dllu Posted August 30, 2015 Author Share Posted August 30, 2015 2014/15 season - update 7 (Sorry for the delay, as I was out of town on work-related business.) So let’s just cut to the chase: We will be playing at least two extra games again this season! Axel Bossekota masterminded two very important wins and Tony Breeden secured three equally important points in the last league game to make it 5 for 5 in the penalty statistic. Quite the gimmick he is developing there. Maybe he’s not the next Barthez but rather the next Chilavert! The only blemish on an otherwise perfect month was a humiliating defeat against already relegated Telford. They had nothing to play for, we had everything to play for - but we just couldn’t convert our possession into chances. It didn’t exactly help matters that Captain Dick got himself an early bath and will miss the first semi-final: In the end we finish 3rd which, regardless of how we fare in the playoffs, is a record high for Tamworth. I am so proud of the lads and glad to have brought such unprecedented success and helped make club history, and I am more than satisfied with the season already. Still, I can’t help but dream of more... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DodgeeD Posted August 30, 2015 Share Posted August 30, 2015 Good luck with the play-offs! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 Well done climbing up into the playoffs. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted August 31, 2015 Author Share Posted August 31, 2015 2014/15 season - playoff semifinals I really didn’t know where we stood against Forest Green. Both league games ended in 1-0 wins for the home team, so not much basis for predictions there. Just like last year, things did not get off to a good start. Set pieces have never been our strong side (except Breeden on penalties, of course!) and we once again showed our weakness in this particular aspect of the game after just 5 minutes when centre-back Dale Bennett chose this game to score his first goal for the Green Army after a corner. Ironically, it took another corner in the injury time of the first half to bring us back in. Barrow to the near corner where a volley from Bossekota found the net. The tie was looking wide open again - until late in the second half when striker Kemar Roofe hit a total fluke that somehow went just past Breeden. Having lost 2-1 away, we knew it would take a smallish miracle to turn things around at the Lamb Ground. The stadium was packed to the last seat and except for a small section of green shirts behind one goal they made it sound like there were ten times as many. When Kemar Roofe created a distinct sense of deja-vu by scoring from yet another corner after just 8 minutes, they didn’t stop chanting. When McCusker completed a counter attack by putting it past the keeper and when Barrow fired in an amazing freekick from 25 yards out, they just started chanting even more loudly. We were all square. When Captain Dick scrambled in a rebound after a saved shot from Rose, they went wild. Second half. We were in control and everything was looking rosy until the 83rd minute when Omar Koroma brought Forest Green back in with a shout. An almost exact replica of our last goal. 3-2, all square again (no away goals rule). Extra time. The lads were looking exhausted and so were the supporters - I don’t know whose throat was sorer, theirs or mine. Still, we fought on. Forest Green had scored two goals from three shots. Talk about quality of possession. We had shot after shot but the goal just seemed cursed. I was beginning to scribble down a list of penalty takers (with Breeden as no. 1, of course) when a cross from Barrow hit the near post, hit defender Eddie Oshodi - and hit the back of the net. No penalties after all! We had done it again! Two weeks from now, we were going to London... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 3, 2015 Author Share Posted September 3, 2015 As we anxiously await the playoff final, a little quiz for our loyal readers: We have one person here at Tamworth who has played at Wembley before. Can anyone guess who...? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidBeckham Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 Good luck for the playoff final mate! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maw74 Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 We have one person here at Tamworth who has played at Wembley before. Can anyone guess who...? Haven't really got a clue so I will take a wild guess at Chris Shuker. Anyway good luck in the final, keeping us waiting. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 3, 2015 Author Share Posted September 3, 2015 Haven't really got a clue so I will take a wild guess at Chris Shuker. Good guess, but no. (Edit: Turns out you're closer than I thought - Chris did win the League 1 playoff with Barnsley back in 2006, but that final was played at the Millennium Stadium. ) Anyway good luck in the final, keeping us waiting. Good luck for the playoff final mate! Thank you! The suspense will soon be over... