ri916's FM15 Youth Academy Challenge

[Bartrcm]

Alemannia Aachen - 2nd division - 2017-2018

Predicted: 18th

Final position: 10th

At the start of the season I hoped to gain at least 35 points so I could stay up. The previous 3 seasons you were save with 33 points.

After 5 games we had a injury crisis with 5 starters out, for at least 5 weeks, and I was forced to use my just promoted youth players. With 5/6 players under 18 I thought I was in big trouble. But most of the younger players didn't had much problems to adapt to the second division. In the next 5 games, with all the youth players, we only lost 1 once. At that point I decided that I would play with as much youth players as possible and we had a run of 6 games without losing (4 wins and 2 draws) and we were a good mid-table team. My youth players develloped a lot. But suddenly our good form disappeared and we had a terrible run. We could only win once in the next 13 games. After this terrible run we were only 1 point up on the relegation places with 7 games to go. But as sudden as our form disappeared, as sudden came our form back and won the next 3 games with very good football. With 4 games to go we were almost safe with 41 points. In the last 4 games we added another 4 points and finished the season with 45 points and an incredible 10th place.

With my goal of 35 points we would be in a lot of problems and probable be relegated. Paderborn had 39 points and only could stay up after winning the relegation play-off.

Squad: Like you can see I played a lot of youngsters on a regulary base

Games:

German cup: 1st round exit after penalties against bundesliga team RBL.

Youth intake: again a good one with 6 tags

Lasse Stuckmann (YP3a): potential good 1st division player.

Matthias Albrecht (YP3b): Also 1st division potential.

Jurgen Fuchs (YP3c): Finally a player I can retrain to DM. Potential to be a leading 2nd division player.

Andreja Dimitrijevic (YP3d): Potential good second division player, but I'm not sure this player can match his potential.

Wolfgang Gorschlüter (YP3e): Second division potential

Umberto Bartolini (YP3f): Second division potential

All U19 players. Like you can see a lot of potential. Players with at least 4.5* have second division potential. YP1 players will be promoted to the first team.

Transfers: None

Goals last season:

Survive: Succes

After the season I could agree that the training and youth facilities will be upgraded.

Goals next season:

at least 10th position

German cup: second round

At least 6 youth players in the starting 11

[Shakes]

Good season Bartrcm, lots of potential there in the intake, you should really take off once they are old enough to play.

[Sanno11]

Great progress Toon, you are at it again. Good luck in the top division mate.

Fantastic start Korvalis, I hope you survive next year and your new HOYD can bring in some quality youngsters.

That's a very solid season Bartrcm, looks like you're in a great position to push on next year and get lots of youth involved.

I will be posting a double update in a bit.

[Sanno11]

[League] [Results] [squad Stats][Transfers][Finances]

Sölvesborgs Season 6 2020-2021

Second Division East Gotaland

Season Review

I was hoping for a decisive season where we easily found our way back into the first division. Unfortunately this was not to be, We were a strong team throughout the year and obviously our finishing position shows we were just not good enough. I really feel it is always our inconsistency costing us, not other teams being better. We lost our keeper and arguably the best player at the end of the year which was a let down.

Luckily Swedish seasons are so fast that I can move on quickly to ensure next year is successful.

Three really positive things happened this year.

1) Away cup game against Malmo, netting us close to 200k

2) My first good quality youth intake for several seasons,

3) Settled on my main goal scoring threat (untagged youth I overlooked)

Youth Intake

Finally some strength and depth in this intake. I am very optimistic that I should get at least a few first team players from this group. (Ignore tags in these screenshots, lost track of what year it was, this is supposed to be YP06's)

Jimmy Libell (YP06a) A no nonsense ball winning midfielder who should compliment my more creative players.

Tony Isaksson (YP06b) Has some strengths and some weaknesses. Will need some work on mental aspects of game.

Adrian Carlen (YP06c) He is similar to several other young defenders. Not very quick and not ready yet but will definitely get a chance to impress.

Summary

Obviously disappointment, but cushioned with very positive happenings off the pitch. Next year must be promotion.

[League][squad Stats][Transfers][Finances]

Sölvesborgs Season 7 2021-2022

Second Division East Gotaland

Season review

We are champions of the second division again and it was the least I expected. We changed our approach to games and it seemed to pay off. Sacrificing our defensive record for extra goals. We had a great run of 7 wins in a row and remained unbeaten at home in the league. Settled on two players to lead the line and both reached double figures for goals. We still feel very vulnerable at the back, especially through the middle but I am trying to offset that by just going out to score more goals.

Players of the season

Jonas Norell (season 3) - He was unused and unnoticed originally but as my options for forwards dwindled and underperformed, this lad stepped up and did well. Tremendous development as well. He will be key for next season

Kristoffer Selmer (YP02a) - Not the finished article and very inconsistent but was the top goalscorer.

Youth Intake

Another decent intake with some quality and depth, only one tagged given out though.

Hans Sundberg (YP07a) Frustratingly weak in certain aspects of his game but with his potential I hope to mould him into a decent player.

