AI Experiment - what would happen if?

[Guest roberto922]

That looks fantastic mate

[Guest roberto922]

Do you have a link to your requests thread mate?

[Abs_UK]

Do you have a link to your requests thread mate?

Request Thread

[Guest roberto922]

Thanks Out of interest, I know you can't make the original kits but if I was to ask for one with the Everton logo but a different sponsor and kit manufacturer would it still be against the forums rules/

[Abs_UK]

Thanks Out of interest, I know you can't make the original kits but if I was to ask for one with the Everton logo but a different sponsor and kit manufacturer would it still be against the forums rules/

It maybe allowed.. i have in the past made many fantasy kits but with original logos..

[Guest roberto922]

Brilliant

[4Site]

Abs again top kits mate keep up good work. Cant wait for it to kick off!!! LoL

[rorschach2u]

how bout Monsanto for the sponsor?

p.s is the Bandits db uploaded anywhere?

(nevermind, just noticed it was for 07)

would be interesting for a few people to run the same database & see how it comes out...

(maybe for 09?)

i can't believe this thing went up to 2061

i'm only on season 4! (in this thread i mean)

.....

they had the exact same wins, draws and losses as the previous year?!

"Oh, Jesus, man, that’s a goocher!"

xD

[Mravac Kid]

Kip hasn't released the db or savegame to the public yet, he'll do that once the experiment is over.

But it's fairly easy to make the same changes to your db and try it for yourself (I did with San Marino, and they destroyed any and all opposition for the 3 weeks or so that the players stayed at the club )

[yugo23]

would be interesting for a few people to run the same database & see how it comes out...

Not quite well :

http://community.sigames.com/showpost.php?p=2103960&postcount=4021

[Mravac Kid]

I don't think that experiment is done quite right...

Here's a couple of screenshots from my own.

[Rabbitoh]

I don't see why the Bandits need to be sponsered by a company named "Bandit". Thats a bit unrealistic. I think they should be sponsered by SI

[Ready Freddie]

I liked the Enron idea, lots of money but no end product.

But whatever you guys think.

[VonBlade]

I think they should be sponsered by SI

Nooooo. Because if SI had ever managed to sort out the progress of a club, or the effect that infinite cash can have, then the Bandits would have had some success. The amazingly poor quality of the regen staff, the reputation bias that players have when choosing who to play for, etc etc, are why we ended up in the Championship.

Bandits sponsored by SI is like a Chicken sponsored by KFC.

[aka.arrogantio]

I don't know, the Bandits' habit of having to patch up pre-season mistakes that probably shouldn't have been made looks all-too-familiar

[nerner]

When does the new season start?

[Mravac Kid]

It probably started already, we're just waiting for Kipfizh to finish it and report about it.

[nerner]

O.K cool, waiting on an update now Kipfizh.

[Adam Phillips]

Oh my god, I'd completely forgotten about this thread! I followed it from the beginning but lost a bit of interest (no offence kip) when it started to get too detailed and the updates were taking longer to arrive. Great dedication though and I can't believe after 50 odd years, they've only won 3 minor trophies. Mental!

[ubik]

Just finished reading this whole thread - I am loving the Bandits and looking forward to the next chapter in this continuing saga

[kipfizh]

Absolutely amazing job on the kits Abs - I certainly will be using your Bandits set in the 09 experiment, and I look forward to the Sheriffs (no hurry though!)

Update on the way, in the meantime

[kipfizh]

Season 2062-63

Bandits report - Transfers

After another mediocre season, this time back in the Championship, Danny Yates was under severe pressure to perform. Could he, or would he finally be dismissed?

Summer

Notable Sales:

Mintus (Aston Villa, 8.25m). First choice striker unsurprisingly moves on after a failure to get back into the Premiership. He’s too good for that league.

Lila (Leeds, 5.25m). First choice left back now at his peak and another who is too good for the Championship.

Peters (Newcastle, 6.25m). Another first choice player, the centre back was willing to stay for a season in the Championship but no more.

Cash (Port Vale, 7.5m). Mintus’ strike partner followed him out of the club with the Bandits showing no signs of a Premiership return.

Battams (Leicester, 4.3m). Another sale, another first teamer leaving. Battams wasn’t a great central midfielder, but was still first choice because of a paucity of options.