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 3, 2015 Author Share Posted September 3, 2015 2014/15 season - playoff final part 1 That’s right. Dale Belford actually played for Tamworth in the FA Vase final at Wembley in 1989 - that’s more than a quarter of a century ago(!).That strapping young lad of 22 is now a slightly (only slightly!) less fit but no less strapping bloke of 48. I was sitting next to Dale on the bus going south and could see how the emotions were building up as we got closer and closer to the nation’s capital. He would have denied it if I had asked him, but it was obvious what returning to the Home of Football after all these years meant to him. And with the same club too. If anyone deserved the moniker “Mr. Tamworth” it was Dale. To win the FA Vase on the greatest stage the sport has to offer must have been amazing. To go there again and witness your home town qualify for league football for the first time ever must be even greater. I could only guess what must be going on inside his head. How I wished we could take that last step - for the town, for the fans, for the players. And for Dale. They say that Tamworth became a ghost town on that Saturday in May of 1989 as half the population went to London to support their team. On this Saturday in May of 2015, the streets of Tamworth must have been deserted once again. As we walked on to the pitch and were greeted by a deafening roar from 38,000 fans, it certainly sounded like they were all Tamworthians. And it looked like the whole stadium was clad in red. In hindsight, it was probably all the empty red seats that fooled me, and I’m sure there must have been some black and white Mariners supporters in there somewhere. In my memory, though, it was all red. FIRST HALF 23 min A nice build-up by Collins and Pearson gives Grimsby the first big chance of the game. Amoo plays it forward, John-Lewis with the header - but Breeden shows his usual command of the area. I look over at Dale who silently applauds his protégé. Breeden’s quick throw to Miller starts a counter-attack for Tamworth. Miller to Twardzik, Twardzik to Rose, Rose tries to curl it in from the distance - but no such luck. Safe hands there from Grimsby keeper McKeown. 28 min Bossekota rushing down the sideline like crazy. He surges past Dodd, floats a cross to the far post. McCusker with a powerful header – but McKeown dives down and deflects it. 38 min Bossekota again, this time he cuts inside and does the one-two with Tait but a perfect sliding tackle by Bell-Baggie brings down Captain Dick. Counter-attack Grimsby. Dodd picks up the loose ball, quick long pass to Amoo who flicks it on. Cleary gets above John-Lewis to clear the ball, it falls to Bell-Baggie. Back to John-Lewis who shoots - but Breeden has it under control. A well-played and completely even first half draws to a close. No goals yet but plenty of chances. There are no replays in the playoff final, so someone will have to score before we leave here... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 4, 2015 Author Share Posted September 4, 2015 2014/15 season - playoff final part 2 SECOND HALF We pick up where we left off. Both teams are playing well without either side dominating the other. Both sides are creating chances but the ball just won’t get in. And they say football is boring without goals! The excitement is palpable, and all 22 players on the pitch are clearly fired up, but it’s a clean game - very few free-kicks and not a single booking so far. 64 min Tamworth attack. Miller forward to Bossekota who does the one-two with McCusker and puts the ball into the six-yard box. Twardzik looks ready to pounce on it but a tackle from Thanoj puts it behind for a corner. Barrow tries an out-swinging ball to the edge of the area where suddenly Jakub Sokolik shows up and strikes it with all his might - 1-0 TAMWORTH! The lad can score with his feet too! 79 min Grimsby have really been piling on the pressure since they fell behind. Marrow down the right flank to Hatton who swings in a deep cross - but Cleary intercepts the ball. Cleary to Bossekota who holds up play to get everyone back in position. Back to Tait, long pass to Kelly who chips it ahead of Rose - but he can’t quite reach it and McKeown picks up the loose ball. A quick and long goal kick from McKeown. Marrow gets to it first, header to Bell-Baggie. Cross from the left, John-Lewis rises above Sokolik and heads it to the ground, right at the feet of Liam Hearn - 1-1! Grimsby are back in with a shout! No one is willing to take any big risks now. Bossekota has been sprinting back and forth all afternoon. He and Twardzik both look exhausted and won’t be able to keep up the pace for another 30 minutes. Out they go and in come Turner and Kelly. No more real chances as both teams seem to just want to run down the clock and get that five-minute break. The fans get another half hour of entertainment. I get another half hour of pacing back and forth anxiously. EXTRA