alexcharliemann Posted June 18, 2012 Author Share Posted June 18, 2012 2014 Youth Intake Martyn Brunskill Zak Owen Paul Lundstram A really good youth intake, with 3 players who I think will be here for the long run, and 2 of those can go into the first team straight away. In particular, Martyn Brunskill is already 2 and a half stars and is probably the 3rd best striker I have: he can also play on both wings which is brilliant for how I play. He is strong, good in the air and has a professional attitude: fantastic! I feel him and Dom Yoffe are going to be my front line for years to come, especially as Yoffe likes to play as an advanced forward and Brunskill as a deep lying forward! Like Yoffe, he is also outlined as a leading championship striker of the future. Zak Owen is also a pacy flair player ear marked for the Championship. Paul Lundstram isn't quite ready yet but can play centre mid and right back and has good mental attributes. Overall, very happy, and Brunskill could definitely help my tiring squad in the run in! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 18, 2012 Author Share Posted June 18, 2012 I may have a problem with Dom Yoffe however, getting his 3rd red card of the season. In a frustrating match for us, he thought he'd been fouled. When it wasn't given, he jumped in with two feet from behind, hacked the player down and then yelled at him standing over him! Needless to say he was sent straight off. Due to it being his 3rd of the season and violent conduct, he now has a 6 match ban. Might need to rein this kid in... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 18, 2012 Author Share Posted June 18, 2012 March 2014 While this kind of form would be decent enough for most teams, at this point of the season it was disastrous. Six league matches bought 3 wins, 1 draw and 2 defeats. A last minute goal cost us at Halifax, and we simply didn't put chances away and lost 4-1 at Newport where we were consistently hit on the counter attack. That summed us up this month: not clinical in front of goal despite lots of possession, and silly, slack defending from counter attacks and set pieces. The last game of the month saw us 2-0 up and surrender a lead. This means going into the last month of the season that if we win our 3 games in hand (and that's a big if) we will still be 1 point off Fleetwood. 8 league games in one month will be tough too, thanks to all the postponements and our cup run. The plus side is the FA Trophy final once the league season has finished. I would rather the promotion though! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
acidmonkey Posted June 18, 2012 Share Posted June 18, 2012 Looking likely you will be in the play-offs this season good luck in trying to get to League two Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 18, 2012 Author Share Posted June 18, 2012 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 18, 2012 Author Share Posted June 18, 2012 April 2014 Quite incredible. Just as it looked like the league belonged to Fleetwood, they lost every single one of their 5 games this month and finished as they started on 82 points. Surely one of the first teams to score 103 goals and finish 3rd. As it happened, we won 5 and drew 3, even when fielding a youth team in the last couple games. Two big 4-0 wins started the month, and despite some hairy defending in a couple of draws, we didn't come close to losing a game, and League 2 will be a welcome step up. I'll say a bit more in my season review post, but the future is very bright. I could field a team entirely of home grown players and I think they would be fine in League 2. In the last couple games I played the new pairing of Dom Yoffe and Martyn Brunskill: at the combined age of 31 (!) they looked the part. Brunskill finished the season with 5 goals in 11 games despite being 15. Yoffe finished with 14 from 32. My centre back William Ekong won player of the month, left winger Christian Overby came second in player of the month, my 15 and 16yr old strikers Martyn Brunskill and Dom Yoffe came first and second in young player of the month. I managed to win the league without every winning manager of the month. FA Trophy final to come. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 18, 2012 Author Share Posted June 18, 2012 No plans for investment of course. I notice though that the have cleared my debt. By taking out an £875k loan. Which we are going to be paying back until 2039, the next 25 years. Thanks board. Another curious incident. I advertised for a new youth coach, Dario Gradi applied, and naturally we welcomed him back with open arms. Three days later he announces he is retiring in two weeks. D'oh. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 Great final run! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 19, 2012 Author Share Posted June 19, 2012 Crewe Alexandra Season Review - 2013/14 English Blue Square Premier - 1st place League - 90 points from 46 games bettered last season's total of 72 points and got us the title by a comfortable 6 points. It hadn't always looked that easy, with Cambridge and Fleetwood pushing us all the way until they fell to the waste side in the final month, to the point that Dagenham & Redbridge squeeked into 2nd. Fleetwood joined us in promotion through the playoffs. Cup - Runners up in the FA Trophy. Our youth team got us to the final, where we dominated Kidderminster but couldn't finish them off, losing 2-1 in extra time. Not overly fussed though, and it gave us some good financial boost with 25,000 turning out for the Wembley final. Preliminary round exit in the FA Cup gave us relief from the fixture congestion. Best XI - A rather odd