De Zeeuw (Hull, 2.1m). The centre back had a fine season last time out, but is 32 now so was probably on his way down anyway. Nonetheless, he was first choice.

A Taylor (Ajax, 7.75m). The reserve keeper who was on the way up, a 26 year old with 170 CA, and the second best player at the club (after the first choice keeper). But Ajax is a big move.

Sills (QPR, 2.2m). Finally a good bit of business, the left back was rubbish.

Last summer the Bandits were relegated, and twelve of the top twenty players left the club. Of the eight that remained, six have left this summer, leaving just goalkeeping legend McParland and talented Dutch striker Doorn as the only survivors from the relegated squad. That is an astonishing exodus.

Signings

Kenny Thompson (Derby, 4.4m) – 28 year old central defender with 150 CA and 154 PA.

Gary Young (Bolton, 2.6m) – 26 year old striker with a peaked CA of 154.

Jason McGuire (Derby, 4.6m) – 22 year old left winger with a CA of 154 and a PA of 165. Very nice.

Mel Alexander (Sheff Utd, free) – 27 year old jack all of trades, master of none with a CA of 125. Why? Versatile doesn’t mean good.

Andy Thompson (Colchester, 4.9m) – 24 year old defensive midfielder with a CA/PA of 155/169.

Ryan Holmes (Inverness, 140k) – 25 year old keeper with a peaked CA of 133. Meet the Championship version of Gomes.

Stephen McAreavey (Barnsley, 300k) – 22 year old centre back with a PA of only 142. Not good enough.

Jan van der Linden (Notts Co, 325k) – 28 year old right wing back with a peaked CA of 139. No, Danny, no.

Well, the signings started well. Both Thompsons, and Young can slot straight into the team, while McGuire is an excellent signing for a Championship side. But the rest? Tosh, even by this division’s standards.

Overall, some of the departures were inevitable, but the squad is still getting weaker.

[kipfizh]

Bandits report – Season report

August-December

After one disappointing season back in the Championship, Danny Yates had somehow held on to his job, but was under pressure going into the new season. Would his reign of destruction ever end?

August

The season started badly, with only two wins out of six league matches in August leaving the Bandits in the bottom half once again. To make matters worse, they were dumped out of the League Cup in the first round by League Two Welling. With only a few weeks of the season gone, the fans were already sick of their manager again.

September

If there were any hopes that August would be a low point, they were ended when September was almost identical – two wins and three defeats in the six matches slipped the team down towards the bottom of the league, dangerously close to the drop zone. If Yates remained, they were in severe relegation danger.

October

A win, a loss and a draw continued the run of mediocrity the Bandits were on, but then, on the 27th, with them sitting as low as 17th in the Championship, the board finally gave Yates an ultimatum. The upcoming match against Man City was crucial, and they made it clear that another defeat would seem him finally dismissed.

But Yates survived thanks to a 2-1 win, and a draw to end the month saw the Bandits climbing back up towards mid table.

November

One win in the five November games saw fans begin to protest vehemently against the manager, but also the board who have stuck by him for such a long time. A Premiership force when he took over, the Bandits were now 20th, just two places and a couple of points away from the drop zone. As a club, they were going backwards, and it was clear that the fans had had enough.

But the board hadn’t, and despite given Yates his final warning over a month ago, another set of poor results didn’t see him dismissed. These guys have too much patience.

December

A draw with Barnsley saw the home crowd sing organised protest songs against the board, the relationship between the top dogs and the fans having been severely scarred. Finally, the men in charge saw sense, and on December 3, with the Bandits 20th in the Championship, they gave Yates his marching orders, to the delight of the faithful.

Two days later, a young manager by the name of Jay Raynor was appointed. Experience he certainly doesn’t have – the 43 year old has spent most of his career as a coach or assistant manager, but was promoted to the managerial role at League Two Sheff Utd in October. Less than two months later, he takes over at the Bandits.

His CA has already peaked at a reasonable 120, and with the two scouting attributes sitting at 14 and 11, he will perhaps have a better shot at recognising a good player than his predecessor. Although that’s not hard. He is a controversial figure (19) who doesn’t train his players hard at all (1), although with such a small squad perhaps that’s a good thing.

Crucially, he arrives before the January transfer window, with a few weeks to assess the squad before hopefully going on to sign some quality.

