Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 The atmosphere at the Champions' League final was every bit as electric as I had dreamed. My Liverpool team were never going to outpass Barcelona, but we played with tremendous spirit, never allowing them any time on the ball and breaking with pace and precision. We were handed a dream start when, after a breathless opening 15 minutes, Gerrard dinked a cute little through ball behind the Barca back four and new signing Mario Balotelli placed his shot beyond Victor Valdes' despairing dive. Thus began an extended period of Barca pressure as they gave a masterclass in patient buildup play and attacking movement. Our defence held firm though; we chased, we harried, we tackled like men possessed. And now, with twenty minutes still to play and Lucas having just been sent off for a second yellow, we were visibly tiring from almost an hour of chasing shadows. I had to act fast if I wanted to retain my lead - on came Ozil for the tiring Maxi, and back Gerrard went into midfield to cover the gap Lucas left. Barely a minute later we were 2-0 up, Ozil teeing up Balotelli for his second goal of the match following a lightning-quick break. Barca heads visibly dropped at this point, and I looked with pride on the men in red on the field. No less than 9 members of the squad were survivors from that terrible campaign under Hodgson two seasons ago. Two short years ago they couldn't pick up points for love or money, had the worst away record in the league and looked disinterested and disunited. Today they were fighting to the death for each other under my management, and were on their way to a deserved Champions League win. I permitted myself a rare moment of indulgence, closed my eyes and basked in the atmosphere. As the roar from the travelling Liverpool fans washed over me, one voice in particular cut through the din. "Gyoza!" "...Gyoza!!!!" I recognized the voice, turning around as my fingers scrambled for the Alt+F4 keys, but I wasn't fast enough. My boss stood in the doorway, looking irate. "You're fired." "....sh*t." ------------------------------------------- Hey everyone... I'm a casual FM gamer, and thought my journeyman save might be more fun if I chronicled my progress on these forums. It's my first time posting in FMS, and my first journeyman game, so be nice Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 Where do I start? My name is Gyoza Gombastique and I'm a desk monkey at a small electronics company in Liverpool. Or, I was a desk monkey at a small electronics company in Liverpool. My nebulous job description covered everything from fielding calls from irate customers to keeping stock of orders to running errands for my boss. It was tremendously boring and the pay was wretched. But there was one good thing about it: I had a computer which I could play Football Manager on. Football always had been my passion - I was born in Liverpool to a French father and a Spanish-Japanese mother and raised as a rabid Red. My father got me a football when I turned four ("with any luck, you'll have a Frenchman's flair, a Japanese player's fitness and workrate and the passing vision of a Spaniard", I recall him saying). Eventually, I turned out to have a Frenchman's work-rate and Japanese flair - a rather worse skill set. I did develop a good range of passing though, and did very well in my early years, laying on the goals for my school team. I even got myself into the Liverpool youth teams, contributing a fair share of assists and an unforgettable long-range goal against Man United's Under-15s, but just missed the cut for the U-18 squad for being "too lightweight". It was here that my promising football career fizzled out. After some unsuccessful trials with lower-league teams, my involvement in football was relegated to Sunday-League kickabouts as I turned to more down-to-earth pursuits. I ended up going to university for something totally different, and ended up working a dead-end job at a small electronics company. And now I'm unemployed. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tenthreeleader Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Well done. Nice start and welcome to FMS. You might have Title of the Year sewn up, or would if we had an award of that title ... we'll look forward to reading what you have in store for us! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 Besides Sunday League football, my other major source of solace after my football career whimpered out of existence was the game Football Manager. While I was never physically up to scratch, my football brain had always been my greatest asset on the field, and I was fascinated by the tactical side of the game. I first sank my teeth into the early iterations of the game and never looked back. I would spend the better part of my college life tweaking my team tactics trying to find the perfect team balance, many a night going by without sleep after dozens of 'last games for today'. This obsession continued into my working life, and I had a theory at the time - I can only manage two out of the following three: making enough money from a job, playing football manager, and having a decent social life. In my old job, it was largely true. I made enough money to support myself and got to play FM on the job and at home, but aside from my colleagues and Sunday League mates, my friends almost never saw me (at one point, someone started a rumour that I