dafuge's FM09 challenge

[hamilton162]

No problem. I would have had to check anyway, which could have taken a while to load and find where i saved the game

Girls eh, you love them sometimes, but you hate them at others

Good Luck for when you start

[hrbfcrule]

i have played arsenal 5 times in my career with staines and lost all 5. Not only that but i have conceded 33 goals and only scored 2 in these 5 matches. These matches include scores of 8-2,6-0,8-0,7-0,4-0, luckily they have all been friendlies except the 6-0 which was in the fa cup. The only good thing i can say is that im slowly getting better

[gaz da man 2004]

just started as fc united again my profile is here going to try and keep this game going as long as possible and try not to get sacked this time

[Highbury\'s Ghost]

No problem. I would have had to check anyway, which could have taken a while to load and find where i saved the game

Girls eh, you love them sometimes, but you hate them at others <<<<<<<

Good Luck for when you start

Damn right! - Expensive too!

Thanks for the good luck message - feeling I might need it.

I should be able to start the holiday season tonight- so will start when it's completed, and post my entry on here. Don't know how long a year's holiday takes though - never "been on holiday". I have a kick-ass PC though, Core i7, 4GB, 4*HDDs, so it won't be that long I guess.

Must go now - I'm getting "dagger eyes".

[pcmeister]

Well I won the FA Cup in the end, overturning a 1-0 half time scoreline to win 2-1

[hamilton162]

Congrats pcmeister? What's the next goal?

[MikaelS]

What exact files do you have, as some, such as regen adding files, are not permitted Alternatively, PM Mikael S for some download files for certain teams

Go here for teams

[michaeltmurrayuk]

1) No
2) Depends what exact files you have
3) No
4) Lower League Managers Forum
5) I wouldn't have thought so

Does that help you at all?

I really wouldn't send him to the Lower League Managers forum for tips or tactics

[hamilton162]

Shhhh Michael You weren't supposed to say that

Only joking Ghost!

[Cysne]

After a good run upto Christmas in the prem I find my self with 24 points and in semi's of the league cup. Looks like we have a chance to stay up!

[Highbury\'s Ghost]

I really wouldn't send him to the Lower League Managers forum for tips or tactics

Ouch, that's harsh. Mind, it did make me laugh out loud, so much so that my girlfriend gave me a drity look - apparently I'm interrupting some girlie TV!

So, please try and be less funny in future!

DB is now created and holiday will begin soon - just having a nosey around, can't resist.

[bermybhoy]

I really wouldn't send him to the Lower League Managers forum for tips or tactics

Shocked no-one pointed this out already. Was expecting Highbury Ghost to have got flamed and/or infracted by now

[Rocknrollpear]

FC United Of Manchester:

First season in the Championship, 2014/2015. Doing well in 9th place as we enter December. A long way off the top of the league, but I dont really want to finish in the play offs anyway, if only for the experience. The team simply isnt strong enough to go into the premiership, and it would wreck the progress of my younger stars. I wasnt able to attract any players of significance, so had to simply strengthen what I could. I also didnt have a wage structure capable of mounting a decent attemp at challenging for the Championship, so Premier league is too soon.

TRANSFERS-Summer 2014

The biggest decision I had to make was letting my AMRL winger James Cronesberry leave. He didnt want to, but was attracting interest from various league One and Scottish clubs. The lad was amazing for me since joining the club at the very start of the challenge, on a free transfer and as a released product of Middlesbrough's youth academy. He was steady in BSN, then started to develop in BSP. In our last season in Coca Cola league One, he was one of the better players in the league, with 12 assists and an average rating of 7.12. I felt that that was however, his perfect standard. With Premier league hopefuls plying their trade in the Championship, it would have been a step too far, so I accepted an offer of £575k from my beloved Doncaster, after other clubs offered the same. I thought If he was going to leave, it had better be to a good team!

Other players out, Jon Parkin, getting too old, and I only got him to help with the League One season, as he's proven in that league. Let Michael Noone go. Again, championship a step to far, as he wasnt really fit for league one either. Sean McDaid again is league one left back at best, was shaky in some Lg1 games so had to free up some wage budget an let him go. Same goes for Janos Kovacs and Abdi Ibrahim, who was easily good enough for the Championship, had decided before our League One fairytale even kicked off, that he was destined for the top........and arranged a bosman to Lillestrom. Lol.


Players in:

I bought a classy looking youngsters Matt Thompson (AMR) an Brad Nelson (dl/wbl) from Rochdale for 250k each, allowing Thompson to go out on a season long loan to Tranmere to get some 1st team action whilst Brad Jones comes straight into the first team at LB in place of the departed Sean McDaid.

My best coup, was Leicester striker Jamie Driver, who spent most of last season on loan with us, and banged in 4 goals on his debut, making it hard for me to look at other players for my front line. Him and Brighton Mwanza will hopefully grow up together, both being 20/21 and could be futile in seaons to come. Del Olmo and Koblizek have proven to be real bargains. The latter slotting into the Right midfield in place of Lillestrom bound Abdi Ibrahim proved is proving to be a steal. Del Olmo adds options for a penalty taker, and is often found scoring screamers at the right time.

Hungarian Left winger Gabor David looks like a real capture also. Good enough for a mid table premiership side Id say, luckily his reputation meant he saw joining us a decent move.

Offers for free agents Scott Parker, Daniel Sturridge, James Tomkins, ageing Stephen Appiah, Javier Acuna, Grant leadbitter, Mido, Charlie Mulgrew and Lauri Dalla Valle were all unfruitful.