His spell in charge of the Bandits certainly started well, with a 2-1 win over Stoke, and he would in fact see them through an unbeaten month, winning twice and drawing three times before the calendar year was up. The challenge was now to improve a squad that was desperately short of ability or potential.

[kipfizh]

Bandits report - Transfers

Transfers In

Transfers Out

January

Notable Sales:

Bingham (Hull, 3.2m). First choice right winger decides that it is best to move back into the Premiership, as the Bandits don’t seem to be going that way.

Doorn (Arsenal, 4.5m). Another gutting sale, as the excellent Dutch striker moves on.

With the depature of Marcel Doorn, only keeper Tony McParland remains from the Premiership side. But with a new manager in charge, can the signings step up in quality?

Signings

Andy Bruce (Leeds, 3.4m) – 26 year old left winger with a CA of 153. A solid Championship player.

John Martin (Middlesbrough, 4.4m) – 24 year old holding midfielder with a CA of 157 and a CA of 176. Very very nice.

Sandor Baranyi (Millwall, 1.3m) – 24 year old striker with a peaked CA of 144. Hmm, that looks Yates-esque.

Aidan Wright (Man City, 6.25m) – 29 year old attacking midfielder with a CA of 159, making him the squad’s third best player. Very good for this division.

Jamie Hunter (Portsmouth, 5m) – 25 year old right winger with a CA/PA of 143/155. Five million is a rip off.

A mixed bag there – Martin is an excellent, Premiership quality signing, Bruce and Wright are very solid Championship players, but Baranyi and Hunter are not so good.

Can he make the team perform?

[kipfizh]

Bandits report - squad

Top 20 in Squad (sorted by CA)

Name, Pos, Age, CA-PA

McParland, GK, 33, 173-173 (-)

Downey, DC, 24, 162-166 (+6)

Wright, AM/F C, 29, 159-159 – new signing

Martin, DM, 24, 157-176 – new signing

Georgiev, DM, 27, 157-157 (-)

A Thompson, DM, 24, 155-169 – new signing

McGuire, AM L, 22, 154-165 – new signing

Young, ST, 26, 154-154 – new signing

Bruce, AM L, 26, 153-154 – new signing

K Thompson, DC, 28, 150-154 – new signing

Hulbert, D/WB R, 26, 145-158 (-)

Baranyi, ST, 24, 144-144 – new signing

Vincent, AM C, 29, 143-156 (-6)

Hunter, AM R, 25, 143-155 – new signing

van der Linden, D/WB R, 28, 139-139 – new signing

McAreavey, DC, 22, 138-142 – new signing

Casali, AM R, 29, 137-137 (-)

Holmes, GK, 25, 133-133 – new signing

Alexander, DM/AM LC, 27, 125-138 – new signing

Shaw, D/WB/M L, 28, 117-117 (-)

Players in last season’s top 20 who have left the club:

A Taylor, GK, 26, 170-170

Mintus, ST, 21, 168-176

Lila, DLC/MC, 27, 166-171

Cash, ST, 25, 165-165

Peters, DC/DM, 24, 163-176

de Zeeuw, DC, 32, 161-174

Doorn, ST, 25, 160-171

Battams, MC, 29, 155-168

Bingham, D/M R, 26, 152-162

Williamson, ST, 20, 146-157

Sills, DL, 23, 146-153

Henry, D/WB/AM R, 25, 118-129

Players in last season’s top 20 who have dropped out of the top 20:

J Taylor, DC, 20, 110-118 (+4)

Squad turnover is incredible at the Bandits, with twelve of last season’s top twenty moving on, the same number as last season. Only one player remains from the top twenty of two seasons ago, and that is goalkeeper McParland, who is still performing superbly. What happens when he retires or leaves?

A lot of talent was let go this year, and most worryingly, quite a lot of them had been new signings only the previous season, aiming to be back in the Premiership in a year. When that didn’t happen, they all moved on.

This squad is in a truly awful state, and is unrecognisable from that of only a few seasons ago.

Notable others:

There’s barely anyone notable IN the list, let alone outside it.