had gone to Africa to become a missionary - a rumour debunked some three months later when one of them actually saw me outside my house). Having been fired recently though, my social life started to pick up. I caught up with friends who I hadn't met in a long time, and went on my fair share of dates. I was enjoying this lifestyle until I realized my lack of job meant that I was running out of money to spend on said dates. I still had enough savings in the bank to not die, but each day without a job meant I became just that little bit more worried. It was while warming up for a Sunday League match when my friend said the words that would change my life. "I know how you can fit FM, a job, and a social life into your schedule." "...how?" I barely glanced up as I went through my warmup routine. "Combine two of them into one." "...you mean my job and my social life? No, I'm not going to become a male prosti..." He interrupted me before I could finish. "I mean coaching! Why don't you try coaching in real life?" The statement caught me off-guard. Why had I not thought of that before? "Because coaching in real life is totally different from playing a video game?" "Gyoza, I know two things. First, you've got a great football brain. Second, you're too damn lazy to get another job. My friend knows the guy in charge of the coaching certification programme over here and he can get you in, so why don't you give it a try?" Something changed that day. I knew that it would be a difficult path to take and might very well lead to nothing at all. Still, the remote possibility that I might end up in a career that I thought dead and buried years ago was an uplifting one. More in hope than expectation, I managed a smile as I ran out onto the pitch. For the record, I created all four goals as we won 4-2. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 My friend's contact was more helpful than I could have expected; not only did he get me into the coaching course, he got me into a special accelerated course that would move along much faster, subject to good performance from me. I took to coaching like a fish to water, and long story short, within a matter of months I was qualified to coach anywhere up to the semi-professional level. I now had my badges, but would qualifications alone be enough to persuade any club to take a gamble on me? The hard part was just beginning. The first step along finding a job was my CV, and I quickly realized that I had precious little to pad it up with. I doubted my fledgling club career and basic coaching badges would set me apart from the next person, so I added that I was fluent in English, Spanish, French, German and Japanese, just in case any club overflowing with internationals wanted to sign me - one can only dream. Then I sent it out and hoped for the best. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Makonnen Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Solid start, looking forward to more. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panpardus Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Great start Gyoza, I might follow along if I can get past that your a Liverpool supporter, we hear enough of their crap in the Community thread. Welcome to FMS Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesterfan2 Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Welcome Goyza, like the start alot. Ignore Pan, at least he lives in a country where you can still see Robbie Fowler playing. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dalbeider Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Title of the Year AND Nickname of the Year, if I may add to what 10-3 said. Gyozas are a delicious little thing . Joining the chorus with the "nice start, will be following, welcome to the forums" chant, of course. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherm Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Welcome Gyoza. It's always nice to see a new starter on the forums, and shall be looking forward to reading your tale Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 28, 2011 Author Share Posted January 28, 2011 Thanks for the kind words everyone; I'm not as obsessed with FM as my in-game counterpart, but I'll keep the updates coming semi-regularly ------------------------------- There wasn't much strategy to my bid to find a coaching job - it was simply the brute-force approach of sending my resume to every single club that had a position available. I began my mass mailing campaign in June, and it wasn't until a month later that I got my first rejection letter. Presumably, the other clubs I had mailed were too busy laughing at my bare-bones CV and desperately eager-to-please cover letter. Finding a job was proving a tough task, but as a manager desperately seeking a job, there was one thing I could do: wait until a club as desperate as me came along. And it took four months, but one club finally came to me with an offer. I was used to the one-page rejection letter by now, so when I received an official-looking envelope in the mail that was more than a few pages thick, I quickly tore it open and read the offer, knowing already that my answer would be 'yes'. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 28, 2011 Author Share Posted January 28, 2011 My knowledge of the lower leagues is patchy at best, so I probably would never have heard of Havant and Waterlooville had they not put up an almighty fight against Liverpool in an FA Cup tie a few years ago, taking the lead twice before eventually losing an entertaining match 5-2. I remember watching that match and being impressed with their spirit, workrate, and how difficult they made the game for us. Wondering how desperate they could be, I pull out my laptop and do some homework on them. The results are shocking: initially touted as promotion contenders by the media at the start of the season, they find themselves languishing second from bottom in the Blue Square Bet South, with 17 points from 16 games. So, they're a vastly underachieving team on a poor run of results, and morale is likely to be a huge problem. Great. A further internet search brings up some recent news reports. They appear to be in financial difficulty, my predecessor under pressure - and failing - to bring their wage budget under control. This means that I would probably have little or no resources with which to improve the squad. Wonderful. There's also the little matter of them being based in the southern end of England; I would have to uproot myself from home and move to a vastly different city with a different culture, and have my Scouse-Japanese-French accent made fun of by a whole new set of people (I assure you, it does NOT sound pretty). Fantastic. A brief wave of hesitation hits me and I have second thoughts about taking on the job, given the massive difficulties that await. But I have no choice; I must take the challenge head-on. Due in no small part to the fact that I'm already halfway on the bus to Havant, Hampshire. Thinking things through was never my strong point. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 30, 2011 Author Share Posted January 30, 2011 I arrived in Westleigh Park for my first day on the 24th of November 2010; a 4500-capacity stadium with fairly basic facilities. I arrived an hour or so before the day's training session was scheduled to take place for a quick meeting with Derek Pope, the club's chairman. A lot of pleasantries were exchanged, and truthfully I was rather nervous so I forgot a lot of what was said. He did, however, bring me up to speed with the club's status and the board's expectations for me as manager. Shaun Gale, my predecessor, had been fired about a week previously. We were languishing second from bottom in the Blue Square Bet South, but on closer inspection, our record of 4 games won, 5 drew and 7 lost was not all that terrible. Some difficult games and unlucky defeats contributed to a poor start, but the league positions were so congested that a single win would push us out of the relegation zone. It did seem a slightly harsh dismissal, but Derek explained that the main reason Gale was sacked was their terrible performance in the cups: good performance in the cups was necessary for the financial health of the club, and we had crashed out of both the FA Cup and FA Trophy at the very first hurdle: Dorchester dumped us out of the FA Trophy 3rd qualifying round, while we suffered a shock loss against lower-league Corinthian Casuals in the FA Cup 2nd qualifying round. The shock of both losses combined with (I'm told) the dour style of football we played led to a drastic drop of tickets being sold, and the board was forced to take immediate action. The initial expection at the beginning of the season was that Havant challenge for promotion to the Blue Square Premier League and put together a respectable cup run. Since we're already out of both the cups, and it would be unfair to expect me to take a team in the relegation zone to promotion, Derek Pope informed me that I would not be judged on the same criteria. All the board wanted for now was survival, and for me to coax better performances out of our players. Supposedly, relative to the division, we had some very good players, so it couldn't be too hard, right? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 30, 2011 Author Share Posted January 30, 2011 Shortly after the meeting, I headed onto the pitch to meet my playing squad for the very first time. They greeted me warmly but tentatively; Shaun Gale's dismissal had obviously come as a bit of a surprise to some of them, and they were unsure of what to expect from me. Truthfully, I was totally unsure of what to expect from them either, so after a very quick introduction I had my assistant coach Steve Johnson bring them through their training routine as I observed. I requested that he refrain from giving me his assessments on the players until the end of the training session, as I wanted to judge each player's training performance without any bias. Goalkeepers Aaron Howe, 23 – The best keeper we have at the moment. An unspectacular but solid first choice. Dean Piper, 17 – Has potential and some good skill, but sorely lacking in experience. Backup for now. Nathan Ashmore, 20 – Another decent backup. He's out injured at the moment so Piper will get a place on the Havant bench. Defenders Matt Ruby, 24 – Textbook big centre-back. Slow, lumbering, and slightly ungainly, but a monster in the air and has good positional sense for his age. Probably my first-choice defender. Ryan Woodford, 19 – Compared to other centre-backs his age at this level, this kid is Ronaldinho. Defensively decent and very comfortable on the ball, as evidenced by his 3 assists. I'm considering giving this youngster a big first-team run in the heart of defence with Ruby. Theo Angus, 19 – This left-back was not at training today