I also offered a contract to Ronaldinho too.......just for sh!ts and giggles. He went to Botofogo.

As I finish this post and we near the end of December, I have fallen down the league to 17th.

[rlipscombe]

sorry to be REALLY lazy but i'm debating playing this alongside my JoseRR save. As my computer takes forever to holiday, could someone point me in the direction of saved games??? i've had a quick search and found a few but i'd appreciate more if possible

Thanks in advance

[bermybhoy]

Oxford City - Season 4 - Blue Square Premier

So after a 'nearly' season where we got as far as the Conference play-off semis last season, we went into this season with a strong squad and every expectation of securing a Football League place by the end of the campaign. There was no great need to tinker with the squad too much, and the only players to come in and improve the first team were Ritchie De Laet, the right back from Man Utd, Sean Allen, a young striker with pace to burn and Chris Lumsden, an experienced campaigner in midfield with, as it turns out, a penchant for collecting cards. Transfers

The season got off to a great start, with 3 wins in 3, 7 goals and none conceded. Recently relegated Stockport, the big spenders in the division in terms of wages then held us to a draw, but we took it out on poor Ebbsfeet, 6-0. Defeats away to Grays and our nemeses, Rushden followed and saw us drop as low as 6th, but other than another couple of abberations away from home, we looked strong and never likely to relinquish that top stop once we secured it, 15 games in.

A 17 game unbeaten run in the second half of the season, which included a 9 game winning streak, saw us stretch out a comfortable lead at the top, and we eventually romped home by fully 18 points from Stockport. Only a few careless defeats saw us fail to reach 100 points, settling eventually for 97. Annoyingly, despite out dominance there were few big wins, although Ebbsfleet were turned over 5-0 away, giving us an 11-0 aggregate and handing them the coveted 'can we play you every week?' title.

Final league table - we carried on the form we ended last season with, and utterly dominated this division, fully deserving a promotion.
Final league table - home and away - Away form still isn't great, although we won more than we lost. We remain formidable at home.
League progress - Top but for a few weeks of the season.
Division player stats - Dominated in most categories, including the two top scorers, Mak and Sicknote Dixon banging home 57 between them. Mak was outstanding, again.
Division team stats
Season summary - Despite my confidence in us going into the campaign, rated overachievers for the division.
Results 1, Results 2

Cups
FA Trophy - Ended at the first hurdle with a shock home defeat to BSS Billericay.
Conference league cup - Defeat at the first chance here too, Forest Green benefitting.
FA Cup - We did manage two wins here at least, but knocked out in the second round by Woking, before the big boys came in.

The Squad
Season best XI - We have a brilliant team for this level. Mak and Dixon, we already know were dominant up front, Ahmed, was again excellent in midfield while youngster Jack Mills exceeded expectations, and became first pick as the more offensive central mid in place of the disappointing Hofbauer. Harvey continued to develop and replaced Potter on the right, while Green dislodged Omar Garcia at left wing. Grasser and Ramsay were dominant at centre back in front of the superb Dean Bouzanis. Cave is a solid attacking left back, while De Laet came in late at the season to become first choice maurauding on the other flank.

Squad - selection - plenty of 7+ averages, Mal continues to improve and is again our best player.
Squad - assman ratings - a veritable galaxy of stars on show. How will it compare after promotion?
Squad - contracts

Club Summary
Club info - overview - Robert Mak is now the third club favourite. The chairman is selling up though, although it looks a peaceful takeover, with a director stepping up.
Club info - facts
Club info - stadium
Club info - stats
Board confidence - it's all going swimmingly, squad harmony dropped only as I started looking to offload some players who won't be stepping up with us.
Finances - income - income actually dropped a touch. Apparently the fans were more excited about a play off push than seeing us cantering to the title.
Finances - expenses - wages up again, but we were rewarded with a stronger squad and an easy promotion.
Finances - salary
Finances - summary - £100k in the red, but the promotion should sort that right out.
Club records - Mak breaks his own seasonal scoring records, little else of note.
Overall best XI - Looking very much like the one for the season gone, as expected given most players have been here at least 2 years.

Oxford City History

 
Season  League                Position    Achievements
2009/10 Blue Square South     18th        None
2010/11 Blue Square South     Champions   Promoted
2011/12 Blue Square Premier   4th         Play off semis
2012/13 Blue Square Premier   Champions   Promoted

Next Season
We should turn pro given our league status, and it should make finding some more quality entirely possible. Have a feeling that the existing squad is more than good enough to keep us up, and with some additions could squeeze into the play-offs.

[Jaffa]

I've had a break for a few weeks... but I'm back!!!

What I miss?

[pcmeister]

Boston Utd 2022/2023 Premier League

League Summary Table | Graph

Media Prediction – 9th
Actual Position – 4th, FA Cup Winners, Club World Cup Winners, Euro Super Cup Winners

Having won the Champions League in the previous season, it was an opportunity for Boston United to go places with the money gained from such success. We finally invested in a new 28000 seater stadium, costing a net £30m, which will be available for the 2024/25 season. We bought big in the transfer window to try to build on last season, buying a new striker in the Frenchman, Raphael Orsini, from Arsenal for £17.5m, and a new left-winger Matthew Adams from Crystal Palace for £11.75m. Augustus Alin, a Romanian AMC, was bought from Fenerbahce for £7.5m, to give Iulian Villiand some competition but also some Romanian company. Mahmoud Saibi is one for now and the future at the age of 22, bought from Gremio for £10m, and he was brought in to play at both Centre Back and Centre Midfield. Neville Chamberlain, a centre midfield, was bought for £8.5m on the last day of the summer window, to provide further competition in the centre of midfield. Marchesi is a youngster, and will have to wait for his chance, because the midfield is packed with quality players. To balance some of this spending (£60m) + a new £30m stadium, I sold all the dead-wood for £25m, especially Brian Wood for £8.5m to West Ham, who got relegated! So I spent a lot of money, which meant that I needed to do very well this season to keep everything going.