CA of X or above:

190 : 0 … 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0

180 : 0 … 1, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0

170 : 0 … 7, 8, 7, 5, 5, 4, 4, 2, 1

160 : 0 … 19, 11, 15, 16, 18, 14, 17, 8, 2

150 : 0 … 26, 21, 19, 20, 23, 22, 23, 12, 10

140 : 0 … 26, 22, 21, 20, 24, 22, 24, 16, 14

130 : 0 … 26, 24, 22, 21, 25, 25, 25, 17, 18

120 : 0 … 27, 25, 23, 21, 25, 25, 26, 17, 19

110 : 0 … 27, 25, 25, 23, 25, 25, 26, 19, 21

100 : 2 … 29, 27, 26, 23, 26, 25, 27, 21, 21

Good news and bad news here. The obvious bad news is the sharp fall in the number of players with 160 CA in the squad. Two seasons ago it was 17, last season eight, and now just two remain.

On the other hand, the depth of the squad is slightly improved. The quality may have dropped a bit, but the 11th-20th placed players are better than last season.

[kipfizh]

Bandits report – Season report

January-May

January

After a mixed bag of signings in January, the fans were keen to see if Raynor could continue the good start he’d made in December. And he would stay undefeated until a 1-0 defeat to Charlton on the final day of the month, January also including a 3-0 FA Cup win over Conference Peterborough and a 0-0 draw at home in the fourth round against Barnet. By the end of the month, they were back up to 15th and a good distance from the drop zone.

February onwards

After a 1-0 defeat in the cup replay, the Bandits’ season really petered out, an inconsistent run seeing them never threaten the mid table positions, but also never again come close to the drop zone, a relief given the dreadful state Yates had left them in.

By the end of the season, the Bandits sat 17th, another terrible season but one at least that saw them gain a new manager, one who may be better at spotting players than his predecessor. He doesn’t look great, but even adequate would be an improvement.

Honours: League Cup (2044, 2047, 2052)

[kipfizh]

Bandits report – Season summary

2006-07, English Conference South - 1st, FA Trophy - Winners

2007-08, English National Conference - 7th, FA Trophy - Final

2008-09, English National Conference – 7th

2009-10, English National Conference – 9th

2010-11, English National Conference – 6th

2011-12, English National Conference – 18th

2012-13, English National Conference – 5th

2013-14, English National Conference – 1st

2014-15, English League Two – 21st

2015-16, English League Two – 21st

2016-17, English League Two – 6th

2017-18, English League Two – 6th

2018-19, English League Two – 7th

2019-20, English League Two – 6th, Johnstone’s Paint Trophy – South Semi Final

2020-21, English League Two – 10th

2021-22, English League Two – 1st, Johnstone’s Paint Trophy - Final

2022-23, English League One – 13th, Johnstone’s Paint Trophy – South Semi Final

2023-24, English League One – 11th, League Cup – Final

2024-25, English League One – 11th, League Cup – Semi-Final

2025-26, English League One – 18th

2026-27, English League One – 17th

2027-28, English League One – 14th

2028-29, English League One – 20th

2029-30, English League One – 1st

2030-31, English Championship – 14th

2031-32, English Championship – 10th, League Cup – Final

2032-33, English Championship – 12th

2033-34, English Championship – 8th

2034-35, English Championship – 21st

2035-36, English Championship – 2nd

2036-37, English Premiership – 17th

2037-38, English Premiership – 12th

2038-39, English Premiership – 15th, FA Cup – Semi-Final

2039-40, English Premiership – 11th

2040-41, English Premiership – 14th

2041-42, English Premiership – 13th

2042-43, English Premiership – 11th

2043-44, English Premiership – 6th, League Cup – Winners

2044-45, English Premiership – 9th

2045-46, English Premiership – 3rd

2046-47, English Premiership – 2nd, League Cup – Winners

2047-48, English Premiership – 5th, League Cup – Final

2048-49, English Premiership – 5th, UEFA Cup – Semi-Final

2049-50, English Premiership – 11th, League Cup – Final

2050-51, English Premiership – 6th

2051-52, English Premiership – 9th, League Cup – Winners

2052-53, English Premiership – 3rd

2053-54, English Premiership – 5th, UEFA Cup – Semi-Final, FA Cup – Semi-Final

2054-55, English Premiership: - 6th

2055-56, English Premiership – 6th

2056-57, English Premiership – 14th

2057-58, English Premiership – 12th

2058-59

English Premiership: (Pos 13), P 38, W 13, D 7, L 18, F 52, A 62, GD -10, Pts 46

(Media Prediction: 13th)

FA Cup: Final

League Cup: Quarter-Final

2059-60

English Premiership: (Pos 14), P 38, W 13, D 8, L 17, F 48, A 51, GD -3, Pts 47

(Media Prediction: 12th)

