players will be returning for 2014-15. I haven't learned about my budgets for next season, so I don't know if our promotion will mean Eastleigh will have even MORE money to spend. I'm currently thinking I am going to try to build a cheaper squad that is still competitive.

Strevens, who posted the team's highest average rating among regular players, is under contract for another year. So is Fleetwood, who was Superman for the last few weeks of the season. Debayo is a loan player, and I've already found out that Southampton want him to play at a higher level. It was fun while it lasted, Joshua. You definitely helped us get promoted.

Southam, the captain, doesn't want to talk about a new contract yet. He played outstanding football for me, and I had decided I wanted him back. Now I'm afraid we'll lose him.

I've offered Spence a new contract, and I'm waiting to find out if he'll accept it. He played well--very well after my arrival--and he's on the young side (24). Robinson is also a loan player, and I've already talked to Luton about extending his loan. I'm not sure they'll want to do that, since we're now league rivals.

Now the decisions start to get tougher. Rowe-Turner wants more than a thousand quid per week. Is he worth that much? So does Collins, and he's nearly 30. I'm leaning towards saying goodbye to Collins and looking for a more affordable option at DMC. Odubade, too, might be too expensive to keep, since he's asking for £1,100/week.

Johnson is on the bubble, but I'm offering Reason a new contract. I like his game, and he's also only 24. I also like Beckwith, whose attributes are the best among our defenders. He'll probably be expensive, but I think I'll see if he'll come on board for another season.

Wright was a loan player, and I'm going to try to find a player like him to sign. Evans' youth (he's 22) makes him an attractive prospect for a new contract. Martin and Vidal are also signed through next year, and so is Sam Wilson, a young striker of promise. The rest of the players will probably not be offered new contracts.

25 May 2014

The board set our initial budgets for the year. They'e raised my wage budget to £22,500/week, and the transfer budget has been set at £9,000. Although it's tempting to go on a spending spree and see how many unattached players or free transfers I can bring in, I'm still leaning toward taking on the challenge of building a competitive, younger side with a wage bill that's lower than last year's. Of course, I might change my mind once I see what kinds of expectations the board sets for the new season. I'd like to see if I can get a new contract with Eastleigh.

Silverlake Stadium will be a busy place over the summer. In order to meet the regulations of the Skrill Premier, the board will be footing the bill for a grounds expansion that will add room for another 1,000 people to stand inside the grounds. The project will cost about £47.25K, and the estimated completion date looks like it will be in September.

Michael Thalassitis of Ebbsfleet won the Conference South Player of the Year award. I voted for him; he had 21 goals and 18 assists, and he scored twice against us. He was on loan from Stevenage.

Bath City's boss, Lee Howells, was named Manager of the Year, over Craig Laird of Weston-super-Mare and Tommy Widdrington of Eastbourne Boro.

I know some of you might be interested in what happened in the Premier League, too. Manchester United won a cracking battle for the top spot, finishing on 77 points. Arsenal were next (76), followed by Chelsea (75) and Manchester City (74). Aston Villa, Liverpool, and Tottenham qualified for the EURO cup, while Sunderland, West Bromwich Albion, and Crystal Palace were relegated.

9 August 2014

My reshaping of the Eastleigh squad is now basically complete, and so far I'm pleased with my efforts. Of course, if everything falls to pieces on the pitch, I'll have to re-think that conclusion.

Here's the squad that I'll take into our first Skrill Premier match of the season, away to Kidderminster Harriers.

Goalkeepers

I signed Dovey to a new contract, and I was surprised he asked for LESS money than last year. I gave him what he requested, and I'm looking forward to his continued development. Ross Flitney wanted to look elsewhere, and I signed Lewington as his replacement. On paper, that represents an upgrade. The new #3 keeper, Jakovlevs, is 22 years younger than last year's model.

Defenders

Returning to the squad are Beckwith, Dillon, Evans, Martin, Spence, and Vidal. None of them are older than 30, and most are several years younger than that. Becks also surprised me by being willing to take a considerable pay cut to come back for another year. I'm not sure I wanted him for a thousand quid, but at this price, he's a good deal. My contract discussion with Lathaniel Rowe-Turner fell apart, so I was pleased to sign Carter, who was with us on loan last year. I am very high on the young players I signed for the defense corps. Stone is good enough for the first team already, and guys like Finney, Guy, and Vincent also have great promise. Stone was released by Brentford; Guiy was let go by Notts County; Vincent was with Mansfield; Finney was with Leyton Orient. I paid a premium price for Smith, who can cover almost anywhere on the pitch and has tremendous upside.

Carter will start the year as the first choice at left back. Vidal will man the right side, with Beckwith and Stone at center back. Spence and Martin will probably see the next-most action.

Midfielders

We'll welcome back Evans, Osborne, and Reason, and Robinson was willing to extend his loan agreement for another year. I was disappointed that I couldn't work out anything with Glen Southam. He completely refused to discuss a new contract, so I sold him to a Scottish club, Partick Thistle, for £5,000. Glen will be pulling in £1,400/week from them, which was more than I was willing to pay him. Lathorpe comes to us on a free from Torquay, and I'm delighted to have him. Gainford, who was in Liverpool's youth program, is an exciting signing, too. Forbes and Ryan were both let go from Preston. George, Harvey, and Sinclair are products of our youth academy.

I can do a bit of mixing and matching here when I put my starting XI together. Lathorpe and Robinson will be regulars, at either M© or DM©. Reason will also be on the team sheet most days, lining up at M©. I'll want to make room for Osborne, too. Evans will also get some time at DM©. Gainford is better at AM, but I can use him in a deeper outside position if the formation calls for one. And then there's Smith, who can play all over the place.

In six months, I went from having very few options in the middle of the park to a situation where I can shift my tactical approach and still have players in comfortable positions.

Attackers

Strevens and Fleetwood, who scored 45 times between them, are both back. So is Wilson, who is in line for a more important role this season. Goodbyes are in order for Yemi Odubade and Craig McAllister, who together drew almost £2,000 from the till each week. Say hello to Dawes, who joins Wilson as the heirs apparent at the front of the line. George is another graduate of our youth program.

Strevens at center forward and Fleetwood at AM(L) are easy choices. Gainford will get the first opportunity at AM®.

Eastleigh's squad now has an average age of 23, which makes them among the younger teams in the league. The current bill for player wages is £16,388/week. Last year's bill was over £18,500. And, since the board approved a higher budget after our promotion, I'm working with a budget of £22,744.

We're a younger, more economical squad now, and if I need to, I can bring in some high-priced talent during the year.

Mansfield, who were relegated from League Two, are preseason favorites for the championship. Dagenham & Redbridge, also relegated last year, are also favored for promotion, followed by Barnet, Kidderminster Harriers, Grimsby Town, and Luton Town. We're expected to finish well down the table, in a group of four clubs at 33-1. Fourteen clubs have better odds than we do, and I'm working with expectations of a mid-table finish.

Congratulations on the promotion unlucky in the cup final but no disgrace losing to Luton.

A shame that your old club Bishop's Stortford were relegated though.

Congratulations on the promotion unlucky in the cup final but no disgrace losing to Luton.

A shame that your old club Bishop's Stortford were relegated though.

Thanks, Maw. I was rooting for Bishop's Stortford to stay up, but they weren't even close in the end. Now they're back in "limbo," awaiting the end of the season to see if they can get promoted back into Skrill North/South. It seems that a number of their players decided to leave after the club was relegated. There are a lot of new names on their club roster.

I might schedule a friendly with them, for old times' sake.