Summary

Onwards to the first division again, I hope to consolidate comfortably and learn from my mistakes in season 5. I would like to push for a top half finish but I need to secure safety first!

[toonbalmy87]

Great progress Toon, you are at it again. Good luck in the top division mate.

Fantastic start Korvalis, I hope you survive next year and your new HOYD can bring in some quality youngsters.

That's a very solid season Bartrcm, looks like you're in a great position to push on next year and get lots of youth involved.

I will be posting a double update in a bit.

Cheers .... yeah its going well i created a new formation in my 2nd season seems to be working well

[Braumiller]

I have been away from the thread and the game for a week or two and wow has there been a lot of activity and progress!

From my own gaming, I played out my first season in Russia with Rotor and it went exceptionally well. We won the league and made the only step up in the Russian league structure into their Premier League. However, never once did the save feel;

A - Mine. Just never got into it.

B - In line with the challenge, in part due to the huge World Cup stadium they are receiving in a couple of years.

So I have shelved that save and will not bother to report it in full, unless I pick it up again (doubtful atm).

I have been trying to resist the temptation of returning to the scene of last years success, but I have finally caved.

Back to Sweden and Vastra Frolunda I go.

I really feel a connection to this tiny club, even though I have never stepped foot in the country or seen them play.

Intro post and screenshots to follow (tomorrow probably).

I can even steal the seasonal review layout from last year!

[Braumiller]

Alright, here we go (again!)

Starting Profile!!

[Shakes]

Histon FC - 2031/32 - Sky Bet League 2: 2nd

Squad | Transfers

A stunning season in which we managed to keep the goals against down to one a game while looking a whole lot more potent in attack. For much of the year it looked like we'd win the league, but full credit to Forest Green, while we were throwing away points with our complacent patch they powered away with it and it was only them throwing away the last couple after the league was won that even let us get as close as we did.

Still I'm definitely not going to complain about a second placed finish, a promotion is a promotion and if you can tie it up with a couple of games to go then it's a really solid season.

We also made a run to the Johstone's Paint Trophy final, where we played out a fairly even looking game but didn't get the luck on the day and lost 3-0 to league 1 champions Port Vale.

A season of being runners up but in the end it's definitely classed as a success! Now we've got to consolidate: three of the teams that went up last year went straight back down, we don't want to be like that! Hopefully our defense can hold up at the next level and we can grind out enough points.

Key Players

(23a) Aidan Potter struggled in his first year in league 2, taking until December to find the net but this year he was on song from the start, scoring 27 times in all competitions to easily lead the side. (27a) Calvin Cole surprisingly was our second leading goal scorer, aided by being the penalty taker, but he's definitely turned into a very good player and at 21 is already the best player at the club.

On a less happy note captain (16a) Adam James suffered two fairly serious knee injuries throughout the season and is nearing the end, hard to see him as anything more than a backup option going forward as he's struggled to have a real impact at the league 2 level. 10 years as captain, with 605 league games for 189 goals and 157 assists has been a hell of a career. If I can convince him to sign back on as a backup then I can keep him but if he expects playing time then it's going to be hard to justify.

Youth Intake

A down year for the youth intake, with even the two players tagged being only 4 star potential.

• (32a) Sean Parsonage - AMC/ST - An interesting option as a play maker striker, but has some nice strengths but being slow and unable to finish will hurt him.
  
• (32b) Sam Hayward - DC/DL/DR - Another undersized centre back ... hopefully everything else can make up for his small stature.
  

Previous Season Goals

If we're ready for promotion we'll get it, if not another year will do us good. - Success

Next Season Goals

Somehow stay up in league 1 ... on paper we're not up to it but we're on a run of overachieving, so why not?

[Bartrcm]

Congrats on the promotion Sanno11 and Shakes. Good luck at the level up.

[Braumiller]

Congrats on the promotion Sanno11 and Shakes. Good luck at the level up.

Seconded!

Great work guys, really making me jealous right now!

This is going to be an interesting 1st season at Frolunda for sure. The press actually have me listed as a 4th place predicted finish! We have several very nice players for our league, but only 16 players in total, including just the 1 GK. Also just 2 forwards, but there is a semi decent AMC who I will be retraining as a more creative/link forward option.

The Swedish league is going to help and hinder a little here I think.

Helping is the fixture list. Just 2 'midweek' games, with the rest between all other games being a week apart. This will help recovery between games and help me play my best XI each game.

Hindering is a 1 match ban for every 3 yellow cards, this could end up biting me in the backside at times......

This has the feel of a boom or bust season. If we steer clear of injuries I have high hopes. If we get hit hard by injuries, this could get ugly....

[Sanno11]

Braumiller, I am glad you have decided to try in Sweden, your write ups from last season were always quality. I think it's really important to feel connected to the team you manage in a challenge like this.

Shakes, brilliant mate. I really like seeing the progress you're making. Good look in league 1.

[v1n1akabozo]

@Shakes

And you almost gave up hahhaha! In the next time you suffer a big settleback remember how much progress you've done starting by that one.