due to a long-term injury. But according to my assistant, a huge young talent who can run all day and tackles like a man possessed. Precious Koko, 23 – Decent hardworking left-back who nevertheless lacks quality, even at this level. He earns a first-team place by default for the moment, given the injury to Theo Angus. Jon McDonald, 25 – Normally wouldn't even get a look-in at the team, but Angus' injury means that he will have a place on the bench. I'll see how he does before looking to bring in reinforcements. Paul Hinshelwood, 23 – Probably my first-choice right back. Offers next to nothing going forward, but solid in defence and that is what we need right now. Jake Newton, 26 – Currently out with an injury, so I can't assess him properly yet. If Hinshelwood does well though, he could have a hard time getting into the side. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 30, 2011 Author Share Posted January 30, 2011 Midfield Bobby Hopkinson, 20 – A rare player at this level. He packs a decent shot, times his tackles well, and has a good range of passing. Unfortunately he lacks the stamina to play a box-to-box role for 90 minutes, so I am considering keeping him in a holding role where he can shield the defence and pick out runners from deep. Ian Simpemba, 27 – Captain of the side. Supposedly a centre-back, but given his work-rate and awesome stamina, I will be deploying him in the middle of the park as an extra ball-winner. Sam Pearce, 23 – Can play both in the center of defence and midfield, but doesn't excel in either role – utility man for now. Shaun Wilkinson, 29 – I have better and younger central midfielders so he will find it tough; he will still get a chance to show me what he can do though. Tenacious tackler who can disrupt the opponent's midfield. Nathan Talbott, 26 – Thoroughly average left-sided midfield player who will get a chance to show me what he's worth, given the lack of competition for his place. Sammy Igoe, 35 – The bad part: he isn't getting any younger, is horribly lightweight, and can't mark a training dummy. The good part: he is still probably the best creative player in our team and possesses a mean right foot. I may give him a try in a trequartista role. Wes Fogden, 22 – Promising right-winger who can also play anywhere in midfield. Both hardworking and skilful, he could be a long-term replacement for Igoe. Attack Manny Williams, 29 – The club's top scorer with 5 league goals to his name. Most comfortable as a right winger, but his raw pace means I am considering deploying him as a striker, given the creative talent in midfield. Mustafa Tiryaki, 24 – Skilful striker who is good in the box, but lacks the pace to get behind defences and the strength to be a good target man. Probably best used as a supersub. Lawrie Dudfield, 30 – Based on what I've seen in training, Dudfield is a total dud. But he's somehow managed to score 4 goals this season, so there must be something to him. Will get a chance to prove himself. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marmoset Junior Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 A pleasing start, Gyoza. Best of luck with H&W. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 31, 2011 Author Share Posted January 31, 2011 Thanks Marmoset Jr, pretty sure I'll need it ----------------------------------------------------------------------- So then, quite a bit of work to do over here. We did have a rather strong first team, the standout performers being top-scorer Manny Williams, veteran Sammy Igoe, indefatigable captain Ian Simpemba, and young ball-playing centre-back Ryan Woodford. However, our squad was rather thin, particularly in the areas of centre-back and left midfield, which had no backup players of any quality. Unfortunately, our club had a total transfer budget of zero (par for the course at the semi-pro level, I'm told) and were over our wage budget, so there was very little I could do to improve the squad. Still, there was perhaps room to squeeze room in our finances for one more player, so I sent my scout Steve Cahill to look for a defender or left midfielder who was worth it. Tactically, I had made myself two promises whilst still in the midst of my job hunt: firstly, I would come up with a system to suit my players, rather than the other way round. Secondly, whichever club I ended up at, I would implement a tactical system that would translate to higher levels of football. Rudimentary kick-and-rush tactics could bring success at this level, and I wanted to make sure that I wasn't tempted to go that route. That way, if my career ever took me to a higher-ranked league, I wouldn't be a dinosaur out of my depth. This was no pig-headed football elitism; I knew that there was no way I could get my side to play like Barcelona. But the tactical side of the game was often overlooked at this level, and I knew that while my players weren't particularly technically gifted, they weren't thick either. I was convinced that they would be able to adapt to a more nuanced tactical system. I remembered my two promises as I was watching videos of the matches that Havant and Waterlooville had played earlier in the season, because the more I watched, the more I believed that those two promises would take the club forward. My predecessor employed a standard, rigid 4-4-2 that simply didn't work with the players we had. The defenders, scared of moving anywhere with the ball, played percentage punts up