FA Cup: 5th Round

League Cup: 3rd Round

2060-61

English Premiership: (Pos 19), P 38, W 10, D 8, L 20, F 46, A 72, GD -26, Pts 38

(Media Prediction: 15th)

FA Cup: 5th Round

League Cup: 3rd Round

2061-62

English Championship: (Pos 13), P 46, W 16, D 14, L 16, F 70, A 65, GD +5, Pts 62

(Media Prediction: 2nd)

FA Cup: 4th Round

League Cup: 3rd Round

2062-63

English Championship: (Pos 17), P 46, W 13, D 18, L 15, F 62, A 62, GD 0, Pts 57

(Media Prediction: 8th)

League

FA Cup: 4th Round

League Cup: 1st Round

[kipfizh]

Bandits report - Best and Worst

General

Stats

New records:

None

This season:

Best player – McParland, 7.38

Top scorer – Young, 17

Worst player – Georgiev, 6.42

[kipfizh]

Bandits report - First XI Summary

GK: McParland (33, 173/173) – 7.38

LB: Shaw (28, 117/117) – 7.23

CB: Downey (24, 162/166) – 7.14

CB: K Thompson (28, 150/154) – 7.06

RB: van der Linden (28, 139/139) – 6.88

LM: Bruce (26, 153/154) – 7.00

CM: A Thompson (24, 155/169) – 6.92

CM: Georgiev (27, 157/157) – 6.42

RM: Hulbert (26, 145/158) – 6.96

ST: Young (26, 154/154) – 7.16

ST: Wright (29, 159/159) – 7.31

Average age – 27.2 (up from last year’s 26.7)

Average CA – 151.3 (down from last year’s 156.3)

Average rating – 7.04 (same as last year)

The squad is getting smaller, older and worse, which is not exactly the most promising assessment. In fairness, only four of the first eleven average below seven, and perhaps the biggest surprise is left back Andy Shaw, who gets a average rating of 7.23 with a paltry CA of 117. He is certainly outperforming himself.

Elsewhere, the problem is as much the backup as the top players, because the squad is so thin now that any injuries and suspensions cost them badly. And now that they are in a league that plays 46 matches a season, they simply need more bodies.

[kipfizh]

Bandits report – Outside the first XI

Dropped:

None.

Sold:

Lila (LB): Decided it was time to go with the Bandits going backwards.

de Zeeuw (CB): Moves on after an excellent spell with the Bandits.

Peters (CB): Another one to be sold.

Bingham (RM): Sold.

Battams (CM): And another

Mintus (ST): We all wished he would stay, but he was never going to for long.

Doorn (ST): The second of the strike pairing to leave.

Prospects

None

Another seven of the first team moved on, it is no wonder that the Bandits can’t succeed – there is absolutely no stability in this club.

[kipfizh]

Competitions - Other stats

England only managed to reach the second round of the World Cup they were hosting, losing to Portugal, and as a result former Bandit manager Robbie Way was dismissed. Remarkably, Romania, who had qualified for the first time in 32 years, went on to win the competition for the first time in their history, defeating Brazil in the final. Now ranked in the world’s top ten, they had been 49th only a year before.

Meanwhile, both age records fell, Uruguay’s keeper Leandro Martinez becoming the youngest player at 16 and 3 months, keeping a clean sheet against Italy before unfortunately being dropped, while the Czech keeper Radim Kucera appeared at a shade under 41.

Sheff Wed regained the Premiership crown that is so often theirs, the fifteenth title of their history, while champions Spurs came second. Man Utd and Burnley filled out the Champions League spots, while Sunderland, Port Vale and Reading went down. Boston United, in their first season in the top flight, avoided the drop on goal difference after coming back from 2-0 down to earn a draw with Sheff Wed on the final day.

Sheff Wed completed the double, and rubbed in into Spurs by beating them 3-0 in the FA Cup final having already taken their Premiership trophy, while West Ham beat Newcastle 3-2 after extra time in a thrilling League Cup final.

Bayern Munich became champions of Europe, beating Inter with a single goal, with Spurs’ quarter final appearance the best by a Premiership club. Meanwhile, in the UEFA Cup, West Ham were denied another cup when Osasuna defeated them 2-1.