The season started with a piece of silverware, as I beat Newcastle 1-0 to win the Euro Super Cup. However, the league started 'badly', as I was unable to really do better than mid-table until Week 25, where everything turned around, resulting in me finding some real form and destroying teams. I think that the reason why we were always in mid-table was that we had always played 3 games fewer than everybody else owing to the number of games that I was playing, and especially in December when I was away in India playing the Club World Cup. Despite this, we were able to finish 4th in the league on the final day, drawing with Newcastle who were vying with me for the last Champions League spot.

We had an eventful season in the cups, as Boston Utd won their first ever FA Cup, beating Manchester City 2-1. In the Champions League, we managed to reach the Quarter Finals, but we were beaten by Lyon on penalties after a 2-2 agg draw. This may seem like an excuse, but most of our front line was injured and we simply did not have the firepower to overcome Lyon in normal time. We were severly weakened, and with me not having a truly quality squad to get through these injuries, it meant that we went out at this stage, although we were unlucky to go out on penalties. Meanwhile, we did win the Club World Cup in India, defeating Cruzeiro 4-2 to win this not-so-coverted trophy.

All in all, it was a good season, but one sad piece of news was the departure of club hero and captain Diego, who had a phenominal career with us, as he helped us rise through the leagues from League 1. He was a prolific striker in League 1 and the Championship, and even scored 11 goals in the Premier League 3 seasons ago, but now there was simply no space for him to play regularly. He just simply did not have the talent to compete at this high level, and since he is 30, he needs to play more games than I could give him. £3.5m is a very reasonable price to get for him.

Cups
FA Cup: Winner
League Cup: 3rd Round
Champions League: Qtr Final
Euro Super Cup: Winner
Club World Cup: Winner

Aims
Build a squad capable of winning on all fronts
Renew the strike-force, and bring in forward squad-players who can score goals
Complete the challenge in the next 2 seasons

Season         League                League Finish                  Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2009/10    Blue Square North            9th                              None
2010/11    Blue Square North            1st                            Promotion
2011/12    Blue Square Premier          4th                Promotion, Conference League Cup
2012/13    League Two                   20th                             None
2013/14    League Two                   1st                  Promotion, FA Cup 6th Round
2014/15    League One                   16th                             None
2015/16    League One                   2nd                            Promotion
2016/17    Championship                 18th                             None
2017/18    Championship                 6th                            Promotion
2018/19    Premier League               19th                           Relegation
2019/20    Championship                 1st                  Promotion, League Cup Winners
2020/21    Premier League               4th                      Europa League Winners
2021/22    Premier League               5th                     Champions League Winners
2022/23    Premier League               4th            FA Cup Winners, Club World Cup Winners
                                                                Euro Super Cup Winners

[Cerneo]

Congrats on the season pcmeister.

[SJ234]

Great season pcmeister you must win the prem next year you have done pretty much everything else

[AdamFitz]

Can I do this?

If so I've everything loaded up and have the profile ready.

[Cerneo]

Yep anyone can do it at any time.

[AdamFitz]

Ok thanks. Profile

[Highbury\'s Ghost]

http://i585.photobucket.com/albums/s...st/Profile.jpg

I have begun as Eastwood, in the BSN.

I have to admit I chose them because I thought the name was quite good - never heard of them before.

BTW - I have 2 assmen - is this normal at the lower levels???

I appear to have a truly shocking side, but plenty of them.

First three games are : AFC Telford (away) Workington (Home) & Boston Utd (away).

I have a vast wage budget of £6,250 - currently it is just over £4K, so I have some headroom to play with.

Wish me luck - think I'll need it, gulp!

[AdamFitz]

That's nothing I started with no staff, no players, and a 2.3k wage budget <_<

[pcmeister]

Cheers, guys. Shame I am struggling to find decent enough strikers to help me get the Prem - 1 month to go now till it closes with £30m still to spend

[SJ234]

Cheers, guys. Shame I am struggling to find decent enough strikers to help me get the Prem - 1 month to go now till it closes with £30m still to spend

Have you looked at all your scout reports, checked international squads and your shortlist?

[iTry]

That's nothing I started with no staff, no players, and a 2.3k wage budget <_<

Did you load up the DDT file as mentioned in the first post? You should have some players if you did. Unfortunately, dafuge says that you can't play this challenge without the DDT file.

[AdamFitz]

I did, put it in the right folder and all, but nothing.

[pcmeister]

Have you looked at all your scout reports, checked international squads and your shortlist?

Yes I did, and then I found a striker from Tottenham, Josh Hayes, valued at £12m by his club. Unsettled him for 2 weeks, he put in a transfer request to leave, and I put in a cheeky £12m bid for him. 'Broke the bank' for him by making him my highest paid player, giving him £110k a week (matching his Spurs wage packet), which is £60k per week more than anybody else.

How do you guys rate him?

I am sure he is worth it though, but it means that my £30m budget is down to £10m now.

[Cerneo]

Billericay face possible take over....

This could end badly....

[iTry]

I did, put it in the right folder and all, but nothing.

If you are using it on 9.0.3 you will have to put in a different folder. Also, you must tick the box to use it. This is found under Preferences->Extra Files->Keep Player Data Files in the game.

