Raware Posted February 3, 2020 Author Share Posted February 3, 2020 This came out of nowhere and while it’s obviously good news that the new owner is willing to come in and wipe out our debts (even if we’re only £20k in debt), it would’ve been nice if it was a rich Saudi Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 3, 2020 Author Share Posted February 3, 2020 Takeover completed Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 Will be interesting if he will pump money into the club and give you decent transfer money 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 If he's a local investor then probably not. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 4, 2020 Author Share Posted February 4, 2020 21 hours ago, john1 said: Will be interesting if he will pump money into the club and give you decent transfer money 21 hours ago, Nobby_McDonald said: If he's a local investor then probably not. He put enough into the club to clear the debts. Not a great deal but it wasn't the hefty war chest that I was wishing for Oh well, back to scouring the free transfer market Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 5, 2020 Author Share Posted February 5, 2020 (edited) Edinburgh City - Season Review 2023/24 Ladbrokes Championship/Ladbrokes Championship progress/Ladbrokes Championship fixtures : We made a fantastic start to the season as we only lost once in 19 games which saw us keep up with surprise package Dundee at the top of the table, who were in League 1 last season. While we only lost 4 more in our remaining 17 league games, Dundee proved to be strong for everyone in the league as they made it 2 successive promotions to clinch the title, leaving us to try and join them through the playoffs. Ladbrokes Championship playoffs : After last seasons disappoint in the playoffs, I was hopeful that we could put that behind us this season and go on and join Dundee in the Premiership. Things didn’t go our way though as Airdrie beat us 2-0 in the first leg and we could only manage a draw in the 2nd leg, meaning that we once again missed out on promotion. The only consolation was that Airdrie met Kilmarnock in the playoff final and suffered defeat, meaning that they also stay in the Championship with us next season. Scottish Cup : We made it to the Quarter Final stage for the 3rd time in 5 years but Motherwell proved to be strong for us as they beat us 2-1. Betfred Cup : Another good cup run saw us make the Semi Final stage of this competition for the 3rd time in 5 years too but drawing Celtic was always going to be difficult so it was no surprise that they beat us 2-0. Tunnock’s Wafer Cup : This is fast becoming a favourite competition for us as we went all the way to the final for a 2nd successive year as we claimed the trophy once again by beating Welsh TNS in the final. Transfers : Most of our activity in the transfer market happened at the start of the season as we brought in 11 players to strengthen the squad. Perhaps our most important signing of the season though came in the middle of the season as Niall Ennis joined us on a free transfer after his contract at Wolves expired and Connor Barron also re-joined us on a 2 season long loan after spending the 2020/21 season with us on loan. Squad : Again, the squad of players performed above expectations this season as they narrowly missed out on promotion again. Record goal scorer Blair Henderson seemed to show signs of decline as he struggled to hit the heights that he’s reached in previous seasons which led me to the decision to not renew his contract at the end of the season. In his place though stepped Niall Ennis who bagged 16 goals in his first season for us while Craig Mackintosh scored 12 goals in 42 games. Finances : Looking a bit better as finishing 2nd gave us a bit of prize money. My views of the season… : Another great season for us despite us losing in the playoffs for a 2nd successive season as we were only expected to finish mid table. Disappointing to see Blair Henderson leaving the club at the end of the season but there’s no room for sentiment if we’re to push on as a club. Another trophy to add to our collection is obviously pleasing too as we claimed the Tunnock’s Wafer Cup for a 2nd successive season. My aims for next season… : After narrowly missing out on promotion 2 seasons in a row now, we have to be looking to at least finishing in the playoffs next season, if not challenging for the title. That will of course depend on if we can get a bit more quality to add to the squad. Career Summary Season Team League Position Scottish Cup Betfred Cup Tunnocks Wafer Cup Achievements -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2019/20 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 2 1st 5th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2020/21 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 2nd Quarter Final 2nd round Semi Final - 2021/22 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 1st 4th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2022/23 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 4th Quarter Final 2nd round Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners 2023/24 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 2nd Quarter Final Semi Final Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners Trophy Cabinet Ladbrokes League 2 Winners - 2019/20 Ladbrokes League 1 Winners - 2021/22 Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners - 2022/23, 2023/24 Edited February 8, 2020 by Raware 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 You definately like Tunnocks Wafers. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 12, 2020 Author Share Posted February 12, 2020 On 10/02/2020 at 20:37, Nobby_McDonald said: You definately like Tunnocks Wafers. Have you not tasted the fine source of sustenance? What isn't there to like? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 12, 2020 Author Share Posted February 12, 2020 Edinburgh City - Pre-Season 2024/25 League expectation Ladbrokes Championship : Board expectation - Reach promotion playoffs : Media expectation - 2nd (out of 10) Cup expectations Scottish Cup : Reach the 5th round Betfred Cup : Be competitive Tunnock’s Wafer Cup : Quarter Final Transfer budget : £30k - (last season : £70k) Wage budget : £19k p/w - (last season : £16.7k) Current wage bill : £16.4k p/w - (last season : £14.6k) Season tickets sold : 126 - (+2 from last season) My views for the season ahead… : The board are expecting us to at least reach the playoffs this year after losing out in them over the past couple of years while the media are also predicting us to finish in them as we’re predicted to finish 2nd, behind recently relegated Motherwell. The past few years has seen us start the season well only for tiredness and a lack of squad depth to catch up with us towards the end of the season as we fell away, so during pre-season I’ve brought in 7 players to try and avoid that this season as Tobi Oluwayemi, Ali McCann and Calvin Miller all join us on free transfers while Andy Sharpe joins us from Celtic on a free transfer, Daniel Alcock joins us from Dulwich Hamlet for £8.5k, James Campbell joins us from Hearts for £2.3k and Fraser Murray joins us from Hibernian for £20k. Hopefully these additions will give us enough quality in the squad to achieve our objectives this season. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeartOfMidlothian Posted February 14, 2020 Share Posted February 14, 2020 Good challenge, good luck! How are some of young Scottish players in your game progressing in general? Trying to create a Scottish Shortlist. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 16, 2020 Author Share Posted February 16, 2020 On 14/02/2020 at 13:54, HeartOfMidlothian said: Good challenge, good luck! How are some of young Scottish players in your game progressing in general? Trying to create a Scottish Shortlist. Chris Mochrie, Scott Banks, Josh McPake, Aaron Hickey, Robbie McCrorie, Tom McIntyre, Ryan Porteous and Greg Taylor are probably the young Scottish players that have progressed the most in my save with Scott Banks standing out in particularly as he moved to Juventus. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 16, 2020 Author Share Posted February 16, 2020 Edinburgh City - Youth Intake 2024/25 Not a great youth intake again for us :( as I only offered contracts to Neil Muir (25A), Arbnor Preniqi (25D) and Kieran McLaughlin (25O), with none of them realistically being good enough to push for the first team in the future. Neil Muir (25A) Scott Paterson (25B) Scott Black (25C) Arbnor Preniqi (25D) Robbie Combe (25E) Nathan Crawford (25F) Allan Faulds (25G) Steven McLaughlin (25H) Chris Jack (25I) Daryl Townsley (25J) Marc Cowan (25K) Iain Aitken (25L) Dominic Shaw (25M) Colin Denholm (25N) Kieran McLaughlin (25O) Ollie McCullough (25P) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 17, 2020 Author Share Posted February 17, 2020 (edited) Edinburgh City - Season Review 2024/25 Ladbrokes Championship/Ladbrokes Championship progress/Ladbrokes Championship fixtures : After missing out on promotion through the playoffs over the last couple of years, I was hoping that we could go one better this season and clinch promotion either through the playoffs or automatically. We made a great start to the season as we topped the league table after 4 games and that’s how it stayed for the remainder of the season as we went undefeated over the 36 league games to clinch the league title and with that, promotion to the SPL for the first time in the clubs history! Scottish Cup : A 5th round exit as rivals Hearts beat us 1-0. Betfred Cup : We couldn’t match last seasons run to the Semi Final as Rangers beat us 3-2 in the 2nd round. Tunnock’s Wafer Cup : I was hoping to make it a hatrick of wins in this cup but a 93rd minute winner (even though there was only one minute of added time!) from Inverness Caley Thistle ended any hopes of that. Transfers : The majority of our dealings in the transfer market happened at the start of the season as we brought in 7 players during pre-season. I did add 2 more players to the squad as Ryan Linn joined us on 2 season long loan from Rangers while exciting youngster Tommy Turnbull also joined us from