selection of a couple of players including a youth left winger who made 3 appearances. But it shows how many games our players had to play. Transfers Overview - 6 first team signings, all on free transfers and all did really well. A lot of youth were signed to bulk out the reserves and provide some back up. Christian Overby, my first choice left winger, was released at the end of the season. Although he had a great season, we can get better for League 2. Key Players Sean Higgins - A fantastic goal return for the 29 year old of 31 goals in 50 appearances - it is likely to have been his best season. He will still be first choice up front next year but I suspect Dom Yoffe will become number one during the season, and he is likely to find it harder than the BSP. Still, his goals took us up and he is already on the favoured personnel list for the club, as well as being voted player of the season. Danny Ireland - A free transfer from Queen of the South, he played 55 competitive matches for us this season keeping 25 clean sheets, and even the Australia manager came to watch him. Has had attention from a number of League 1 clubs, as well as Portuguese and Scottish clubs, but I think he will stay. Adam Blakeman - A free transfer from Bolton, he was very assured at left back and made 41 appearances. He may not have done much going forward but time after time he made great covering tackles at the back and he will keep his starting berth next season. Ashley Eastham - A younger centre back, a free transfer from Linfield where he won both the league and the cup, he brought a winning pedigree to the team as well as solidity at the back. 47 games reflected his importance to the team, and he also chipped in with 6 goals from corners. Dom Yoffe - A great first full season for the 16yr old youth product, scoring 16 in 40. He looks a beast and I anticipate him being my number one striker for years to come, even as we go up the leagues. Tied him into a 4 year contract. The only problem is his temperament, with 3 red cards that saw him serve 12 matches worth of suspensions! Next Season I signed a new 2 year contract at the end of the season and unless an amazing job offer comes in I think I will be here for a while: really enjoying have some good clubgrown youth to work with. Dom Yoffe and Martyn Brunskill have the potential to be this club's frontline pairing for the next 15 years. Next season we tackle League 2, and I want promotion again! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 19, 2012 Author Share Posted June 19, 2012 Career Overview Season Club Country Division Position Other ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2012 Frigg Norway Second Division Group 4 2nd None 2013/14 Crewe Alexandra England Blue Square Premier 1st Promotion; FA Trophy Runners Up Youth Products YP1 - Jan Morten Kjolberg - the right winger who came through at Frigg played 2 games for them last season before he was released. So out of sentimentality I signed him for Crewe reserves as first team backup. YP2 - Dom Yoffe - the advanced forward scored 16 in 40 for Crewe last year and signed a new 4 year contract. My staff reckon he could be a good Premier League striker. Has disciplinary problems though with 3 red cards for violent tackles. YP3 - Martyn Brunskill - in his 2 months since promotion he scored 5 goals in 11 games. As well as being a deep lying forward he can play on either wing, making this 16 year old invaluable. Also signed to a 4 year pre-contract: him and Yoffe could be invincible in the lower leagues. Former Club Watch Frigg - claimed the Second Division Group 4 title in the 2013 season with 56 points. Making the big step up to the Adeccoligre (tier 2). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 19, 2012 Author Share Posted June 19, 2012 Great final run! Thanks! More of a spectacular collapse by Fleetwood though! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackJCFC Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 Great work to win the league! Look forward to seeing how you do next season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 Crewe Alexandra 2014/15 - Season Preview nPower League Two After a two year absence Crewe return to the football league but with a bright future. The bookies have us down as sixth at 16-1, the media have us in 21st, and my board want me merely to consolidate. I am hoping to leave an impression and make the playoffs. I think a bit more tactical sophistication might be required though: I don't think we will be able to bludgeon teams into submission in quite the same way as we did in the Conference. We've made some good signings and definitely strengthened, while our youth continue to make a lasting sizeable impression. So much so the bigger clubs are sniffing around. Transfer Budget: £7.7k Wage Budget: £24.3k (+£12.55k) Wage Bill: £24k (£+11k) Finance Overview: £76k in the red. Sponsorship of £32k. Club Reputation: Up to 1 and a half stars Competition Rep: 1 and a half stars League Two. Squad Overview: Looking solid for this level. Strength in depth. Facilities: Very poor stadium and pitch condition. Junior Coaching up to 'excellent'. Key Signings John Welsh - a proven central midfielder with a bit of grit. Started off at Liverpool and Hull, before spending 5 years as first choice at Tranmere in Leagues One and Two, so a local lad! Ben Chorley - experienced centre back, started at Arsenal before moving onto Tranmere, and just spent 5 years as first choice at Leyton Orient in League One. Adds a bit more aerial ability to our back four. Gavin Hoyte - extremely pacy wing back who made his break through the past couple of seasons at rivals Fleetwood Town. Undecided if he will be a starter or not, but definitely a great option when we need some extra pace and width to our attack. George Porter - a pacy right winger and forward from Leyton Orient, who will also add a long throw to our attacking arsenal. Will probably be my first choice right winger although he is a slight risk as despite obvious ability he has not yet performed properly anywhere. Pre-Season friendlies - after last year's epic pre-season schedule I cut back and only booked in 5. We won the games we were expected to and no injuries. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 Great work to win the league! Look forward to seeing how you do next season.To be fair a club the size of Crewe, with the frequency it has of producing great young players, shouldn't be in the Conference Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 August 2014 A decent enough month which suggests to me we have no relegation worries and should probably focus on breaking into the top half and developing the youngsters for the future. In the league two wins, two losses and a draw leave us mid table, although defensively we look vulnerable to crosses: the 2-0 loss to Gateshead was 2 headers from corners. The most pleasing development was in the cup where we beat League 1 Chesterfield 2-1 away. Then we had Championship topping Southampton at St Marys. We were Chelsea to Saints Barcelona, putting in a very solid defensive display and held out until the 88th minute when they got a breakthrough. Then, my new signing came off the bench for his debut, Cody Macdonald (my new 4th choice striker), who picked the ball up from the restart, dribbled around the whole team and blasted it in at the near post! We went on to win on penalties, and our reward in the 3rd round is a home tie with Arsenal!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DazRTaylor Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Great to see you still have Nick Powell. In my previous save, he was eventually capped at senior level by England, such is his potential. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 Great to see you still have Nick Powell. In my previous save, he was eventually capped at senior level by England, such is his potential.Interesting to hear! Unfortunately for me he has looked like a slightly above average player for the level we're playing at, although he has had a couple of nasty long term injuries that have meant he has never truly settled in. I still think he'll make a great centre midfield playmaker when he finally gets a run. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Good job on promotion back to league play. Crewe has no place in non-league! Able to reign in the one young player yet? With all the red cards? Maybe some composure individual training Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 Good job on promotion back to league play. Crewe has no place in non-league! Able to reign in the one young player yet? With all the red cards? Maybe some composure individual training Thanks. With such good youth facilities though it almost feels like I am cheating: like the odd person you find who creates a club, sticks them in the lowest league, gives the youth amazing figures and then says to everyone "look how well i've done " Dom Yoffe hasn't got sent off again yet...although the Martyn Brunskill (the other amazing youth and his strike partner) did the same thing in our first game, hmm. Yoffe is now in the England U-19s, worth £550k and is a "leading League 1 striker" Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 Just played the League Cup 3rd round match against Arsenal. It needed extra time for them to beat us. We went toe to toe and had as much possession and opportunities to score as they did. We actually scored first (Dom Yoffe, who else?), before they equalised with their only clear cut chance of the game. We took it to extra time where they got a flukey goal: we had a shot that the keeper spilled, and it the spill bounced out to their winger who ran the length of the pitch to score. Gutting! But this has got me really excited about this team, I think it's going places. It was an almost full strength Arsenal team. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 22, 2012 Author Share Posted June 22, 2012 January 2015 Fixtures League table Been a bit lazy and not updated for a while - I just got really into the game and wanted to keep going! A few major points really: -Second place after a run of games which has seen us win eight and draw two, including away to the leaders Exeter. -Our rivalry with Fleetwood seems to spur us both on as we both chase a second successive promotion. -Lead scorer Sean Higgins was going great guns with 17 goals in 23 matches. Sadly he wouldn't agree a new contract and got the ache with me. I sold him to League One Stevenage for £100k but don't get any of the money. -No new strikers required though with youngsters Dom Yoffe and Martyn Brunskill stepping up to the plate, with Cody McDonald and Kerry Robinson in reserve. I have lots of good strikers in the youth team too. -Blackburn and Celtic are sniffing around Dom Yoffe, hands off. -Nick Powell keeps getting injured which is a shame as he is starting to show form: he creates lots of chances when in the midfield playing AP. -Out of all the cups with nothing notable happening since Arsenal. Hoping for a second promotion in succession and a good youth intake. Junior Coaching is now 'exceptional'. Oh, and we are £1m in the red.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 22, 2012 Author Share Posted June 22, 2012 England U21 call up for Dom Yoffe. Can't think of many 17 year olds in League Two who could do that! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 congrats on the League win, commiserations for the FA Trophy final still a decent run though. At least you don't have too many financial worries any more and an U21 call up for a 17 year old L2 player shows just how much of a talent Yoffe could be one day! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 23, 2012 Author Share Posted June 23, 2012 At least you don't have too many financial worries any moreActually we do, a million pounds in the red is a bad thing Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 23, 2012 Author Share Posted June 23, 2012 February 2015 The month started in the usual manner with us scoring goals for fun and dominating with 3 wins. However the last 2 games at home saw a downturn, losing at home to 3rd place and drawing with 7th place. We were dominating the games with lots of possession and passing, but not quite creating those killer chances to kill the games off. We're 5 points behind in the title race now, but still 9 points safe in the automatic promotion spots with 12 games left. Very much in our own hands. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 23, 2012 Author Share Posted June 23, 2012 2015 Youth Intake Another youth intake, and another IMMENSE striker going into the first team squad, step up Michael Hill! Our first foreigner (well, he's Wlesh) through the youth system, he is already 2 stars with the potential for 5. And what gets me really excited is he has a determination level of 19 and an ambitious personality so I hope he will develop well. He is very quick too: only downside being my coaches think he is selfish and injury prone. This means next season my 4 strikers will all be 18 or under, all through the youth system and all destined for the Premier League. The other guy to keep an eye out for is Dave McLoughlin: he is 6'4", with 20 for determination, 19 for workrate and 16 for teamwork. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 23, 2012 Author Share Posted June 23, 2012 March 2015 3 wins, 2 draws and a loss keep us in second place, which is looking like where we will finish with Exeter pulling away. Plenty of possession, but in the games we didn't win we just didn't create enough good chances. With Nick Powell out injured yet again we lost our creative force in midfield, and with Dom Yoffe injured for the first time up front we lacked the clinical edge. Michael Hill, our new youth prodigy did score 2 in his first start and looks good for the future. Hopefully League 1 is our playing field next year. I am considering not buying any players and just giving the youth lots of playing time. I now have about 6 home grown strikers who could all potentially be good enough, so am going to have to take the axe and trim the squad at some point - trying to develop too many youths in one go may mean none of them reach their potential. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 23, 2012 Share Posted June 23, 2012 Thanks. With such good youth facilities though it almost feels like I am cheating: like the odd person you find who creates a club, sticks them in the lowest league, gives the youth amazing figures and then says to everyone "look how well i've done " I didn't even know you could do that! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 23, 2012 Author Share Posted June 23, 2012 Worrying news with Dom Yoffe: Huddersfield enquired about him, and their manager is now on his favoured personnel lisr! The media reckon I'll accept £2.6m for him, hmm. He has also been dubbed the next Alan Shearer. Definitely want to keep him for League 1... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 24, 2012 Author Share Posted June 24, 2012 Crewe Alexandra Season Review - 2014/15 English League Two - 2nd place League - A very average start to the season was brushed aside from November - February when we looked unbeatable and brushed everyone aside. It even looked like we might claim a second successive league crown, but Exeter pulled away from us as our form tapered off towards the end. We were the top goalscorers in the league though, and comfortable took automatic promotion for the second successive season. Cup - Nothing to note except our League Cup run, which saw us push Arsenal to extra time in the Third Round before narrowly losing out. Heroic. Best XI - A very young and attacking best XI. Many homegrown talents too, and lots of goals from all areas of the team. Transfers Overview - Quite a few comings and goings, mostly youngsters being released on free transfers as we focused our resources on the special youngsters coming through. A few players came in on a free but only a couple of them, Chorley and Porter, got regular first team football. Key Players Dom Yoffe - Fans player of the season. Second full season and he's already leading our front line like a mammoth. Dubbed the next Alan Shearer, he is now an England U21 regular and won the U21 Euros this summer. He has worked hard to add pace and dribbling to his game this season as well as improving his finishing, is a nightmare for defenders once he turns them, and loves to power in the shots. Premier League teams lining up for him. 16 in 31 games with 10 assists, 7.31. Martyn Brunskill - First full season for our youth product up front. Inconsistent in front of goal, but makes a nuisance of himself and so often relieves the pressure on the defence by chasing balls down and winning headers, a monster in the air, and dubbed the new Les Ferdinand! 