On 9.0.3, place the file here:
XP, patched: C:\Program Files\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2009\data\updates\update-930\db\930\edt
Vista, patched: C://program files/sportsinteractive/football manager 2009/data/updates/update-930/db/930/edt
Steam, patched: C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\football manager 2009\data\updates\update-930\db\930\edt
Mac, patched: /applications/Sports Interactive/Football Manager 2009/data/updates/update-930/db/930/edt

[AdamFitz]

Would I have to tick the box before I start the game, yeah?

[hamilton162]

Indeed Adam.

[SJ234]

Yes I did, and then I found a striker from Tottenham, Josh Hayes, valued at £12m by his club. Unsettled him for 2 weeks, he put in a transfer request to leave, and I put in a cheeky £12m bid for him. 'Broke the bank' for him by making him my highest paid player, giving him £110k a week (matching his Spurs wage packet), which is £60k per week more than anybody else.

How do you guys rate him?

I am sure he is worth it though, but it means that my £30m budget is down to £10m now.

What does the scout report say?

[Tactic Master]

Yes I did, and then I found a striker from Tottenham, Josh Hayes, valued at £12m by his club. Unsettled him for 2 weeks, he put in a transfer request to leave, and I put in a cheeky £12m bid for him. 'Broke the bank' for him by making him my highest paid player, giving him £110k a week (matching his Spurs wage packet), which is £60k per week more than anybody else.

How do you guys rate him?

I am sure he is worth it though, but it means that my £30m budget is down to £10m now.

He's not that bad.

[AdamFitz]

Indeed Adam.

Oh sickener

Anyway, I went to Preferences and all, the file isn't showing. It's a read only file, different to all the other files in it's folder, can I change this?

[Tactic Master]

Nathan Foster got promoted to the England U20's for the World Cup and was part of the historic victory in the final against Argentina U20's

[AdamFitz]

Ok, my problem is that, team_holland says "DDT File" under it, under the other one it says "Text Document", anyone know how I can change this :S

[SuperStevieG]

I'm looking forward to starting this challenge later on this evening. I have downloaded the DDT file and registered with the Dafuge's Challenge website. Just have the small matter of Euro 2016 to finish first before I start my new game

[iTry]

Ok, my problem is that, team_holland says "DDT File" under it, under the other one it says "Text Document", anyone know how I can change this :S

If the file extension is .txt, change it to .ddt. It doesn't matter what program it opens it (in this case Notepad) as you have no need to open it.

EDIT: If you have file extensions hidden, click on Tools->Folder Options and click on the View tab. Then, untick the box that says 'Hide extensions for known file types'.

[dafuge]

Dartford - Barclays Premier League - 2022/23

As Premier League champions, this season was all about our Champions League début. As Europa League champions, we had a great chance of success, especially with our highly talented and young squad.

League Table
League Positions Graph

Man City challenged us all the way but ran out of steam and started dropping points towards the end of the season, which was lucky really as our form also dipped with a repeat of the unnecessary draws that haunted us last season. The final game of the season became meaningless and the results showed that, as we got hammered 4-1 by mid table Fulham and Man City struggled to a draw with Bolton.

Community Shield - it was a tight game in our début but Man City probably just about deserved the win.

UEFA Super Cup - like the Community Shield, it was a close encounter but we were lucky to be on the winning side this time.

FA Cup - we were looking really good for the cup with a solid run until we came undone at the hand of West Ham in the semi final.

Carling Cup - the kids got a tough draw and got knocked out early.


UEFA Champions League

As champions of England we went straight into the group stage in our début season where we were drawn with Barcelona, Dinamo Kiev and Stuttgart. On paper it looked straight forward enough with us and Barcelona as clear favourites to qualify.

Group Stage - it was anything but straightforward as it went into the final day with anyone being able to qualify. We had an easy 3-1 win in Kiev while Barca massacred Stuttgart 8-0 to see us both through.

1st knockout round - we met AC Milan last season, thrashing them 4-0 in the quarter final of the Europa league. This was nothing like that, as we needed the away goal to see us through from the two draws.

Quarter final - the first leg was a classic, with us losing 4-3 at the Emirates. Needing the win we went out and hammered them but only just came away with the win required.

Semi final - we met them in the group stage where we had a win and a draw and they were out for revenge. A 1-0 loss at home made the second leg tricky and although we took an early lead we just couldn't find a winner after they equalised.


Transfers - another huge transfer window and alots of money was spent and very little recouped. The last few holes in the squad were filled though so this should be the last of the big spending transfer windows.

Squad - I'm happy in every position now, so it should just be a case of sitting back and watching them mature and take over the world.

Selected profiles:

Steve Larkin - looked Premier League quality at just 16 so he could be a future star.

Patrik Ahlqvist - not a position I was looking to strengthen after signing Larkin but you can't really say no to a wonderkid like this with a minimum fee release clause of £6.25m.

Raffaele Campana - a wonderkid from AC Milan who I have been trying to sign for some time now.

Ryan Caddis - didn't quite have the impact I was hoping but I'm sure there's more to come from him.

Patrick Keil - another minimum fee release clause signing, stolen for just £10m from Real Madrid. A real quality signing.

Geoffrey Campagne - not a planned signing but with Nicolas Monaco out for three months at the start of the season I needed a quality striker to fill the gap.

Star Player - he ran the show, goals assists, the lot. His average rating looks low but that often seems to happen with the AMC position.