St. Johnstone for £45k. Squad : The squad of players performed miracles in the league as they went the whole league season undefeated to claim the title and promotion to the SPL for the first time in the clubs history. With the release of the clubs record goal scorer last season, Blair Henderson, there could’ve been a worry as to where the goals could come from but Niall Ennis stepped up as he smashed in 21 goals in all competitions. Craig Mackintosh also grabbed himself 16 goals for the season as well as claiming the Ladbrokes Championship Player of the Year award while Kai Kennedy also chipped in with 10 goals to help our cause. Obviously goals are what win you games but I think one massive difference that helped us this season was the addition of both Tobi Oluwayemi and Ali McCann as the former made some key saves over the course of the season while the latter seemed to bring a presence and control to our midfield in games which helped us see out games and pick up vital points. Finances : Looking ok as we picked up some prize money for winning the league which puts us back in the black. Now we’ll be in the SPL next season, hopefully we can become a bit more financially secure due to higher gate receipts, TV money and prize money. My views of the season… : I’m obviously delighted with how the season went as we won the title at a canter while remaining unbeaten in the league all season. I’m happy with how the squad played and I think we only need a few additions to achieve our expectations next season. It would’ve been nice to have won the Tunnocks Wafer Cup again, especially after losing in controversial circumstances in the Semi Final but the league was obviously our priority so I’m not too disappointed. My aims for next season… : Avoiding relegation and an immediate return to the Championship is our only aim next season. Anything else will be a bonus but we’ll be up against some good teams next year. We have to turn professional now if we’re to have any chance of competing in the SPL so I’ll be pushing for this during the close season too. Career Summary Season Team League Position Scottish Cup Betfred Cup Tunnocks Wafer Cup Achievements -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2019/20 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 2 1st 5th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2020/21 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 2nd Quarter Final 2nd round Semi Final - 2021/22 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 1st 4th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2022/23 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 4th Quarter Final 2nd round Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners 2023/24 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 2nd Quarter Final Semi Final Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners 2024/25 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 1st 5th round 2nd round Semi Final League Champions Trophy Cabinet Ladbrokes League 2 Winners - 2019/20 Ladbrokes League 1 Winners - 2021/22 Ladbrokes Championship Winners - 2024/25 Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners - 2022/23, 2023/24 Edited February 17, 2020 by Raware 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 On 12/02/2020 at 20:54, Raware said: Have you not tasted the fine source of sustenance? What isn't there to like? Of course I have. I've never won their trophy though. Well done winning the Championship. Good luck in the Premier League. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 18, 2020 Author Share Posted February 18, 2020 13 hours ago, Nobby_McDonald said: Of course I have. I've never won their trophy though. Well done winning the Championship. Good luck in the Premier League. Thanks @Nobby_McDonald. For a minute I thought you'd never had a Tunnocks Wafer Bar! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 18, 2020 Author Share Posted February 18, 2020 The news that I've been waiting for 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 21, 2020 Author Share Posted February 21, 2020 Edinburgh City - Pre-Season 2025/26 League expectation Ladbrokes Premiership : Board expectation - Finish in the relegation playoffs : Media expectation - 11th (out of 12) Cup expectations Scottish Cup : Reach the 5th round Betfred Cup : 2nd round Transfer budget : £25k - (last season : £30k) Wage budget : £23k p/w - (last season : £19k) Current wage bill : £24k p/w - (last season : £16.4k) Season tickets sold : 471 - (+345 from last season) *sales tripled!