TIME While the physios come on to loosen up tired muscles, Rose complains about a strain to his thigh. We need everyone fit (as fit as you can be after 90 minutes), so he takes to the bench and Cunnington comes in to replace him. Both teams are still so afraid to make a mistake and concede that fatal goal that they play it safe. Too safe. We haven’t seen a single shot on goal for 15 minutes as we hit half time in the extra time. As they switch sides, I yell at the lads to step it up a bit and show me some passion - show me that they really want this! 106 min Mark McCusker wants it a bit too much. He trips up Thanoj and gets a yellow card. Truth be told, he should probably be glad he didn’t get a different colour. Will be interesting to watch the replay of that one! 116 min Turner through on goal, but his nerves get the better of him and he misses the goal by about a mile. McKeown quickly restarts the game, Amoo latches onto it, forward to Reece. A good sliding tackle from Barrow (our man of the match) clears the danger. Marrow gets his head on the ball after the corner - but it goes wide by what seems like half an inch. 120+1 min Aswad Thomas and Bell-Baggie exchange passes, Thomas finds Thanoj to the right, Thanoj drills it to the near post - but Bell-Baggie put is high and wide. Breeden forward to Sokolik, right to Cleary who plays it forward to Kelly. He flicks it on to Miller, long pass to Bush who sees Turner in the six-yard box - but McKeown gets to it first. The referee blows for full time. At this point I am literally about to soil myself. PENALTIES I scribble down my list of names and hand it to the fourth official. As I pick out the lads and tell them I want them to shoot, Dale pulls Tony aside and quietly gives him a few pointers. I know he is just as nervous as the rest of us, but suddenly his immense experience shines through and the calm of his mentor seems to transmit directly to Tony. We can do this! As the coin toss would have it, our opponents are first up. Hatton places it carefully - 1-0 GRIMSBY! No chance for the keeper. Tony Breeden walks out of the goal and the referee hands him the ball. Hatton switches places with McKeown. If Tony can score now himself, I just know he will get a save. A short run-up - 1-1! Tony Chilavert! Dale slaps my back and knocks the air out of me. Tony clenches his fist at the fans during his short walk back into the goal. The lad is oozing confidence! Liam Hearn scored Grimsby’s regular goal, but not this time. He places it just inside the post, but Tony sees it, dives to the right side – and pushes it away. SAVED - still 1-1! Adam Cunnington steps up, hits it hard and into the roof of the net - 1-2 TAMWORTH! Business as usual. Charlie Reece shows no sign of nerves - 2-2! George Miller takes his time, carefully places the ball on the spot, long run-up - no problem! 2-3 TAMWORTH! Amoo knows how important this could be. He looks like he’s about to vomit. To be honest so am I. He shoots, tries to outplace Tony who is staring him down from the goal-line - and it goes WIDE! Still 2-3! Richard Tait can win it for us now. I don’t think we can miss today and Captain Dick has nerves of steel. He looks cool as a cucumber as he runs up, hits it - and the ball goes left but McKeown goes right. 2-4 TAMWORTH! Captain Dick runs out to the fans behind the goal as they go wild. His team-mates rush over and jump on top of him for a massive group hug. Dale comes over, lifts me in the air and is dangerously close to damaging my inner organs. I try to squeak something, but he wouldn’t be able to hear me anyway. As I slowly walk over to the players to congratulate them one by one, I realize how fast my heart is actually beating. All I can hear is: “Fight, fight, wherever we may be - cause we are the boys from TFC...” Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 Nice one. Tamworth in the Football League. And well done to Vauxhall Motors on staying up. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoxToBox Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 Well done! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 5, 2015 Author Share Posted September 5, 2015 And well done to Vauxhall Motors on staying up. No thanks to Carl MacAuley. Man, I hate that guy...! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maw74 Posted September 5, 2015 Share Posted September 5, 2015 Congratulations on the promotion but that was tense stuff. Good guess, but no.(Edit: Turns out you're closer than I thought - Chris did win the League 1 playoff with Barnsley back in 2006, but that final was played at the Millennium Stadium. ) Oh well closer than I thought when I typed it, I Googled after my post and saw the Play-Off Final mentioned and thought it was right then, forgot about the Millennium years. No thanks to Carl MacAuley. Man, I hate that guy...! Why? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 5, 2015 Author Share Posted September 5, 2015 Why? Kind of a running gag. He said some less than flattering things about me on more than one occasion, I replied in style - and Vauxhall keep beating us... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 5, 2015 Author Share Posted September 5, 2015 2014/15 - season wrap-up We proved the pundits wrong and the bookies right. Maybe I should have risked that 100£ on us after all - can you get accused of match fixing if you bet on your own team to win? Everyone was over the moon about this unprecedented success, from the fans to the board to club icons: As was already hinted at, our third place finish was a record high for the club, so naturally playing in League 2 next season will also be making club history. Playing in the Football League means the club has to live up to certain minimum standards regarding lighting, press facilities and of course stadium capacity. In order to be allowed in at all there needs to be room for at least 4000 spectators with a minimum of 1000 seats. Check - just barely. Within the first year after promotion, we need to raise those numbers to 5000 / 2000. Check - not so much. In other words, an expansion is needed. Required, in fact. Given the circumstances, the board were happy to comply, even though it took a toll on our already strained resources. Hopefully playing at a higher level will see an increase in attendance figures and matchday income to pay the investment back. I was thrilled to receive my biggest personal accolade so far: What made me even more thrilled and proud, though, was being named a Tamworth fan favourite. This after just two seasons and a bit at the club. Genuinely a big day for me! This time none of us wanted to drag out contract negotiations unnecessarily. Chairman Bob offered me a two-year deal and a 50% raise which I was more than happy to accept. Coming home the day after the final, we were formally received at Tamworth town hall in the afternoon and had a promotion party at the clubhouse in the evening. I even managed to get secretary Gladys do dance with me - something Chairman Bob has been trying to achieve for twenty years, or so I’m told. The players were then sent off on a very well-deserved holiday - except Jakub Sokolik who is going with the U21 national team to his first finals. Good for him - the lad has been a key player for us all season. Patrik Twardzik was disappointed not to get nominated as well. If it were up to me he would have been, but I guess the Czech team must have more talent to choose from in his position. What a year! Now that it was all over, I felt completely drained and as much in need of a break as the players. I was at home packing and getting ready to go to the airport for my flight to the US, when my phone started vibrating in my pocket. On the display was Ol’ Gil’s pleading face looking up at me... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted September 6, 2015 Share Posted September 6, 2015 Well done going up again (just). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DodgeeD Posted September 6, 2015 Share Posted September 6, 2015 Great job with Tamworth and bringing them to the football league for the first time. Intrigued to find out what this phone call is about Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 6, 2015 Author Share Posted September 6, 2015 Well done going up again (just). Great job with Tamworth and bringing them to the football league for the first time. Thank you. I certainly can't complain about my luck in the playoffs so far! Intrigued to find out what this phone call is about Stay tuned... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted September 6, 2015 Share Posted September 6, 2015 It's probably just PPI. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 7, 2015 Author Share Posted September 7, 2015 An unexpected offer - part 1 Curious, I picked up the phone. What could Gil want? He knew I was on my way on holiday. “Gil - what do you want? You know I’m on my way on holiday -“ “Hiya, boss! Gee, does Ol’ Gil have some exciting news for you!” “Really? Well, what is it?” “First of all, congratulations on everything: Promotion, Manager of the Year - well deserved, I might add -“ “Yeah, yeah – cut to the chase, will you?” “Well, boss -“ Gil was barely able to conceal the excitement in his voice “- I’m not the only one who has noticed what you’ve achieved so far.” “I know, Gil. I follow the local news as well.” I wouldn’t say that I enjoyed all the attention, but even I had to admit that both the town of Tamworth and the name Max Power did seem to have become well-known all over the West Midlands area in recent days. In fact, it was a wonder Gil had been able to get through to me, considering the number of local journalists I had been talking to since the playoff final. “Oh, it’s not just local, boss!” “No?” “Nope, seems they’re even becoming aware of your talents further up north!” Now I was actually intrigued. “What are you talking about, Gil? Just get to the point, please. I have a plane to catch!” “Yeah, you might have to postpone that, boss. You see, I have a job offer for you...” “A job offer? Well, I