Career Overview

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

2009/10   Blue Square South        1st         BSS Champions, promoted
2010/11   Blue Square Premier      1st         BSP Champions, Setanta Shield and FA Trophy winners
2011/12   Coca-Cola League 2       2nd         Promoted
2012/13   Coca-Cola League 1       5th         Lost in playoff final
2013/14   Coca-Cola League 1       3rd         Lost in playoff final
2014/15   Coca-Cola League 1       2nd         Promoted
2015/16   Coca-Cola Championship   14th
2016/17   Coca-Cola Championship   5th         Lost in playoff semi
2017/18   Coca-Cola Championship   8th
2018/19   Coca-Cola Championship   2nd         Promoted
2019/20   Barclays Premier League  15th
2020/21   Barclays Premier League  7th         Carling Cup winners
2021/22   Barclays Premier League  1st         Premier League champions and Europa League winners
2022/23   Barclays Premier League  1st         Premier League champions and Super Cup winners

Next Season

After the heartache in the semi finals of two competitions we really need to improve and make the final or win the Champions League and/or FA Cup next season. I'm also still waiting on news of the stadium as the council have started blocking our expansions leaving us with a tiny 15000 seater stadium.

[hamilton162]

Unlucky in the CL Daf Kiel looks a bargain at £10m and he's 2 footed. His PA must be above 180 for sure What a player!

Better luck in the CL next year

[MikaelS]

sorry to be REALLY lazy but i'm debating playing this alongside my JoseRR save. As my computer takes forever to holiday, could someone point me in the direction of saved games??? i've had a quick search and found a few but i'd appreciate more if possible

Thanks in advance

here http://community.sigames.com/showpos...ostcount=16323

[hamilton162]

Well, my results have been a mixed bag tonight. Drew with Man Utd 1-1, lost to WBA 1-0 and beat Arsenal.

On the plus side, Brennan has regained his goalscoring form of old with 11 games left in the EPL Can he power us to the title again single handedly? Still got to play Spurs, who are top by 3 points. Liverpool, who are ahead of me on GD with a game in hand, also have to play Spurs.

But i got dumped out of the FA Cup by Arsenal in the 4th Round. At least my new signing have settled in nicely, although one of the wingers has been injured since he got back from international duty

Ajax up next in the CL 1st Knockout Round, hopefully we can continue our march towards completing the challenge

[rlipscombe]

i've used a save game i found on this forum and have started my new game. before i get stuck in too much, is it ok if it starts June 2010 rather than 2009? my team hasn't been in the BSN for either of the two previous seasons.....

Please confirm this is ok ASAP please!!

[dafuge]

i've used a save game i found on this forum and have started my new game. before i get stuck in too much, is it ok if it starts June 2010 rather than 2009? my team hasn't been in the BSN for either of the two previous seasons.....

Please confirm this is ok ASAP please!!

That's fine. As long as the team meets the original criteria then there isn't a problem with holidaying for more than one season.

[rlipscombe]

That's fine. As long as the team meets the original criteria then there isn't a problem with holidaying for more than one season.

cheers dafuge. i was sure it was fine i just wanted to make sure to prevent an upset down the line....

[AdamFitz]

If the file extension is .txt, change it to .ddt. It doesn't matter what program it opens it (in this case Notepad) as you have no need to open it.

EDIT: If you have file extensions hidden, click on Tools->Folder Options and click on the View tab. Then, untick the box that says 'Hide extensions for known file types'.

Man, thank you so much!

[AdamFitz]

I'll post my profile later, internet is really bad atm.

EDIT: Profile Yeah, I know 4 hours after I took this picture I upload it, that's how bad my connection is at this moment in time, last 3 days.

[iTry]

Man, thank you so much!

No problem . Good luck with Boston.

[SuperStevieG]

I've started as Boston Utd

Profile

[Cerneo]

Billericay 12/13 Season Report:

This seems almost to easy, sat around the top mid table and the hit a couple hot streaks that shot me to the very top. Sat around in third or second for awhile and then hopped into first for a couple games but it did not last. As you can see the top three were very close all season and I got knocked out of 1st on the last game of the season.

However the finances are a mess and as is made clear I should not have gone high for league rewards, I was worried about keeping my young talent had to turn down offers all season for Sanders (Was offered 245k + incentives at the end of the january window). But no one left and we signed Higginbotham who had just been wasting away at Nottingham, he was a solid boost along with Ramsey we were very solid at the back.

We should get the new Stadium and some new sponsorship so that help with the finances, the takeover talks ended with about a week to go in the season so no fan club ownership for us next season.

Finances

Table

Graph

Transfers

Sanders

Season         League                League Finish                  Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2009/10    Blue Square South            1st                              None
2010/11    Blue Square Premier          1st           Winner FAT, Winner Setanta Shield, 4th Round FA Cup
2011/12    League 2                     1st                       Paint Trophy Runner Up
2012/13    League 1                     2nd                        5th Round FA Cup

[rlipscombe]

i started as Boston as well last night!! (profile pics to come...) seems they're flavour of the month right now!!

[SuperStevieG]

i started as Boston as well last night!! (profile pics to come...) seems they're flavour of the month right now!!