[Shakes]

Braumiller - Lack of midweek games would be nice! I struggle to get rotation right, always look back in retrospect at a season and feel I didn't squeeze enough games out of my best players.

[v1n1akabozo]

Braumiller - Lack of midweek games would be nice! I struggle to get rotation right, always look back in retrospect at a season and feel I didn't squeeze enough games out of my best players.

Shakes please start posting the finances picture in your updates, they're important to me hahaha. Could you post your facilities as well? I'm curious on how you handled the Jr Coaching and Recruitment Network

[Shakes]

Facilities

• I upgraded the junior coaching a couple of times early
  
• Youth recruitment upgrade has never been an option (will probably need to be in the premier league before I have the rep to ask for it)
  
• Youth level went up to 4 as part of the automatic review when I made league 2, hoping for another bump soon since I asked for it.
  
• Youth facilities have been upgraded twice, once with FA cup money and once as part of a request to try to get our youth level up at the end of last year (which I got because of the "Give Youth a Chance" contract clause).
  
• Training facilities were promised but we ran out of funds, so are still at starting level.
  
• Stadium got a small expansion to meet league 2 requirements, but in league 2 we were still only getting 1400 to an average home game, so plenty of space!
  

Finances, Expenditure, Income, Salary

The two big bumps are for our FA cup runs. Otherwise we're steadily losing money. Making league 1 has helped on the revenue front, we now have enough rep that foreign teams will pay decent coin to have us come over and play friendlies. I still think we'll struggle to balance the books again this year unless we get a FA cup run and good draw. Our salary is the lowest in league 1 by a fair margin so it's not like we're spending big, ignore being over wage budget as I push it all in transfer budget because players demand less if your wage budget is smaller. We only have three players on more than 1k a week, Crystal Palace has five players on more than 10k a week! Really just our lack of crowd pulling ability that's hurting us.

Also amazingly we have better rep than 5 championship clubs now - only Shrewsbury and Crystal Palace have better rep in league 1 ... I assume the cup runs have helped us over the years. Hopefully it eventually translates to fan interest! Right now we're the 100th most valuable club in England despite being the 42nd highest rep club.

[Shakes]

Got my first premier league job offer ... Southampton sitting in 20th place, no thanks!

[toonbalmy87]

Half way point ish (52days till next match) of the season in the top division things are looking well

[Shakes]

Sometimes you've got to extract those last couple of fumes out of the tank ...

Adam James playing only his third match for the season, brought in because of injury, comes off the bench and steals the game!

[Shakes]

Histon FC - 2032/33 - Sky Bet League 1: 13th

Squad | Transfers

We felt the ups and downs of the step up in class, the pacier forwards exploited us at times on the counter and at the other end we had games where we could shoot and shoot yet not find the net. However overall we looked very much like we belong at this level. Was a really crazy close league this year - won with only 79 points! - and a few results meant a lot of places on the table.

Really think next season will be a good one, goal difference of +14 this year was good for equal 4th in the league, so we're pretty competitive, just have to score them at the right moments.

Finances

Not great, we made a "profit" but that was with a couple of cash injections from the old board and a 600k bank loan after a take over. Half of our 2.4 million in wages are the always mysterious "non-football costs", whatever they are. You wouldn't think a football club would spend half it's wages on things non-football, but there you go.

Key Players

(23a) Aidan Potter really looked like the only forward we have who can bang them in, and he would have scored more than his 21 goals if a hamstring hadn't limited him to 29 games. That injury was probably the difference between playoffs and the mid table finish we ended up with. We need him healthy next year.

Youth Intake

• (33a) Levi Toffolo - AML/ML/AMC/AMR - One of those pace but not much else guys that I hate, but eventually one has to work out ...
  
• (33b) Kristian Rice - MC/AMC - Actually looks like an alright prospect, but two of our best players play MC as do two of our best youth prospects.
  
• (33c) Phil Banks - DR - I love the flexibility of either footed full backs ... even if he doesn't have the best potential or starting stats, being able to use both feet raises him up in my eyes.
  

Previous Season Goals

Somehow stay up in league 1 ... on paper we're not up to it but we're on a run of overachieving, so why not? - Success

Next Season Goals

• More renewal for the first team
  
• Playoff push
  

[abirdc]

IFK Eskilstuna 2017 Season Update

Season Summary

League-9th

This time the Board expected a mid table place, and we were predicted by the media to become 9th in the league. Well, we just achieved that, barely. However, if you look at the league table, the concerning thing is the huge point gap between the number 8 and 9. So in a way, I am disappointed as the last season with almost no squad depth, we also became 9th with a larger point total.

League Fixtures- Part I

League Fixtures- Part II

Another disappointment was our city rival Eskilstuna City became the champion of the league. Good thing is I will never have to face them, as in the 4 meetings I had against them, I lost them all!

The players which was key to our season was:

1. Andres Stensson- The Captain, despite not being rated by the coaching staff, was by far my best player. He thrived in the central winger role I played, or even in right wing whenever I played with wingers.