know that Cheltenham just sacked their manager, but you said up north. Besides, why would I go from one League 2 club to another, only slightly bigger League 2 club. After all, we’ve got a good thing going on here at Tamworth and -” “No, why would you indeed, boss? Guess again!” “But surely no League 1 clubs would be interested in meat this point? I mean, we did have an incredible season, but -” “Nope – not League 1 either. Guess again!” I really wished he would stop interrupting me. “So not League 2, not League 1, but up north - Scotland? Gil, I’m not really sure the Scottish second or third tier would be a step up from the English fourth tier.” “Close, but you went a little too far that time, boss!” “So to the north but still in England, but not League 2 and not League 1. Enough with the ‘20 Questions’ - just tell me already, will you?” “I’ll do you one better, boss - I’ll show you! Check your e-mails!” So now we went from “20 Questions” to “Pictionary”? I opened my laptop and inbox and furiously hit “refresh” until the e-mail popped up, containing no text and just one image: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 9, 2015 Author Share Posted September 9, 2015 An unexpected offer - part 2 So I did end up going to the airport in Birmingham that very same day, but I didn’t fly to New York and JFK as planned. Instead I went to – Newcastle, where I was greeted by these two outside the terminal: An omen of things to come? I rented a car and on the half hour drive across the river Tyne and down to Sunderland had another chance to think about the events of the last 24 hours. Yesterday around this time I had been sitting on the bench at Wembley, watching my team exceed all pre-season expectations and qualify for the Football League. Now I was on my way to an interview at a club with six national championships and two FA Cups to their name. Granted, the last top level trophy was a long time ago, but it was still a completely different world. This only became more apparent as I drove into the car park outside the Stadium of Light and entered the club offices. Everything was just ten times bigger than what I was used to at Tamworth. I still couldn’t quite believe what I was doing here. The secretary showed me into the office of chairman and club owner Ellis Short who rose to greet me. Knowing that he was Irish-American, I half expected some sort of Kennedy-esque Bostonian accent. What came out of his mouth, however, was completely generic American English with a very slight hint of a southern drawl. Close to home, in other words. “Max - do come in! Have a seat! Coffee?” “Thank you, Mr. Short. Milk, no sugar.” I followed him for what felt like a hundred yards to the other end of the office and his massive mahogany desk. “I thought so. Always nice to meet a fellow American who hasn’t succumbed to that British tea-drinking thing. And please, call me Ellis.” “All right – Ellis. You almost make it sound like we’ve known each other for ages.” “Actually I kind of feel like I do know you, Max. You’ve built quite the reputation in a short time, you know. Some very impressive results you’ve achieved at Tamworth. And on such a small budget!” “Er...thank you.” I tried to find a comfortable position in the plush chair. “Although I’m not entirely sure why you asked me to come here.” “Really? I thought it was pretty obvious from the material we sent you.” “Well...yes and no. What I mean is - you can’t be serious.” “Excuse me?” Short looked slightly affronted by this. “Look, Mr. Short - Ellis - I’ll be completely honest with you. I have been a manager for three years. I have never managed anything above the fifth tier. And now you want me in charge of a club this big? I mean, I really appreciate you giving me the interview and it’s absolutely a valuable experience for me, but surely I was only included in the mix as some sort of wild card. There must be other more experienced managers out there more suitable for this job and the massive responsibility that comes with it -“ “Why?” Short looked me straight in the eyes. “You don’t think you have what it takes to handle the task?” I hesitated, but only briefly. “No, not all, it’s just that -“ “Look, Max, I’ll level with you. We need a fresh start. We’ve been trying pretty much the same formula in different disguises for years now and we don’t seem to be getting anywhere. This past season I really thought was going to be the turning point. I saw a lot of potential in the squad – and then we ended up being relegated by just one point. “So we need to start thinking out of the box. The Championship seems the perfect place to do that. And in my book, you seem to be the perfect guy for the job. Also, we are very impressed with your ability to work with a limited transfer budget and still find new talent. You seem to have a real knack for signing gifted youngsters and helping them make the most of their potential. These are exactly the skills we would like to see you put to good use here at Sunderland!" Frankly I was a bit overwhelmed by this display of confidence in me and I told him so. “I understand your reservations, Max. I really do. But please believe me when I say that this offer is 100 % sincere, and that I have the utmost confidence in your ability to take this massive step up the career ladder and to restore Sunderland to its past glory. But I’ll tell you what! Just look at this contract we drafted and see what you think.” I took the piece of paper he slipped across the desk to me and looked down - and almost spewed coffee all over his obviously very expensive suit at the sight of all those zeros. The suggested salary was about 30 times what I was making at Tamworth… Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