I wanted a team who had been promoted from the northern leagues, and being a Liverpool fan I wasn't about to go FC United

[haza555]

And so i begin...

http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/r...Haz/FCUMAN.jpg

[Tactic Master]

Mid-Season Report

I can't believe my dominance half way through League 2 season. I'm already looking forward to league 1, thats how confident of success this season i am. We have lost 1 game so far this season to Stockport 2 - 0. I've made 1 hell of a signing this season that got the fans talking straight away from the day he was unveiled. He played for Yeovil in League 1 last season and was part of the relegation battle that ended in tears for Yeovil. Luke Rodgers (I will provide a screenshot come the end of the season). He is the leagues top goalscorer and has scored 17 + 4 assists in 24 full appearences and 5 substitute appearences. I have 3 players in the top 10 goalscorers, 1 player in the top 10 assists list and my team has scored the most and conceded the least. I've made 5 signings to improve the squad and dropped those that didnt perform last season (Yet again, i will provide screenshots come the end of the season). Oxford United were victims of a raid for an unbelievable 16 year old Striker. They had no choice but to lose him as my team are a league above, but he looks insane for such a small team to produce. He's been playing first team football often, scoring 10 goals, 5 assists in 12 full appearences and 9 sub appearences. He turns 17 in March where he will become the biggest earner at the club, currently on the youth wage of £55 a week. He also cost just £6,000!!! His value has shot up to £24,000 and i'm sure he has the biggest future of all my young stars at the club. I don't think i will be making any new signings in January, after the £500,000 i spent in the summer. The squad is dominant enough this season to walk away with the League 2 title. Currently 7 points clear. I have enough players to cover major injuries as well.

[Tactic Master]

And so i begin...

http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/r...Haz/FCUMAN.jpg

Good luck mate.

[AdamFitz]

Boston United: Season 2009/10

Media Prediction: 9th
Final Position: 1st

League Table: 1st (81 points)
Wasn't expecting this, thought we'd do well to make the play-offs, but the lads were fantastic, they lost their consistancy late on in the season but it didn't matter in the end, automatic promotion was fantastic. It went down to the last day of the season, I was 3 points ahead of Southport but they had a better goal difference than I, and we had to face them! Being me I went 5-3-2 Defensive and held out for an 0-0 draw, chuffed.

FA Cup: 4th Qualifying Round (Lost 1-0 to Mansfield Town)
Had an easy enough run in until we came up against Blue Square Premier side Mansfield Town. They beat us 1-0 but in truth we were the better team and should've scored 2/3 goals, I was disappointed not getting into the FA Cup as I badly needed a bit of money for the club.

FA Trophy: 3rd Round (Lost 2-1 to Tamworth)
So unlucky in this match, we easily could've scored 3/4 in the first half, but didn't take our chances and they came back to beat us 2-1, a dodgy penalty to seal it.

Conference League Cup: 3rd Round North (Lost 3-2 to Histon)
Didn't really want this cup, so many games in it and it was wearing out my squad. Not a lot of prize money either.

Squad & Tactics
Tactic worked out nicely for me this year, will probably stick with it next season. My squad is very good in my opinion, didn't spend a penny, and brought in released Premiership players and some others.

Finances
Not very good, hope to do good in the cups to change this though.

Transfers
Almost a whole new squad, while getting rid of another one! Worked out fantastically, some of my signings were fantastic.

Topscorer: Martin McCubbin (18 goals)
Top Assists: Ryan Beswick (16 assists)
Top Rating: Martin McCubbin (7.09)
Club's Player of the Year: Ricardo Fernandes
Considering I play Martin on the right-wing normally, that is a fantastic achievement. He had a really good season but died down near the end, like the rest of the squad. Ryan Beswick contributed with a massive 16 assists, great season for him. I needed a Midfield Maestro if you like, so I spent £525 of my wage budget to take former Chelsea player Ricardo Fernandes to the club, he was fantastic, solid as you can get.

Aims For Next Season:
Survive
Get Further In The Cups
Get Some More Staff In

Domestic League:

Season       Team             League                Finished  
2009-2010    Boston United    Blue Square North     1st - Promoted as Champions

[hrbfcrule]

just played a home match against top of the table carlisle. Things didnt go as planned early on as they got a pen on the 7th min, nd on the 26th min my dm got sent off. But from then on we dominated and we got 1 back before ht to make it 1-1, in the 2nd half we missed many chances till the 90thmin when super sub jack redshaw popped up and scored 2 it was definately the best we've played all season and shows how good we are at home making it 6 wins out of 6 at home in the league.

EDIT: just realised that was my 350th game in charge, what i nice way to celebrate it

[SJ234]

Survival is on

[hamilton162]

That's good news SJ Where are you in the table & after how many games?

Just about to play Ajax away in the CL, let's get back on track and get some consistently good form going tonight

[AdamFitz]

Fantastic, last season's loan signing Harry Worley has been signed again on loan for this season and he's delighted, we're in his favoured clubs now!

[iTry]

Can anybody shed some light on tactics getting 'cracked'? I've been using the same set of 5 tactics for my 10 seasons now.

They are all 4-4-2 with a MCa/d and FCa/d set-up and are used depending on my opponents:
TH (vs Top Half teams)
MT (vs Mid Table teams)
BH (vs Bottom Half teams)
SUS (Shut Up Shop)
AOA (All Out Attack)

If I am using a basic 4-4-2 set-up and a set of 5 tactics, is it likely they will ever get 'cracked' by the AI? The reason I ask this is because they appear to be getting slightly less efficient.

[Tactic Master]

Fantastic, last season's loan signing Harry Worley has been signed again on loan for this season and he's delighted, we're in his favoured clubs now!

I like it when that happens

[AdamFitz]

Might try get him permanent in the future, depending on his price

[rlipscombe]

greatstart with Boston AdamFitz....

[hamilton162]

iTry - Different tactics are more likely to fool the AI, but your players need to adjust to each formation. So changing formation every game will result in lesser performances than if you were to play the same tactic for 5 games and then change it

HTH

[Surferosa]

Can anybody shed some light on tactics getting 'cracked'? I've been using the same set of 5 tactics for my 10 seasons now.