[kipfizh]

Summary

Finally, Danny Yates has gone. I think that’s the overriding feeling of the fans, but at the end of the day he has totally wrecked this club. They weren’t challenging for the Premiership when he arrived, but they had a squad capable of big things, and his dismantled it, piece by piece, eventually getting them relegated.

Even that wasn’t enough, and he now has them as a Championship side more likely to suffer a second relegation that go back up again, so Raynor has a huge job on his hands.

Bets on how long it’ll take the Bandits to return to the top flight?

[kipfizh]

World View - World beaters (by CA)

Juan Carlos Gimenez (Lyon/Argentina, 26, 199/199, Midfielder: 76.84%), spends his fourth year at the peak of his ability, and is still only 26. Finally, he has a decent season, after flattering to deceive for a few years, averaging 7.37 for Lyon. He has a few years left in him yet.

Juan Carlos Gimenez

Nenad Mijatovic (Milan/Serbia, 28, 199/199, Centre Back: 78.99%), sits joint top for the third season in a row, and unlike Gimenez, who is improving, he doesn’t have as spectacular a season as we are used to. By his own high standards, his 7.31 average rating is a little disappointing, but realistically, it is still pretty good.

Nenad Mijatovic

Roberio (Marseille/Brazil, 29, 198/198, Winger: 79.20%), is another player who has been at his peak for a while, this being the fourth season in a row at 198. Wingers often fade early, so at 29 he is doing very well to maintain his ability, as well as his tremendous performances. His average of 7.46 also sees his score sixteen goals in another fantastic season. Maia he is not.

Roberio

Alberto Galan (Barcelona/Spain, 24, 197/197, Target Striker: 79.01%), is a new entry on the list, flying in to hit his 197 potential at the age of only 24. The Barcelona striker has a reasonable scoring record for his club, managing 17 in 39 games, but in internationals he comes into his own, with a record of 35 strikes in 40 caps, reminiscent of one Eduardo Castillejo. Still young, Galan has plenty of promise.

Alberto Galan

Bjorn Zimmerman (Bayern Munich/Germany, 23, 195/195, Full Back: 77.59%), spends his second season on the list, and is still only 23. Again, his performances don’t live up to the ‘world beater’ billing, but he has time on his side.

Bjorn Zimmerman

Five players at their peak, and only Roberio at an age where he may begin to lose CA points.

[crafty bison]

An update! Fantastic

[Scotty Walds]

Competitions - Other stats

England only managed to reach the second round of the World Cup they were hosting, losing to Portugal, and as a result former Bandit manager Robbie Way was dismissed. Remarkably, Romania, who had qualified for the first time in 32 years, went on to win the competition for the first time in their history, defeating Brazil in the final. Now ranked in the world’s top ten, they had been 49th only a year before.

Meanwhile, both age records fell, Uruguay’s keeper Leandro Martinez becoming the youngest player at 16 and 3 months, keeping a clean sheet against Italy before unfortunately being dropped, while the Czech keeper Radim Kucera appeared at a shade under 41.

Sheff Wed regained the Premiership crown that is so often theirs, the fifteenth title of their history, while champions Spurs came second. Man Utd and Burnley filled out the Champions League spots, while Sunderland, Port Vale and Reading went down. Boston United, in their first season in the top flight, avoided the drop on goal difference after coming back from 2-0 down to earn a draw with Sheff Wed on the final day.

Sheff Wed completed the double, and rubbed in into Spurs by beating them 3-0 in the FA Cup final having already taken their Premiership trophy, while West Ham beat Newcastle 3-2 after extra time in a thrilling League Cup final.

Bayern Munich became champions of Europe, beating Inter with a single goal, with Spurs’ quarter final appearance the best by a Premiership club. Meanwhile, in the UEFA Cup, West Ham were denied another cup when Osasuna defeated them 2-1.

Any chance of a screenie of their Domestic Leagues history?

[Guest roberto922]

Ah well, at least we didn't get relegated! And with a new manager surely our fortunes will change?

[aka.arrogantio]

Yates makes Graeme Souness look like Sir Alex Ferguson...

[Mravac Kid]

Yates makes my grandma look like Sir Alex Ferguson.

I daresay he's the least-wanted person within a 10-mile radius from the stadium since... well, forever.

At least we're finally rid of him, hopefully the new guy can do a better job... even though I don't expect a promotion anytime soon.