2. Josef Rakez- Our top goalscorer, although really inconsistent.

3. Peter Carlsson- Missed first few matches because of injury, however, after his return, was a regular starter in the team, and was pretty solid in my opinion.

Among the intakes, none of the youngsters did any good unfortunately. Only YP01F managed to be around the main team always.

The Youth Intake

YP02A: Will provide central defense cover. However, he really needs to work on some of the much needed attributes, marking and heading the most.

YP02B: I have high hope for this guy. Has solid attributes in defensive areas apart from concentration. If only he had high stamina and concentration, he would have already be a good ball winner for the league.

YP02C: High potential. Has good stats to cover all three positions he plays. His finishing and pace will be vital as a last minute sub.

YP02D: My squad is pretty thin in left winger department. This guy will provide competition there.

YP02E: Another guy I have high hope for. His huge frame, high strength and work rate makes him perfect for a target man role. Possess decent pace too. And "professional" personality.

Transfers

This is the transfer history. 2 youth intakes of previous season were sent on loan to feeder clubs to get match time in the middle of the season. Stefan Johnsson was by far the worst player of the squad, so let him go on free transfer. Goran Safari was getting old, and was a big let down over the season with his awful decision making and passing. He did not get a single game in the 2nd part of the season, but was on high wage.

Richard Larsson was my 1st choice keeper, and a pretty solid one I must say. However, he refused to sign a new contract no matter how many times I approached him. This is a big blow. Not only I do not have any cover in this position(as for some reason, I did not get any youth intake who is a goalkeeper), but my 2nd choice Petter Magnusson still is not good enough for this level.

Finances

The finances is marked as "insecure" with almost 240000 euro in red.

Election is looming. Hope whoever becomes the next chairman sticks with me.

[Braumiller]

Nice seasons Shakes and abirdc!

[Braumiller]

Vastra Frolunda IF - Season 1 Review (2015)

League Table | League Positions Graph | Squad Stats | Transfers | Finances

Competitions

Second Division (West Gotaland) : 1st (Fixtures)

(no cups this year)

Season Review

A fantastic first season with Vastra Frolunda! We were able to maximise our return on the core group of very good players and somewhat minimize our shortcomings in terms of general numbers. Two games we found ourselves without any available substitutes, but never did we have to resort to a grey player or an outfield player in goal!

Aside from two early 'midweek' games, we had nothing but weekly league games this year (already out of the cup), which meant we could more or less just play our strongest XI each game. We opted for an attacking 442 (with back tracking inside forwards) and we blitzed the league in regards to goalscoring. Hitting 73 in just 26 games. We naturally conceded more than I would have liked, but 37 allowed still had us as the joint 5th best defense.

With the league wrapped up with 4 games to go, we were able to give a few youths their debuts.

"Frolunda Five" - 2015 Edition

Tommy Lycen - Easily our player of the year. 16 goals from his position out on the left wing, cutting onto his right foot was key to the season. He was averaging over a goal a game until late in the year. Gives hope to us all, in that he has all 3 of the dreaded coach report items (injury prone, inconsistent and dislike of big matches), but still performs. Only downside is his age (33) and his short remaining career.

Joel Parkhed - A hidden treasure. Until this year Joel had no experience at FC, but with retraining and a weekly spot in the lineup up-front, he soon rose to the occassion and shone. 17 goals from the ever present.

Erik Johannesen - Parkhed's partner in crime, Erik missed just one game (when I gave a youth a start at the end of the season) and scored 20 goals! Another of the core group who is reaching the end of his career (31).

Robert Smolander - Our key guy in the middle of the park, Smolander would often get the assist on the assist, recycling the ball to one of the front four. A tidy footballer for our level and only 24. Will play for us as long as possible.

Christofer Bengtsson - Our 3rd over 30 of the Frolunda Five this year, Bengtsson is 34 and a vital part of the team. 9 assist in 25 games from right back, we will have a large hole to fill soon.

Youth Intake

To be honest, a slightly disappointing first intake. The intake came the week before we mathematically wrapped up the league, and I was ready to flood the first team with them for the last 4 games, but the potentials did not match my high hopes.

Joham Eckerman (YP 01A) - A left winger, with two excellent feet. I have begun positional training at AMR as well, so that he can play on either side as an inside forward and cut in effectively. Played well in 5 first team games, 2 goals and 2 assists

Erik Soderstrom (YP 01B) - Another positional retraining candidate, as my deep lying forward / false nine type player. Can also fill in nicely in Smolanders midfield role when needed.

Emil Avdic (YP 01C) - A right winger, and again positional retraining has begun, this time as an AML.

Niklas Berglund (YP 01D) - Decent pace and tackling on a left back, but positioning is a huge worry.

Max Henriksson (YP 01E) - Youth goalkeeper and instant backup to our only other GK on the books.

Johnathan Hagman (YP 01F) - A hard working midfielder, needs a lot of work on his tackling.