They are all 4-4-2 with a MCa/d and FCa/d set-up and are used depending on my opponents:
TH (vs Top Half teams)
MT (vs Mid Table teams)
BH (vs Bottom Half teams)
SUS (Shut Up Shop)
AOA (All Out Attack)

If I am using a basic 4-4-2 set-up and a set of 5 tactics, is it likely they will ever get 'cracked' by the AI? The reason I ask this is because they appear to be getting slightly less efficient.

Accepted wisdom (by me at least ) is that tactics don't get cracked. What happens, however, is that the teams you come up against move from attacking against you to defensive- specifically, moving from an attacking game that largely ignores you're strengths to a defensive one that focus'es on nullifying you're strengths. As a consequence, the first sign is that you are not dominating the match stats as before- creating far fewer chances and often end up conceeding / dropping points as a result.

What is also probably at play here is that the standard of football you are up against has changed as you rose through the divisions. So I had a huge amount of success using a 442 based on a reasonably direct'ish, high tempo game- in effect using the mistakes and panic that this caused in the opposition defenses to create chances.

However, by the time I moved upto CCC- this was just failing. I found that I was just gifting the opp (now with better, more technically proficient players) the ball- and they were good at keeping hold of it. My first season using this 442 saw me getting crushed in the possession / pass completition stats and I struggled.

So, Im now using a (similiar) 4411; that is flexible (TBH set again). At home, Im largely playing 4231 playing high up the pitch with lots of width, short/mixed passing and a slower tempo. Away (when underdog) I play a little more direct- a little faster tempo, less width- but a lower mentality and on the counter.

Effectively Im neally always using an AMC instead of a 2nd striker- but my game plan is totally dependent upon possession and width to open up defences. So despite it seeming like the key change has been a 442 to 4411- really its the entire style of football that Ive changed. The reason I mention it becuase whilst your variants may have worked before- you may have to tweak some of the team / individual settings to get the formation playing how you want.

My advice- try and go back to basics. Create your 'standard' formation that you're happy with. You should perform well at home against a team where you are slight favourite. From there, tweak a home version, then an away- and then you'll find the right tweaks for other versions (ie control, sus, defensive, etc), and for specific match scenarios.

[Surferosa]

iTry - Different tactics are more likely to fool the AI, but your players need to adjust to each formation. So changing formation every game will result in lesser performances than if you were to play the same tactic for 5 games and then change it

HTH

Don't think this is the case for different variants though mate. Providing the formation has a basic shape that doesn't change- I have seen no adverse impact of using 'variants'. So by basic shape I mean a 4411 is really the same as a 4231 if all you have done is push the MR/L into an AMR/L position. Or creating variants based on tempo / width / passing / etc.

And hello again... Im back

[AdamFitz]

greatstart with Boston AdamFitz....

Thanks, Eindhoven game has been boring me of late, now I am hooked on this save

[hamilton162]

Surf, where have you been?

[MikaelS]

New season has begun and the break was used to bring in 3 heavy signings. David Baker for the midfield for a record price of 255mill DKK. Then Dean Culina for the defence and last but not least Alex Teixeira for midfield/attack.

5 matches in and I'm in 1st place. It is looking good so far.

[rlipscombe]

Thanks, Eindhoven game has been boring me of late, now I am hooked on this save

yeah i decided to do this to run alongside Oviedo.... i've got them to almost the top now so i want a 'small club' alternative to that game.....

[rlipscombe]

Without further ado, here is the latest new manager of Boston United.....

Profile

I went for Boston as it had to be a northern team, being northern myself. I've done Worksop previously, and Boston as close to the 'in-laws' hoilday bungalow, so i have a little more interest over the other options.....

looking forward to giving this challenge a good go alongside my JoseRR save. let battle commence!!

[Surferosa]

Surf, where have you been?

Working my butt off at work Its a complete distration from what I should be doing (ie getting Witton into the EPL). Although I'm 6 games from the end of the season.

Slowest progress ever I reckon. Need to watch fewer games on full match highlights

[hamilton162]

Yeah, its been well over a month since i completed a season and i'll be playing the Wallace V Roberts save for the next week. And after that it will probably take me a week or so to complete a season. Thank god the school summer holidays are almost here

[hamilton162]

Mikael - How much is 255DK in £?

[hrbfcrule]

Thank god the school summer holidays are almost here

I'm already on school holiday and finally i have a decent amount of time to play fm. Stupid school after a levels is really pointless, i dont see why we couldn't have study leave like i did last year.

Ive already done a season and a half in around 5 days and so far in this season i am 5 points clear at the top of lge1 in my 3rd season in this league. bout 15 games in but i haven't played any of the current top 6 (well 2nd to 6th)

[MikaelS]

Mikael - How much is 255DK in £?

225 mill DKK is 34.24 mill EUR which is 29.59 mill GBP

[hamilton162]

Cheers Mikael

hrbfcrule - Jammy I've got 7 school days left though, not long till we break up

[SJ234]

15th with a game in hand, i have 3 games left. 1 point clear of the relegation zone

[hamilton162]

Good Luck with the quest for survival then

[iTry]

Thanks a lot hamilton and surferosa. The only thing that changes in the tactics is the mentality, the use of counter attack, and the defensive line (only slightly) so it's not as if my players aren't used to the tactic(s). I have only noticed a very slight drop in the effectiveness of my tactics so its very possible that it could be another factor (e.g. a young, ungelled squad) other than the tactic getting 'cracked'. My team still perform in the way that I want them to, grinding out results against tougher opponents without risky, 'nice' football. It's not as though I have to go back to basics, I have been using this tactic set since I made it in FM05 and it works at all levels, BSN->Prem, only making adjustments to implement MCa/d and FCa/d partnerships.