withnail316 Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 Offers like that don't come around every day. So much potential at that club, great fans, incredible stadium - get the squad sorted out and you're laughing. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyler16 Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 Wow! You'd be mad to say no to that offer. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 10, 2015 Author Share Posted September 10, 2015 The times they are a-changin’ Of course that was an offer I couldn’t refuse. You never know how long you will last in football and I had to think of my own future and the financial security this would provide. It was hard to tell Chairman Bob the news and even harder to tell my staff. Dale especially was visibly shaken. The hardest part by far, though, was telling the players, but as disappointed as they were that I wouldn’t be embarking on their League 2 adventure with them, I think they understood that this was just too big an opportunity for me to pass on. I talked to a few of them one on one afterwards and they all wished me well. After our last training session they presented me with a team photo signed by everyone at the club - including secretary Gladys and Geoff the groundskeeper. That brought a lump to my throat. Such strong feelings for a club that I had only been managing for two years after all. To be honest, I wasn’t completely sure that I had made the right decision. As the days went on and I completed my move to the North-East before staring my new job, I become more certain, though. This was the next step in my career and certainly a bigger one than I had expected, but I felt ready for the challenge. And since I had just signed a new two-year contract at Tamworth, the compensation that Sunderland had to pay was more than welcome in their depleted coffers. I won’t bore you with too many details about the history and background of Sunderland AFC. Given the size and reputation of the club I am sure most of you are quite familiar with them already. Suffice to say that winning trophies for the Black Cats is a thing of the past. The last major competition win was their second FA Cup back in 1973 while the last of their six English championships came as long ago as 1936! In later years, their best results were two 7th place finishes in 2000 and 2001 during the Niall Quinn era. Will I be the one to restore them to their former glory? Our current status is somewhat lower as the whole reason for my getting the job was this: So we start out in the Championship and both the media (6th) and bookies (4th-5th) have us in the running to be promoted again straight away. Fair enough. As my new boss pointed out, the board expect me to focus on youth – in fact that was perhaps the main reason why they hired me. In line with that, they were happy to start improving our facilities straight away. The Academy of Light is already among the best in the country, but that was taken to the next level as well: Finally two interesting new affiliations were made: Dundalk is hardly that exciting (no offense to any supporters out there!) but makes sense as a feeder club, considering the many and strong Irish connections within the club. However, I am both surprised and excited that we were able to get a deal with mighty Liverpool! Apart from the (small) amount of money, it gives us an opportunity to maybe loan some Premier League talent and thus a cheap way to strengthen our squad. Now to assess the squad and get rid of any deadwood... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maw74 Posted September 10, 2015 Share Posted September 10, 2015 That's a big move from Tamworth, hopefully you can keep them up or you could be crossing paths with Tamworth soon, unless their new manager can't continue the good work you did. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DodgeeD Posted September 10, 2015 Share Posted September 10, 2015 A huge step up but it sounds like the pay cheque will help with the transition Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted September 10, 2015 Share Posted September 10, 2015 Ther pressure will be on a lot more. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoxToBox Posted September 10, 2015 Share Posted September 10, 2015 Quite the step up, congrats. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 10, 2015 Author Share Posted September 10, 2015 Thank you all! Yes, it will be quite the change. I didn't expect such an opportunity to come along so quickly, but I just couldn't pass up the chance to work with a set-up like that. Not sure how I feel about wearing a suit and tie for match day, though... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 11, 2015 Author Share Posted September 11, 2015 2015/16 pre-season With a professional set-up like Sunderland’s they of course have more than decent staff members in all positions, so need to make any changes there - except that I was somewhat surprised by the level of the goalkeeping coaches. Since they were both on short-term contracts, I let them go and quickly completed these two signings, one of which I am extremely pleased with - as I think most of you will be! Needless to say, Dale was also very pleased when I called him up and offered him the job. Sørensen was a strong goalkeeper for Sunderland and for the Danish national team himself, so heaps of experience there, as well as knowledge of the club. As promised, I conducted a thorough assessment of the squad and quickly concluded one thing: it was way too big! Especially the U18s who were so numerous they couldn’t even get individual lockers in the changing room. I’ve never seen the point in keeping youth players around if they have no hope of ever reaching the first team, so anyone with less than Premier League potential was cut. Add to that a few first team fringe players that were getting on in years and we approach the new season with a much more streamlined squad. All in all, 42 (that’s right, forty-two) players left and only 3 came in. My scouts were quite insistent that I check out this young fellow Wilson from Man Utd. He and Kragh are both players for the future and Kragh was immediately loaned out to Shrewsbury in League 1. Wilson I expect will be getting a few games already this season. The Ambrose deal was in place before I came to the club, but it seems to be a good one. He is easily our strongest defender and will slide right into our starting XI. Here he is, along with our other key players: Our friendlies went well, including a training camp in Austria against three Bundesliga sides and a very creditable draw against our new parent club. We open the league against none other than Leeds, another newly relegated team and our sort-of-almost rivals, so not the easiest of debuts but should make for a cracking match. I for one am looking forward to it... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
davehibb Posted September 11, 2015 Share Posted September 11, 2015 Just got caught up with this one. Meteoric rise in such a short time for Mr Power. Good luck when the season kicks off! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted September 11, 2015 Share Posted September 11, 2015 Stoke went down. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyler16 Posted September 12, 2015 Share Posted September 12, 2015 Dale!!! Yes. Squad looks pretty good if the preseason is any indication, those Austrian clubs are no joke. Just ask Ajax. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoxToBox Posted September 12, 2015 Share Posted September 12, 2015 Great to see Dale make the move too. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 12, 2015 Author Share Posted September 12, 2015 Stoke went down. Yeah, I was pretty surprised by that too. Dale!!! Yes. Great to see Dale make the move too. I can't tell you how pleased I was that he accepted the offer! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 12, 2015 Author Share Posted September 12, 2015 August 2015 The start to life in the big leagues proved to be just as difficult as I had feared. An unlucky defeat (I thought!) in the season opener against our sort-of-almost rivals Leeds was followed by an early exit from the League Cup. I wasn’t too worried about that, though, as we went on to beat our real rivals Middlesbrough - and then set a club record against Brighton that we could have done without. As if that wasn’t enough, we got this piece of bad news after the Derby game. Colback will be sorely missed: At least is was immediately followed by a piece of good news, as the board once more decided to up their investment in our youth development: We really haven’t played as badly as our position in the league table would suggest (apart from the Brighton match), so I remain confident that our results will begin to improve as the team adapts to my way of doing things... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 13, 2015 Author Share Posted September 13, 2015 September 2015 The team is slowly beginning to gel under my leadership which shows in the atmosphere during training. It also shows in the results: The only real off-day was against Hull, one of the contenders in the Championship as one might expect. The Ipswich defeat was just one of those infuriating “have possession and create chances but still they score more than us” games. The kind you want to avoid if you expect to challenge for promotion. Still, things are looking better in the league. After our slow start we just need to continue our upward trajectory and we will eventually reach the top 6. In other news, England qualified for France 2016 – and Rooney broke Charlton’s record on the exact same date that he tied it IRL. His hattrick against Liechtenstein even brought him to a total (so far) of 51 goals. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidBeckham Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Solid start at Sunderland! KUTGW mate Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 14, 2015 Author Share Posted September 14, 2015 Solid start at Sunderland! KUTGW mate Thank you! Yeah, I'm satisfied so far. With all the players we offloaded before the season and my introducing new tactics, I didn't exactly expect them to be crushing the opposition from the start, so this will do just fine for now... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 14, 2015 Author Share Posted September 14, 2015 October 2015 Not much to say this time. A month of draws saw us slip down the table a bit again: At least we went undefeated for most of the month, but we clearly can’t afford to throw away that many points if we want to hang on to the top-6... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 15, 2015 Author Share Posted September 15, 2015 I'm afraid I have bad news. The save got corrupted and I am now unable to load it. This is so annoying as I was really getting into it and thought I had a good chance of building something great at Sunderland. Well, can't be helped, I guess. Now to decide whether to wait for FM16 or start another save before then... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoxToBox Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 Nightmare. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 16, 2015 Author Share Posted September 16, 2015 It's still too long until FM16 comes out not to do something else before then. Right now I'm considering three options: 1) I grew so fond of Tamworth in this save that I could start a new one-club career with them just to see how far I can take Chairman Bob's lads. 2) Max Power returns, but back stateside. Haven't had much experience with the MLS. 3) Going "home" and doing an ultra-realistic save in the Danish league. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
davehibb Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 It's still too long until FM16 comes out not to do something else before then. Right now I'm considering three options:1) I grew so fond of Tamworth in this save that I could start a new one-club career with them just to see how far I can take Chairman Bob's lads. 2) Max Power returns, but back stateside. Haven't had much experience with the MLS. 3) Going "home" and doing an ultra-realistic save in the Danish league. Not feeling it at Sunderland mate? ... EDIT: The text part of your post didn't show up for some reason. Sucks... I've never been able to get into an MLS save. I've tried the last few versions but never been able to stick at it, so it would be something I'd be interested in seeing. As would the Danish league. All the great careers here have me gravitating more towards Scandinavia and Eastern Europe than Britain, Spain, France or Italy etc. Will be following whichever way you decide to go, even if it's with Tamworth. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
withnail316 Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 Unlucky with the corruption. Terribly frustrating. Would like to see you start from the bottom in Scandinavia, but will follow whatever you do. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 16, 2015 Author Share Posted September 16, 2015 Thank you all for the commiserations and support. I definitely know which option I'm leaning towards and will be starting something within the next few days... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murrayzoster Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 It's still too long until FM16 comes out not to do something else before then. Right now I'm considering three options:1) I grew so fond of Tamworth in this save that I could start a new one-club career with them just to see how far I can take Chairman Bob's lads. 2) Max Power returns, but back stateside. Haven't had much experience with the MLS. 3) Going "home" and doing an ultra-realistic save in the Danish league. Would enjoy seeing you playing the Danish leagues! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted September 18, 2015 Share Posted September 18, 2015 We don't see much of Denmark around here (and I'm guilty of having it loaded for years but never actually going there, something I hope to fix next time) so it would be great to see that. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted September 18, 2015 Author Share Posted September 18, 2015 Oh, all right then... Thisted - City on the Edge of Forever Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.