Miscellaneous

So, a very good first season. If we had secured a good intake I would have had high hopes for the next year in the regional First Divisions, but for now I think we should just be aiming for consolidating and trying to make a couple of the YP 01's into first team options.

We had one early board request approved, for Junior Coaching and it is now sitting at 'average' at the end of the season.

Financially we lost money consistently. That will continue for a fair few season to come....

** NOTE, the incoming transfer occured before the Decemeber 15th reset date in Sweden when I took charge

Season 2 (2016) Goals

* Survive

* Begin giving more and more YP tags first team experience

[Shakes]

Too easy Braumiller, stop embarrassing the rest of us.

[abirdc]

Damn Braumiller, too good! What is the secret behind your success?

[Braumiller]

Heh, thanks.

It was a confluence of factors;

* A core of very good players for the league

* We avoided major injury issues

* Somebody else's tactic, which was selected as it fit key personnel very nicely (and thankfully worked!), and can now be used to try and mold the future squad around

[Sanno11]

Well done Braumiller, great start to your Swedish dynasty. If Johnathan Hagman (YP 01F) can improve his tackling, he could be a decent player.

[Sanno11]

Sölvesborgs Season 8 2022-2023

First Division South

[League] [Results] [squad Stats][Transfers][Finances]

Season Review

This was a much better transition into division one, we scored a lot of goals and with a bit more consistency may well have nicked a play off place. We started with mixed results, but found our feet and after 8 games had accrued 13 points. We then faltered badly and over the next 8 games only won once, this effectively scuppered our hopes off success and put us in danger of relegation.

Luckily we had a kind cup draw and this win seemed to remind the team how to play. It sparked a run of ten games where we won 8 and shot up the table. This game often leaves you with a sense of what if..... We created plenty of chances in games and I think if or strike partnership can become more consistent and efficient we have a real chance at the play offs at least next season.

Youth Intake

Not a great intake, as many of the better players will need a lot of work to fit into our system. Silver lining is a decent Goalkeeper of course.

Bernt Margentsson (YP08a) Seems fairly well rounded. I will need to work on his rushing out. He is instantly my starting keeper though as my other options are terrible and playing at full potential already.

Players of the season

Stefan Larsson (YP03a) - 12 goals and 7 assists, he just kept popping up in the right places. A classic case of taking his opportunity when it was presented. He will get a chance to impress again next season

Jonas Norell - A great contribution this season (15 goals, 10 assists). Very well rounded, I aim to improve his quickness next season. Key player now.

Previously Tagged Updates

I have tended to focus on players performing well, seems only fair to briefly highlight how the others are doing.

Fredrik Jonsson (YP01a) An impact sub now and does that well, 5 goals in 5 games this year. Slowly falling away from first team.

Frej Jonsson (YP01b) Was forced into first team and has never looked back, not exceptional but very consistent and rarely misses games

Andreas Engtorp (YP01c) Not progressed well and never performed. Will be moved on soon

Kristoffer Selmer (YP02a) Some flashes of brilliance, however now second fiddle to Norell.

Tobias Bryngelsson (YP02b) Key player in my squad, fits in well to my style of play.

Stefan Larsson (YP03a) Slow start to career, but is great with the ball, has a knack for scoring and loves big games, is surprising me to be honest

Emil Forsberg (YP04a) Has just got into the first team, great work rate and fitness makes him useful as a work horse.

Martin Lindgren (YP05a) In competition with at least 5 other players all very similar and none have impressed enough to remain in team.

Jimmy Libell (YP06a) Not really what I like in a centre mid, poor work rate, still he gets a game here and there. Not great expectations anymore.

Tony Isaksson (YP06b) Has just had a great season and develop really well this year, dangerous player and has got strong physical attributes.

Adrian Carlen (YP06c) Starting to fill out as a centre back, quickness has improved nicely. Will be starting CB next season.

Hans Sunberg (YP07a) Assistant likes him, I can't decide what to do with him, no real strengths. Not hopeful anymore.

Untagged

Sebastian Blomquist (season 1) A big imposing player, not technically great and poor in the air, but works well as a target man up front and has become important in the team

Jonas Norell (season 3) - No tag at the time and now one of my stars, great progress over the last two seasons.

Summary

I am happy with our performance back in the higher league. We have had no facility upgrades for 4 years now so it feels like we are stagnating a little, hoping we can push for a promotion soon to keep things moving forward.

I am three quarters through the next season and it is going very well. I will be writing another update soon I expect.

[Shakes]

Solid season Sanno11, I know I'm always very happy when I get a GK prospect that looks the goods, it's the only position you can't retrain around a lack of!

[Shakes]

Histon FC - 2033/34 - Sky Bet League 1: 1st

Squad | Transfers

Started out just hoping to put in another good effort this year as a bunch of stalwarts were moved on. With Adam James, Justin Dozzell, Marcus Corrigan and Ian Johnson leaving I was losing around 2000 games of experience (as well as my last players from the 2010s!) and I hoped the young guys I was letting in could stand up and cope for a whole season.