[hrbfcrule]

i have come to the stage of this fm career where bigger clubs are trying to nick my place . I know lots of people have these problems

is there any way to stop them? or do you have to sell your player and try and find a suitable replacement?

[iTry]

If your chairman decides to sell your best players like he did to me - 4 in 3 seasons, you have to find replacements. I generally refuse to let players go even if it means they become unhappy because it's the only way I'll get promoted - with quality players.

[hrbfcrule]

If your chairman decides to sell your best players like he did to me - 4 in 3 seasons, you have to find replacements. I generally refuse to let players go even if it means they become unhappy because it's the only way I'll get promoted - with quality players.

hmmm ok. 2 players want to leave atm but neither of them have got unhappy yet, they have both got plenty of interest from championship clubs. i am about a month away from january transfer window. Its a real pity ill have to sell them especially kieron trippier who has been at the club for 5 1/2 seasons and holds the record for must club appearances.

[hrbfcrule]

They both keep changing their minds, they say they want to placed on the transfer listed then the next day it says they dont wanna leave and they want to be removed from the transfer list.

[Tactic Master]

hmmm ok. 2 players want to leave atm but neither of them have got unhappy yet, they have both got plenty of interest from championship clubs. i am about a month away from january transfer window. Its a real pity ill have to sell them especially kieron trippier who has been at the club for 5 1/2 seasons and holds the record for must club appearances.

I am yet to have this happen to me. I have so much young tallent in my side now. Basically my whole side is young tallent, bar a few players. A lot of my youngsters have been picking up interesting but the offers have been low thankfully and my chairman hasn't said a word so i've been rejecting.

However i've bought almost all my talent from low league teams, so i've paid very little and i will be happy with the profits if the day comes that i have no choice over selling. For example, i've paid £6,000 for a 16 year old from Boston United who's shot up to being worth £24,000 and is scoring plenty and surely will be worth millions in future. If he was to leave, i'd have made those millions on him

[Tactic Master]

Got Chelsea in the FA Cup 5th Round! Looks like time for an exit there...

[hrbfcrule]

However i've bought almost all my talent from low league teams, so i've paid very little and i will be happy with the profits if the day comes that i have no choice over selling.

i also bought my players really cheap but i can't reject the offers because they are getting unhappy which is ruining my squad harmony and also my team is now starting to play much worse so i think i have to sell them and find, hopefully, find better replacements

[Tactic Master]

i also bought my players really cheap but i can't reject the offers because they are getting unhappy which is ruining my squad harmony and also my team is now starting to play much worse so i think i have to sell them and find, hopefully, find better replacements

There will always be a replacement somewhere, its just finding them thats the problem lol.

[Tactic Master]

I just gained 800k from playing Chelsea in the FA Cup away at Stamford Bridge! That's some excellent cash right there. I was very lucky to reach the 5th Round, basically because i've had an easy run to get here. Then to play 1 of the best teams in the world was just the icing on the cake in money matters.

It also ended in a very good way, showing that my players are no walk-overs. They beat us 1 - 0.

Chelsea V FC United,

My FA Cup Run...

FA Cup 1st Round: Tamworth 0 - 2 FC United - Blue Square North Team

FA Cup 2nd Round: FC United 6 - 0 Farnborough - Blue Square North Team

FA Cup 3rd Round: Shrewsbury 0 - 3 FC United - Coca Cola League 2 Team

FA Cup 4th Round: Gillingham 1 - 1 FC United - Coca Cola League 1 Team

FA Cup 4th Round Re-play - FC United 2 - 0 Gillingham - Coca Cola League 1 Team

FA Cup 5th Round - Chelsea 1 - 0 FC United - Premiership Team

[hrbfcrule]

well done on only losing by 1 goal thats very impressive. in comparison i am still losing to arsenal 4-0 in pre season friendlies and i am top of lge 1 atm altho arsenal are top of the prem as well

[Tactic Master]

well done on only losing by 1 goal thats very impressive. in comparison i am still losing to arsenal 4-0 in pre season friendlies and i am top of lge 1 atm altho arsenal are top of the prem as well

Well basically they dominated, but my players are resilient and my defenders are very good. They also missed a penalty which would have made the score look a lot more better if they hadn't missed it lol. As for pre-season matches, i think that happens no matter what. Man Utd beat me 6 - 0 in pre-season!

[Tactic Master]

I want to sign Beckham! He's only worth £45,000. I made an offer but he rejected saying it would be a step in the wrong direction lol. Well he can't say i didn't try

[hrbfcrule]

I want to sign Beckham! He's only worth £45,000. I made an offer but he rejected saying it would be a step in the wrong direction lol. Well he can't say i didn't try

haha good effort

[Tactic Master]

I'm having real problems with Daniel Hutchins, a player who has been with me since the beginning and has been a revelation for the club. He's been picking up lots of injuries recently One big injury was 6 weeks, he came back for a few games then got injured again... There's also clubs looking to buy him, i might consider selling if the price is right due to these problems

[haza555]

Where can i get a logo pack including FC United of Manchester? Anyone?

[Tactic Master]

Where can i get a logo pack including FC United of Manchester? Anyone?

I'd love to know that too!

[Tactic Master]

My seaosn is complete! I'll have my End Of Season report ready tomorrow sometime