to our front two, neither of whom were natural target men. As a result, our talented midfield playmakers were bypassed and what possession we had was often wasted. We were one of the more skilful teams in the league, but also amongst the shortest and weakest on average. Thus, I knew that a different setup was necessary on the field; one that emphasized possession and passing on the deck. I wasn't yet sure what formation I would play, but it would have to suit the personnel I had. I had three days to think about it before my next match. My final concern was morale. On that training ground I saw a group of talented players whose body language betrayed their poor spirits. They had a poor start to the season, and their mood was starting to affect their form. As a team low on confidence, my primary focus for the first few games would be to make sure we were tough to beat. I wanted us to keep possession well, play cautiously and grab a few clean sheets. Provided we could avoid defeat and grab a few wins, I was sure the players would start to believe in themselves again. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted January 31, 2011 Author Share Posted January 31, 2011 I barely slept that night. Various possible formations and playing styles were considered and discarded in my head, and when I finally fell asleep all I dreamt about were tactics. I dreamt of my teacher at the coaching course standing at the whiteboard explaining the concepts of movement, space, and pressing. I relived Liverpool's 4-1 win over Real Madrid in my head and noticed that they looked like the attacking team even when not in possession. As I watched, my assistant coach appeared next to me and said the best formations for our personnel were 4-4-2, 4-4-1-1 and 4-2-3-1.... "GOT IT!" I yelled in my sleep so loud that I woke myself up. I stumbled out of bed, fumbled around for my notebook and made some notes, and suddenly I had a tactic that fit my team. It wasn't perfect, but it could be tweaked further, and it would definitely bring about an improvement in performances once they got used to it. I explained the new formation at training the following day: it was a slightly asymmetrical 4-2-3-1 with the left midfielder playing slightly deeper and the right midfielder (where there was considerably more talent and competition for the spot) playing in a much more advanced role as an inside-forward. Two defensive ball-winners roamed the middle of the park, and a trequartista would operate behind a lone striker. The most important thing about this formation is that everyone had someone to pass to all the time. The presence of defensive midfielders meant we could build from the back, and one of them had license to roam forward to link with the attack. For the first few games at least, we would keep a deep defensive line and keep a rigid shape. We wouldn't have much penetration, but we would have possession, be difficult to break down, and with pacy forwards like Manny Williams, we could nick a few goals on the break. The players took to it well, and by the end of the day they were starting to resemble a coherent unit. I still had yet to test it in a real match, but I would get the chance soon enough... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted February 2, 2011 Author Share Posted February 2, 2011 27th November 2010 Dover Athletic vs. Havant and Waterlooville, Blue Square Bet South My very first game in charge saw us make the trip to Dover Athletic. A hugely talented side currently second in the league and pushing for automatic promotion, this was a baptism of fire for me. I told myself in the buildup to the game that it would be good to face strong opposition so early so I would have an accurate picture of where we stood, but no matter which way I looked at it, I was really feeling the nerves. The day arrived and I decided to field my strongest (non-injured) eleven. Hinshelwood, Koko, Ruby and Woodford lined up in front of Howe, with Hopkinson and Simpemba anchoring the midfield. Wes Fogden started on the right wing with instructions to cut in at will while the more limited Talbott played slightly deeper wide on the left. Sammy Igoe operated in the hole behind lone striker Manny Williams. We started off extremely brightly, with Igoe and Williams linking well upfront, and a promising move ended with Simpemba blazing wide from long range. Barely 5 minutes later, a clearance from Hopkinson put Williams clean through on goal, but his effort went wide of the post. The game soon settled into a less frenetic pace, with both sides restricted to half-chances from distance. On the stroke of half-time, Williams played a superb one-two with Igoe to create space for himself, but their keeper managed to palm the ball over the bar. We went in level at half-time, but the team had utterly surprised me with how well they played. I had originally conceived my tactic as a counterattacking one, but we controlled the match and had so much of the ball that we looked more like the home team. I sent them out for the second half asking for more of the same, but we had our keeper to thank after he made a fine point-blank save from Dover captain Ben Hunt. Dover shaded the second half, but given our commanding first-half performance I felt a win was within our grasp. I made an attacking change after the hour with Tiryaki replacing the defensive Hopkinson, and instructed my players to push up. In hindsight, greed probably