But wow, what a season! We hung around the top for most of the year but always looked like a defensive side that lacked the cutting edge around goal to make a real challenge, I felt the dropped points were going to leave us needing to battle through the playoffs.

However somehow we ended up winning the league with a game in hand! Honestly it had a lot more to do with the other teams messing up, Rotherham looked certainties for the title when they went from a 14 match unbeaten streak to losing 8 of their last 10 games. Coventry also slipped pretty badly, notching only one win in their last 8. So instead of third we were first. I really don't know what to say, I did think we were better than our record last year but going from 13th to 1st is such a jump!

We also had a couple of big cup runs. We made it to the 4th round of the Capital One Cup where we got blown away at Old Trafford 6-0 in a scoreline that wasn't a fair reflection on play. But our real run was in the FA cup where we beat premier league sides Sheffield Wednesday, Cardiff and Chelsea before falling to Man City 2-0 in a semi final that they dominated and could easily have won by more.

So just a brilliant season all around, looking forward to the challenge of the Championship!

Finances

Big time profit from the cup runs. Hopefully this means I can get youth and training facility upgrades. I suspect with my wage bill being as low as it is I should make a healthy profit next year with the increased league revenue too.

Key Players

• (22c) Ollie Cambridge - ST/AML - Lead the team in both goals and assists to be our main man in attack as (23a) Aidan Potter had an on again off again season with form and injuries.
  
• (31f) Oliver French - MC - Won himself a spot in the midfield which allowed me to switch (24a) Screve Makengo to the defensive midfield role.
  
• (27a) Calvin Cole - MC - The other half of our midfield duo.
  
• (29a) Ryan Morrison - DL/DR - A solid performer at either full back spot, doesn't offer a lot going forward but keeps the mistakes to a minimum.
  
• (22b) Casey Driver - GK - Seems to out-perform his stats, he's rated a conference level player yet keeps a clean sheet against Chelsea!
  

Youth Intake

My HoYD seems to be consistently under-estimating the youths when they first show up, as the last few intakes have developed really nicely. Hopefully this will be the same, but for now only two tags:

(34a) Andrew Barbour - MC/AMC - A strange mix of high and low stats for the Scottish born player. Competition for the MC spots just got fiercer.

(34b) Aziz Opoku - GK - Definitely need a keeper prospect, and this guy is actually not that far behind my first choice already. Of course I don't know if he has the magic out perform stat dust sprinkled on him yet ...

Previous Season Goals

• More renewal for the first team - Success, we let 7 players go to bring more in
  
• Playoff push - Success, we pushed right past the playoffs.
  

Next Season Goals

Survive and make money to push up our facilities!

[Willafus]

Been lurking around here for a while debating weather I should start this challenge. I haven't tried proper lower league management for years so this might be too much for me, but I'm going to go for it.

Shakes - Very impressive, really hope you stay up next season. Much of my inspiration to start this challenge has been watching your progress through the leagues after a very tough start. Do you think starting at a club with Average Youth Recruitment has contributed much? And do you have any tips for someone starting this challenge for the first time?

[Sanno11]

Well done Shakes that's another great step forward for Histon. What a cup run. Obligatory good luck for next season, although you have quite decisively shown how capable your squad is at each step up.

Willafus, get involved ASAP mate. I lurked throughout FM13 and finally got involved last year. Gives the game another level and I personally really enjoy seeing all the player progression.

The other guys will have more tips for you. In my experience just finding a club you can fall in love with is a big start. Hopefully we will see your intro post soon.

[Shakes]

Willafus - Youth recruitment helps a little, but no matter what your youth recruitment is you're not going to get superstars just from that: they go to the highest rep teams in the top leagues. I think the big thing is find a club with a starting squad you're happy with. Facilities don't matter if you get relegated first season.

[Braumiller]

Willafus - I echo what the other lads have said. If you find a club you can connect with, this is a very worthwhile challenge (with a lot of frustration as well at times). That connection may not occur instantly, but once you get your first few youth recruits into the first team and contributing, it is awesome.

Set your sights low, and hope for over-achievement

Shakes - Phenomenal!

Sanno11 - Very nice season, so close but the future is looking good!

The rest of the house is finally asleep, so going to try and steal a few games before sleeping myself. This league is insane right now. 10 games of the 26 in, and there are 5 points between playoff and relegation places.

[toonbalmy87]

BK Olympic - Season 6

6th

League Table

Squad

Finances

Transfers

Key Players

Jernberg

Granfeldt

Ahman

Youth Candidates

YP1

YP1A

YP1B

YP2

YP2A

YP2B

YP2C

YP3

YP3A

YP3B

YP3C - Released didnt turn up for training so i sacked him do not mess with the boss

YP4

YP4A

YP4B

YP4C

YP4D

YP5

YP5A

YP5B

YP6/Report

YP6A/Report

YP6B/Report

[Bartrcm]

Alemannia Aachen - 2nd Division - 2018-2019

Predicted position: 18th

Final position: 2nd and promotion!!!!!

This was an incredible season.