[Rabbitoh]

Yay an update. Top class stuff Kip, shame I can't say the same about the bandits preformance. With Yates gone things can only get better, can't they.

[iacovone]

Just checked this thread for the first time in 6 months.

Firstly I can't believe its still going, Kip for that a big

Secondly - relegated!? Who is this Yates idiot!?

Prediction - they will suffer a 2nd relegation in either this or the next season but then bounce back up to the Premier League within 5 further years!

[5ergio]

A reconstruction of the squad is needed and I'm expecting a return to the top flight in the next 5 years, but we'll suffer well in that time imo. Thank you Kip for the update. It was much needed nowadays, at least for me

[fi3ryicy]

any1 gonna do a similar experiment on FM 09?

[fm09ytube]

any1 gonna do a similar experiment on FM 09?

i've been doing something similar for a few years but it takes forever to edit 2 whole squads + staff so it's been easy for me to put it off.

i was hoping Si would add a batch editing option to the editor for things like adding preferences to all players & staff from one team/nation/league, etc...

i wonder how longer a player would last if every player, ref, & manager hated him?

apart from his own team of course...

(that's not part of my plan, just got curious)

i'm just playing through it without editing at the moment & getting a feel for this years version.

maybe a few users could start a communal db?

say what kinds of players we wanted in the squad(s), their ages, attributes, personalities, relationships with other staff & players, etc, someone make a start on the db, upload it & we could take turns editing it when we have time...

i don't know if it'd work, i guess only one person could edit it at a time then pass it on else it'd get all messed up. although we could make additions to it & maybe tweak it for ourselves... everyone doesn't need the same db, it'd be cool to see the differences in the different versions too...

meh.

i've got alot of ideas for mine but when i think about how long it'll take to edit the thing it puts me off.

SORTITOUTSI!

i swear they're leaving out editing in batches on purpose coz they know it'll give the game longevity in the sense that you might not feel the need to buy the next version.

[kipfizh]

any1 gonna do a similar experiment on FM 09?

Yeah, me

At some point, I'll be closing this experiment, getting FM09 and starting the experiment again with a whole range of new features. That point will most likely be when FM09 is 'final patched' and Genie Scout is available (currently in beta).

[crafty bison]

In the meantime, I'm overtly attempting a "kipfizh-esque" approach to my own "Proof of Youth" experiment which can also be found in this forum.

[kipfizh]

Season 2062-63

Right, we're in major fast forward mode now, so here's a quick summary of the 2062-63 season.

Transfers

The major signing of the summer was £7m centre back Joe Dobson, who at 22 has a CA of 159 and a PA of 179. In short, he's a massive talent, and his CA alone puts him at second in the squad, behind only veteran keeper McParland. This guy is going to be a star. Elsewhere, the signings were fairly unexciting.

The outgoings weren't too serious this season, although with the Bandits scrabbling around in the lower half of the Championship a certain exodus was inevitable. The upshot is that the number of 150+ CA players remained at ten, but the effective squad size dropped from 21 to 17. To give you an idea, the 17th best player has a CA of 133 and is usable. The 18th best player has a CA of 97 and is embarrassingly bad. This lack of depth is the main problem going forward.

Some good news though from the youth team - sixteen year old centre back Lee Bignall has a CA/PA of 65/155 and could become a first teamer in his 20s unless the Bandits have returned to the Premiership, while striker Paul Speight is an even better prospect, with a PA of 167. His CA of 56 however means he has a long way to go.

The main beacon of hope is Joe Dobson, who is the first player I've seen the Bandits sign in ages who actually excites me as a prospect. To give you an idea, his PA of 179 is the highest in the squad, and his stat distribution is excellent - physically he is already a monster. Genie Scout has the immortal line 'feels he can be as good as Nenad Mijatovic'. For the uninitiated, that is the 199 CA Milan central defensive legend who is the heir to Carlo Lupo.

That would do nicely.

[crafty bison]

Dobson sounds great!

[yugo23]

Season 2062-63

You mean 2063-64?

[kipfizh]

You mean 2063-64?

Doh! Yes, that's what I meant!

[kipfizh]

Season 2063-64

Some world news before the season summary appears - David Gould, the former Bandits winger, moved from Leeds to Chelsea for 39m to prove just what a talent he is.

But even that was dwarfed by the 52m that Man United paid Lyon for Juan Carlos Gimenez, joint best player in the world for some time now.