got the better of me; taking advantage of my lack of numbers at the back, Dover striker Adam Birchall went on a magical run, beating my two centre-backs, rounding the keeper and slotting into an empty net. That goal forced my hand; I committed more men forward and they could have scored a second had Hinshelwood not been on hand to clear off the line. We huffed and puffed in search on an equalizer but it was not to be and Dover claimed a narrow win over us. Dover Athletic 1 (Adam Birchall 78) Havant and Waterlooville 0 MoM: Adam Birchall, Dover We still lie second from bottom after this match, but there are positives to take from this, particularly how assured we were in possession. I perhaps made a tactical error in trying to win the game, pushing forward with a backline lacking in speed. The fact that we played our best football with a deep defensive line means I will have to be more careful about our balance between attack and defense in future matches. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted February 2, 2011 Author Share Posted February 2, 2011 4th December 2010 Havant and Waterlooville vs. Farnborough, Blue Square Bet South It's difficult to imagine a harder start than this. Following last week's win over us, Dover went top of the table, overtaking Farnborough, the team we play today. So a second successive match against a team ranked second in the league table, though a plus point is that it's a home match. I decide to keep faith with the same first-team that lost 0-1 to Dover the last time around, being happy with their performance despite the defeat. They proceeded to repay me by doing better than I had hoped. We had the lion's share of possession in the opening stages, and apart from a moment of panic when Woodford headed against his own keeper, we had the best of the chances as well. We almost took the lead when Talbott broke down the left and teed up Igoe who blazed over when it looked easier to score. We were not to be denied though, and we won a penalty when Reece Conolly tripped Woodford in the box following a goalmouth scramble. Up stepped Manny Williams to give us the lead with a strongly-taken penalty. It almost got better ten minutes later when Woodford flicked the ball on from a free-kick, and McDonald hacked the ball off the line with Ruby lurking at the far post. From the follow-up, Igoe's cross-cum-shot was turned over the bar by their keeper and our lead remained at one. It was the same story after the break. Farnborough did look dangerous on the counter, but they made things difficult for themselves when Graham Low was sent off for fouling Tiryaki when he was clean through on goal. We made our numerical advantage count almost immediately. With Farnborough chasing the game and shorthanded at the back, we hit them on the counter, Fogden breaking free down the left and crossing for Williams to slide in at the far post. We finally made sure of the points in the dying minutes when Farnborough defender Bradley Bubb tried to clear a goalbound effort from Talbott but succeeded only in slicing the ball past his own goal-line. Havant and Waterlooville 3 (Manny Williams 22pen, 72, Bradley Bubb og) Farnborough 0 MoM: Manny Williams, Havant Yes, it was a home game. Yes, we had a one-man advantage for over 20 minutes. But whatever the circumstances, having the majority of possession and restricting the second-placed team in the league to zero shots on target means we are doing something right. This result hauls us clear of the relegation zone and we are now 18th on 20 points. With only 12 points separating the playoff spots from the relegation spots, we could climb up the table quickly with a good run of results. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted February 2, 2011 Author Share Posted February 2, 2011 It had been a couple of weeks since I sent him on his scouting mission to identify a quality left-winger and centre-back who would be interested in joining us, so I asked Steve Cahill whether he had made any progress on that front. "We should sign Navas," he said. "Yeah, ha ha. Seriously, have you found anyone?" He said nothing and just handed me a file marked "Pablo Navas". I opened it and skimmed through, and it did look rather impressive. A former Barcelona youth player who moved on to Portsmouth, and had been released after failing to break into the first team. He was just 19, and looked to have all the attributes necessary for success at this level: pace, technique, passing and crossing ability and good movement. "He's available on a free, and has just been released so other clubs are unlikely to have moved for him yet," Cahill said smugly. "At his age, he is also unlikely to ask for very high wages." A transfer target who ticked all the boxes! I contacted him the first chance I got and by the 15th of the month, he was a Havant & Waterlooville player. He looked classy in training, and though probably unable to gain enough match sharpness to make our next match in 3 days' time, would almost certainly make the left-midfield slot his sooner rather than later. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted February 2, 2011 Author Share Posted February 2, 2011 18th December 2010, Thurrock vs. Havant & Waterlooville, Blue Square Bet South Thanks to another long break, I had the luxury of naming an unchanged side for the third match running. They had repaid my faith in them with an awesome performance in the last match, and I hoped we could get some momentum going. We took the lead as early as the third minute. Ruby flicked on Sammy Igoe's dangerous cross, and Bodkin's panicky clearance slammed against Woodford's backside and deflected into the goal. Woodford's first goal for us, and he celebrated like he had just dribbled eleven men. It got even better as Sammy Igoe picked out Nathan Talbott who had just snuck in behind the defence, and he made it 2-0 with a neat finish. Not even 10 minutes on the clock and we were firmly in control. 21 minutes in and we added another when Koko's low cross from the byline was bundled by Matt Bodkin into his own goal. The result should have been beyond doubt and I told my men to play sensibly. We kept the ball well and continued to fashion chances, but they managed to pull one back less than five minutes later when Akurang scored a placed shot after some great link-up play with strike partner Lee Roache. 10 minutes later, they had scored again. There looked to be no danger when Pelecaci received the ball, but he fired in a fierce curling shot from the edge of the area. Howe got a hand to it but was powerless to stop it from going in off the frame of the goal. This triggered a spell of pressure from Thurrock, but they squandered their opportunities by shooting from distance and we were able to maintain our lead until the break. I tried to calm my players during half-time, saying that we could maintain the lead as long as we played sensibly. I dropped some of my midfielders to deeper positions, and pushed up Fogden and Williams to maintain our edge on the counter. They perhaps edged the second half, but we created our share of chances, and Manny Williams and Cliff Akurang squandered good chances at either end. Akurang thought he had equalized in the 53rd minute, but had his strike rightly disallowed for offside. The final minutes were real heart-in-the-mouth stuff. Substitute Mustafa Tiryaki had a glorious chance to seal the win for us when through on goal, but skewed his shot wide of the left-hand post. Bodkin then had a chance to make amends for his earlier own-goal following a goalmouth melee, but his powerful shot was straight at Howe and we survived. Thurrock 2 (Cliff Akurang 25, Florin Pelecaci 35) Havant & Waterlooville 3 (Ryan Woodford 3, Nathan Talbott 10, Matt Bodkin og 21) MoM: Ryan Woodford, Havant&Waterlooville The momentum is starting to build; I asked for a performance to match last week's and got it, and while we gave up 2 goals to almost let them back into the game, we played with maturity to see the rest of the game out. We gain a further 2 league positions following this win, climbing to 16th spot in the 22-team league. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gyoza Gombastique Posted February 2, 2011 Author Share Posted February 2, 2011 26th December 2010 Woking vs. Havant & Waterlooville, Blue Square Bet South The traditional boxing day fixture saw us make a very tough trip. For the third time since I arrived, I found myself playing against a 2nd-placed team, this time Woking. I had to make some tough choice in the build-up to this match, because just two days later we would have a very winnable game at home against Dorchester. Wanting to keep my key players fresh for that, I decided to rotate. Woking are clear favorites for this match, so this is a good low-pressure environment to see how some of my fringe players do in a real match. Bobby Hopkinson is shuffled to right-back as Sam Pearce and Shaun Wilkinson make the midfield, while Jon McDonald returns from injury at left-back. Tiryaki starts in attack pushing Manny Williams wide right while Fogden plays in the hole. A straight swap sees the exciting Navas make his first appearance for the club in Talbott's place. The game started at breakneck pace, with both sides having a good chance to take the lead. First, Woking's Hurrell found himself free of the last defender following a good through-pass from Jeff Minton, but Aaron Howe got down well to save. At the other end, Bobby Hopkinson's long-range drive crashed off the crossbar with the keeper well beaten. Manny Williams smashed the rebound into the net but was adjudged to be offside. The game petered out after that and half-time arrived without much incident. We had to be at our defensive best in the second half; from a Woking corner, Hurrell's shot was well-saved by Howe, and Bobby Hopkinson, playing in an unfamiliar right-back role, had to be alert, hacking a goal-bound cross from Danny Hart off the line. We survived, though, and having achieved a good result in this match without some key players, my thin squad was in good shape for our next match. Woking 0 Havant & Waterlooville 0 MoM: Jon McDonald (Havant) I was pleased with the display shown by those who came into the team – despite some of them not having started a competitive match under me, they showed great discipline and spirit, breaking Woking's run of 6 consecutive victories in all competitions. The only negative to take from tonight was a rather poor performance from veteran Shaun Wilkinson in the middle of the park. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavrenwick Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 Going nicely here Gyoza. What I would recommend is making the final score standout a little, but it's good none the less. KUTGW. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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