The season started without a loss in the first 10 games, but due to only 4 wins in this run we only were 7th at that moment. And than we suffered 2 losses in 3 games. At that moment I thought we were only a mid-table team. But after that we, again had a long run without defeat, and were pushing for a top 5 finish. The last 10 games off the season started with 3 very tricky games against Hertha, Munich Lions and Augsburg. Munich Lions were the run away league leaders, Hertha was in 2nd position and Augsburg were 6th. These 3 games would decide if I could push for promotion or not. With 7 out of 9 points we did a lot better than I hoped for. The next 3 games provided us alos 7 points, and with 4 games to go we were 2nd and 4 points ahead off Rostock in 3th place. At that point Munich were allready crowned as champions. The next game was terrible and we lost against St. Pauli with 3-1 but it could easily have been 10-1. Luckily for us Rostock also lost. The next game was against Elversberg (who allready were relegated), and we were bad again but lady luck was at our side and we won. Rostock also won, so the difference was still 4 points. I hoped we could finish the job against Sandhausen, because our last game was against Rostock.

Sandhausen didn't worried us at all, and we we played very well. We won the game with 2-1 and promoted to the first division. An incredible feeling!!!! The last game against Rostock we also won and due to this result Rostock dropped out off the play-offs.

League games:

German cup: Quarter final loss at Dortmund with 5-3. Overachievers off the season. This run provided us a lot of cash, and that was the goal of the cup.

Youth intake: 4 players with 5 stars ability, but I'm not sure that they are that good. This was the first intake with a new head of youth devellopment. I though this new man is a better qualified person than his predecessor, but after this intake i'm not sure. My 5* players only have the ability to become a leading second division player. Previous 5* players could become good first division players, so that confuse me a lot.

Samuele Cimono (YP4a): Only second division potential

Stefan Kaminski (YP4b): 2nd division potential

Manuel Schneider (YP4c)

Manfred Stienemann (YP4d)

Marc Karg (YP4e)

Khassad Shah (YP4f)

Transfers: Only released players, off course.

After the season I managed to upgrade the training and youth facilities again.

Goals last season:

at least 10th position: SUCCES

German cup: second round: SUCCES

At least 6 youth players in the starting 11: SUCCES, with an average of 8 youth players

Goals next season:

Survive!!!!!!

[Bartrcm]

Shakes: I know you could do this. Congrats on that promotion.

Abirdc: Very nice season.

Braumiller: Congrtas with the promotion

Sanno11: solid season

Toonbalmy87: Very nice season at the highest level. I hope to do the same next season, but I doubt it.

[Willafus]

Manager Profile | Facilities | Squad | Transfers

I went with Kingstonian because they are a local club to me. I've only ever had success with non-league teams when I go for someone local, I feel more of a connection. However I have never done anything like this challenge before, hopefully I can hang in there. Expectation is to avoid relegation, media prediction 22nd. I'm not sure if my squad is capable of staying up, it's going to take me a while to adjust to what is required at this level. I probably haven't started this at the best time as I am returning to University tomorrow but screw it! Wish me luck, I'll need it

[toonbalmy87]

My Formation that has helped me to the dizzy heights i haven't changed it once in 6 seasons

Instructions Etc in case you are wondering

[Braumiller]

Congrats Bartcrm! Excellent season

Good luck Willafus!

toonbalmy87, fantastic season in the top flight so soon!

That is one attack minded setup you have there!

Do you use any individual instructions with it?

Did you create the tactic specific for BK Olympic and its players, or had success with it before and fit your players into it?

Second season just finished here, but I need sleep. Will write it up tomorrow at work

[Shakes]

Bartrcm - Great season there. As for the youth intake, I think the report at what division potential they have kind of gives away whether the black star is real or not.

Willafus - Good luck, at least you seem to have a young and reasonably balanced squad to work with.

I've started my Championship season, Southampton's average player wage is more than my entire squad's wages put together ... we're rated last in 23 out of the 40 categories on the comparison report, but I'll take it as a challenge.

[toonbalmy87]

Congrats Bartcrm! Excellent season

Good luck Willafus!

toonbalmy87, fantastic season in the top flight so soon!

That is one attack minded setup you have there!

Do you use any individual instructions with it?

Did you create the tactic specific for BK Olympic and its players, or had success with it before and fit your players into it?

Second season just finished here, but I need sleep. Will write it up tomorrow at work

Yeah i created it just for them and now i use it for other teams

I use Individual instructions as well ... I always use attacking formations that's all i know . My old Favorite formation was 3-1-2-1 -3

[Sn00gle]

You doing great guys ! Hope I can join you as soon as posible Unlucky I need w8 for my game since I dont have job right now

[Bartrcm]

Can I take an internatonal job? USA offer me a job.

[Braumiller]

Can I take an internatonal job? USA offer me a job.

Taken from the intro post (text coloring my own)

Rules for the Challenge

No loans or transfers in are allowed but you can sell and loan players out.

If you are sacked, sorry, you have to start again.

No save game editors are allowed. only cosmetic database edits are allowed. (team/competition names/logos)

No international management until completion of challenge.