7 in 37 with 11 assists, 6.89. Already had attention from some Premier League teams. Gavin Hoyte - His attributes don't look much, but his extreme pace makes him a great option to full back on both sides. He adds an extra dimension and frees up space for the winger going forward, and provides great deep cover at the back. A free transfer from rivals Fleetwood. William Ekong - Young Dutch CB in his third season since joining from Spurs. Very solid at the back, a mamammoth in the air. Has been getting interest from Eredivisie teams. 7 in 43, 7.11. Kerry Robinson - A poacher and a left winger, he had kind of slipped through the youth intake net, but quietly made a good impression when he got a chance and kept his place on the left. Very quick and seems to get in the right place for important goals. 7 goals in 38, 7.06. Next Season I signed a 2 year extension on my contract giving me 3 years here. I've always thought I'd spend a couple of years here and move on but I'm really excited about moulding a homegrown team and seeing the potential shine through. After 2 promotions it is a season of consolidation: indeed the board has actually cut my wage budget, which is interesting given the promotion wage rise most players have got. This has meant a few players will have to leave in the close season, and I won't be able to bring anyone else. With the exception of Porter and Chorley, it will be the same side I had in the BSP! I want us to play with a bit more style too so will look to bring this in. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 24, 2012 Author Share Posted June 24, 2012 Career Overview Season Club Country Division Position Other ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2012 Frigg Norway Second Division Group 4 2nd None 2013/14 Crewe Alexandra England Blue Square Premier 1st Promotion; FA Trophy Runners Up 2014/15 Crewe Alexandra England League Two 2nd Promotion Youth Products YP1 - Jan Morten Kjolberg - released by me, was never going to be good enough for Crewe. Is now playing for Eik Tonsberg in the Norwegian Third Division. YP2 - Dom Yoffe - as in my previous post, a monster and will surely play for his country. 16 goals in 31 games. YP3 - Martyn Brunskill - as in my previous poster, played his first full season and played regularly, although with more goals than assists due to this aerial prowess. YP4 - Michael Hill - welcome to this Welsh striker with lots of pace. Scored 2 goals in his first start and showed enough for me to feel confident enough to release Cody Macdonald and keep Michael in the first team as my fourth choice striker. Former Club Watch Frigg - a credible 7th place for their first season in the Adeccoligre. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 25, 2012 Author Share Posted June 25, 2012 Looks like Nick Powell is going to be the first of the young ones to jump ship. Sheffield Wednesday put in a silly bid of £13k and Powell got the ache when I negotiated. His contract is up at the end of this coming season and he won't discuss a new one. Question is do I make him play this year or get what I can and move on. Hmm. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 25, 2012 Author Share Posted June 25, 2012 Crewe Alexandra 2015/16 - Season Preview English League One After two promotions and with no wage budget for new players we are relying on a largely inexperienced and youthful squad. Apart from the three players we signed last year, this is the same team we had in the BSP. Media have us last in 24th, bookies have us 25-1, board wants me to avoid relegation. I think mid-table and a season of developing the youth will be on the cards. Transfer Budget: £0k. Wage Budget: £23.5k (-0.8k) Wage Bill: £27k (£+3k) Finance Overview: Abysmal finance, £1.6m in the red and losing around £150k a month. Wondering how exactly we haven't gone into administration yet. Club Reputation: Still on one and a half stars. Competition Rep: 2 stars in League One. Squad Overview: Bags full of potential but maybe a little light on the ground for ability at the moment. Going to be a big season for some of the less obvious youth players coming through. The stars have made an impact, now its time for the more quiet ones to grow. Facilities: Junior coaching up to exceptional. Key Signings No signings at all. Our wage budget was reduced while many players took a pay rise after promotion, meaning we are £3.5k over budget. In fact a few players left, including our reserve keeper, our reserve centre midfielder John Welsh, reserve full back Vermijl and a load of reserve squad players. Pre-Season friendlies - A fab pre-season featuring 5 wins and an unlucky defeat. We tried out our new style of play, lots of possession with no crosses or long shots and plenty of short passing. It worked a treat as we defended more solidly, and kept up to 75% of the ball at times. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Sounds challenging, good luck. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
markyosullivan Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Doing well with Crewe. Seen a young O'Sullivan doing well for you Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Hopefully your financial situation is helped in moving up a league. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 25, 2012 Author Share Posted June 25, 2012 Hopefully your financial situation is helped in moving up a league. Nah, it's just getting worse The crowds have increased but so have the wages. I have realised our biggest expenditure is our youth setup - the price you pay for having homegrown talent is you can't buy any in. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 25, 2012 Author Share Posted June 25, 2012 Having some serious problems with this game - every few matches it freezes when you go into the match. I'm told it's a mixture of an overheating/weak graphics card, and my system memory not coping as the computer is old. Trying a few things, but may have to start a new save if it doesn't work as I can't keep rebooting FM every 3 games Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 26, 2012 Author Share Posted June 26, 2012 So after sixteen games we are in fifth place on 25 points, only 6 points on the lead and our squad of young homegrown youth is growing into its own. Then, in sixteenth place are newly relegated Nottingham Forest. They've approached me with a wage budget three times Crewe's and a small transfer budget - I've never had one! But the youth facilities aren't as good. But then the stadium is a lot bigger and the reputation is a lot higher. My goal for this save is to win trophies at the highest level - and to top it off I did live in Nottingham last year and went to the City Ground a fair bit. Do I stay or go? Hmm, I'm going to sleep on it, opinions welcome!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 26, 2012 Author Share Posted June 26, 2012 I turned Nottingham Forest down - I am too attached to these young players at Crewe and want to see how good they can be as a team. Good decision so far. End of November and we are in 6th place, with the best defence in the league having conceded only 18 in 19 games. To top it off, we just played away at the league leaders Exeter and smashed them 5-1! All the more pleasing because I was playing a new, slightly unconventional tactic while still aiming to keep possession for as long as possible, and there was so much movement between the lines that Exeter just couldn't pick our players up. Before this match Exeter had only conceded 15 in 18. The tactic is below - and we played the whole match with a mentality of contain! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 Good idea on turning down the job. And very interesting tactic, how it's skewed to the right. Looks like it works well. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 26, 2012 Author Share Posted June 26, 2012 Mainly because I don't have anyone who can do the left properly Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 28, 2012 Author Share Posted June 28, 2012 February 2016 A desperately poor run of form has seen us quickly drop down the table, always a possibility in such a tight league. Since Powell has left we simply have no creative outlet in midfield, so despite dominating possession in games we simply cannot fashion the chances for our strikers up front. We have lost a lot of 1-0s. So promotion is entirely off the cards this season, and staying up will now be our goal. Then in the summer we need some young creative talent. For some reason the loan market just isn't working for us: no one wants to come. Maybe after our quick rise our reputation hasn't yet caught up. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 28, 2012 Author Share Posted June 28, 2012 Then in the next game this happens to my star centre back in his 150th game for the club, out for the season. To rub salt in the wounds, the guy who made the tackle, Max Clayton, was my player until I sold him last summer. I bet he took some stick from the fans after that tackle. I wish there was an option to talk to the press and say "what a git!". Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackJCFC Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 You've got a decent safety barrier in the league at the moment, hope it stays that way! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 Mainly because I don't have anyone who can do the left properly I have a friend who had made up a tactic based on penetrating one side, packed with wide players (a full back being the only wide player on the other side), with wing back, wide midfielder and winger (If I remember right) on that side. It worked reasonably well surprisingly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 28, 2012 Author Share Posted June 28, 2012 I have a friend who had made up a tactic based on penetrating one side, packed with wide players (a full back being the only wide player on the other side), with wing back, wide midfielder and winger (If I remember right) on that side. It worked reasonably well surprisingly. Interesting! I think you'd have to be very confident in your ability to keep possession though, it'd be a nightmare defensively otherwise. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 28, 2012 Author Share Posted June 28, 2012 Youth Intake 2016 So, you remember how I was just moaning I have no decent midfielders and it's costing us dear? Absolutely bloody unreal for a League One club. They are both rated already as my two best central midfielders, so needless to say they will be going straight iinto the first team. I can now field a front line and midfield made entirely of my own youngsters, all aged 18 or under, and it be the best midfield/attack in the league. So glad I stayed at this club. Next year I just need some defenders Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexcharliemann Posted June 28, 2012 Author Share Posted June 28, 2012 Further to the above, they both made their first team debuts in the next match, as deep lying playmakers in the DM position, allowing our wingers to get further forward and support the strikers. It worked a treat. Tom Dunne split the defence with a through ball in the first minute for an assist, scored the winning goal, and got man of the match with 8.8. Jack Cope got an assist, and was the second best player on the pitch with 8.1. I think they'll be alright!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 Dunne is quite something! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.