Signing backroom staff is allowed. Signing players on trial or signing grey players isn't allowed.

[Braumiller]

Vastra Frolunda IF - Season 2 Review (2016)

League Table | League Positions Graph | Squad Stats | Transfers | Finances

Competitions

First Division South : 10th (Fixtures)

Swedish Cup : 1st Round loss

Season Review

Mission Accomplished. Survival was the singular goal, although you always have an eye on places above you!

We started off looking liked we belonged in the new division, sitting comfortably in mid-table with the ability to challenge for the top two or drop into a relegation fight. A string of 8 games (approx a third of our season) with 1 win, culminating in a 1-7 loss, meant action was needed. We were the out of form team in the league and only 3 points above the relegation positions. The first change we tried thankfully worked as we kept things as is, except dropping our mentality down to counter. This did the trick, with our our last 7 games providing 3 wins, 3 draws and a singular loss (a 2-1 loss away to the league Champs). Joel Perkhed in particular enjoyed the change, scoring 9 times in these 7 games. Coincidence that he is our pacier option up front (Acc 14, Pace 13)?

"Frolunda Five" - 2016 Edition

Joel Perkhed - Reveled in our more counter attacking approach at the end of the year. Scored 9 in 19 before and then 9 in 7 during. His poor finishing and composure (as a converted midfielder) hurts him, but the number of chances keeps him ticking along.

Robert Smolander - Another good season in the middle of the park. Nothing spectacular, but a key component for us.

Johan Eckerman (YP 01A) - Excellent first full season for Johan. AMR training is slowly coming along and he played 19 of his 25 games in that position. 10 goals and 6 assists. Failed to 'untrain' his 'Plays No Through Balls' PPM, will try again next year.

Emil Avdic (YP 01C) - Didn't get many chances, but did enough to force his way into my thinking for season 3 coming up!

Christofer Bengtsson - The old man kept the DR spot for himself again. Now 35, he chipped in 7 assists from his deep position.

Youth Intake

Very disappointing. I could have tagged nobody, but that didn't feel right.

Lars Gustavsson (YP 02A) - A 6' 4" central defender is never a bad thing. He lacks good potential for a firm first team push, but if he progresses or we have injury issues he may find appearances coming his way.

Kalle Grahn (YP 02B) - Another youth intake product tagged as a Ball Winning Midfielder, with horrendous tackling skills. Will need a lot of work.

Miscellaneous

A successful season on the pitch, but less so off it. Zero improvements approved by the board and a terrible youth intake cast a shadow over the season. Tommy Lycen and Christofer Lycen are both 35 yr old first teamers and no studs to take their places. I do have options for them, and now it is a case of needing to replace them instead of being able to replace them.

Season 3 (2017) Goals

* Improve our league position and record a positive goal difference

* Convince the board to make an off field improvement

[Shakes]

Not sure what on earth is happening with your youth intakes Braumiller, isn't Sweden normally the land of plenty? Also Assyriska's manager would be wondering how the hell they couldn't win enough to stay up, only -2 goal difference when they won 5 and lost 14? Got to laugh when it's not you.

[Willafus]

Good season Braumiller, shame about the poor youth intake though. Hopefully you can kick on next season.

I'm 13 league games into the season, just 1 win so far and we're already 7 points away from safety. Isn't looking good, the squad is paper thin, desperately need my first youth intake. I feel a good team spirit though and I'm confident we can turn it around.

[Braumiller]

Not sure what on earth is happening with your youth intakes Braumiller, isn't Sweden normally the land of plenty? Also Assyriska's manager would be wondering how the hell they couldn't win enough to stay up, only -2 goal difference when they won 5 and lost 14? Got to laugh when it's not you.

Yeah, these bad intakes are starting to take a toll.

Add to that, 2 of my better players have decided they do not want to renew their contracts which have (had) 12 months on them! Smolander because he doesn't think the squad is good enough to match his ambitions (he has a point) and Camara because "Staying at Vastra Frolunda wouldn't be a wise decision due to my dislike of Ben Talbott"! I presume this goes back to a few months ago when he won his first cap for Gambia and I congratulated him, he replied back and took my comment to be condescending! Let's see if I can mend that fence this year!

[Braumiller]

Good season Braumiller, shame about the poor youth intake though. Hopefully you can kick on next season.

I'm 13 league games into the season, just 1 win so far and we're already 7 points away from safety. Isn't looking good, the squad is paper thin, desperately need my first youth intake. I feel a good team spirit though and I'm confident we can turn it around.

Fingers crossed! Good luck

[Shakes]

Player interaction is very touchy in this year's version Braumiller, although I think once your youth intake takes over it gets a lot easier since they all seem to have me as favoured personnel. I've had very few problems since I got rid of the older guys, just the odd complaint about young guys not playing (usually my fault for bloating the squad) or wanting to move on when they're older and no longer first choice (usually solved by telling them I need them to be an influence on the younger players).

Good luck turning things around Willafus, I have no advice to give, once I get on a bad run I usually nose dive into the ground.