* My views for the season ahead… : The board are expecting us to fight bravely against relegation and finish in the relegation playoff places while the media are also expecting us to struggle this season as they reckon we’ll finish 11th. I understand where those expectations are coming from and while I think they’re more than realistic, I do think we can avoid relegation this season, if not push for a mid table finish. To help us try and achieve our objectives this season, I’ve brought in 8 players as Euan Henderson (who I’ve been after for a couple of seasons) joins us from Dundee after his contract expired. Kane Patterson and Vincent Angelini also join us on free transfers while Graeme Nicholls joins us from Aberdeen for £20k after spending the last 2 seasons on loan with us. Barry Hepburn joins us from Brighton after his contract expired while Gregor McMinn and Scott Murray join us with the future being in mind with those two. Perhaps my most pleasing signing though was the capture of Billy Campbell, who was another player I, and a lot of other clubs have been watching over the last couple of seasons as I managed to get him for just £5k after his contract expired 2 seasons ago! He was on a pay as you play contract at Raith for 2 years and I’m shocked that no club put an offer in for him during that time as he clearly knows where the net is with 68 goals in 129 goals for Raith. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 23, 2020 Author Share Posted February 23, 2020 (edited) Edinburgh City - Youth Intake 2025/26 Another youth intake and another disappointing intake for us as only Andrew Rowles (26A), Ryan Hunt (26K) and Ethan Jamieson (26M) were offered contracts as the other 13 players were released. Andrew Rowles (26A) Calum Rutherford (26B) Scott Telfer (26C) Kevin Smith (26D) Jimmy Richardson (26E) Willie Smith (26F) Paul Young (26G) Paul Cunningham (26H) Calvin Gordon (26I) Gregor Manson (26J) Ryan Hunt (26K) Todd Martin (26L) Ethan Jamieson (26M) Sean Fulton (26N) Andrew Brett (26O) Gary McLeod (26P) Edited February 23, 2020 by Raware 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted February 28, 2020 Author Share Posted February 28, 2020 (edited) Edinburgh City - Season Review 2025/26 Ladbrokes Premier League/Ladbrokes Premier League progress/Ladbrokes Premier League fixtures : Our debut season in the Scottish top flight saw us confound all pre-season predictions of being the whipping boys of the division as we finished 3rd in the league, behind the obvious big two Glasgow clubs. We put in some very good performances over the season as we went unbeaten in the first 13 games and didn’t drop any lower than 4th, even topping the league for a week, as finishing 3rd means that we qualify for the Europa League playoff next season! Scottish Cup : We made it all the way to the final where we met Celtic. We pushed them all the way as we took the game to extra time but in the end they proved too strong for us as they beat us 1-0 to end our hopes of picking up our first ever Scottish Cup Betfred Cup : A great run in this competitions saw us reach the Semi Final where we were unlucky to lose to Rangers on penalties. Transfers : With 8 of our transfers happening during the summer, we only made one more addition during the January transfer window as Paul Logue joined us from Coleraine for £15k. Squad : A fantastic debut season in the SPL for us as the squad of players exceeded what was expected of them as we finished 3rd in the league and qualified for the Europa League playoff! Niall Ennis and Craig Mackintosh continued where they left off as they continued to knock the goals in, scoring 28 goals between them while new signing Euan Henderson scored 10 goals from left wing and promising signing Billy Campbell looks a great addition for us as he knocked in 17 goals. One other new signing who made an impression was Paul Logue who grabbed himself 8 goals in 17 games since joining in January. Finances : Looking very good as bigger crowds, higher gate receipts, TV revenue and prize money means that we’re now financially secure :). Hopefully this means that we’ll be able to expand our scouting network to get some more quality in and make some improvements to our training and youth facilities. My views of the season… : Just when I thought we couldn’t top the last few seasons, we had what was undoubtedly our best season since my arrival at the club. We more than held our own in the division and looked as if we belong in the league as no team really dominated us, other than Celtic. We had some great results too which included an opening day 5-0 win over Aberdeen and a final day 7-1 drubbing of Kilmarnock while we also managed to beat Rangers twice in the league! An unlucky defeat on penalties to Rangers in the Semi Final of the Betfred Cup and runners up in the Scottish Cup were two other highlights of our season as despite the obvious disappointment of losing, we can be proud at how far we pushed the two biggest clubs in Scotland. My aims for next season… : Matching this seasons achievements will obviously be a massive ask, especially as we could potentially have mid-week games in the Europa League which could take it’s toll on our small squad. While I suspect avoiding relegation will be our aim again, I’ll obviously want to at least push for a top half finish. To help us achieve that though, we will have to make additions to the squad just to give us the squad depth that we’ll need should we qualify for the Europa League group stage. Career Summary Season Team League Position Scottish Cup Betfred Cup Tunnocks Wafer Cup Achievements -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2019/20 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 2 1st 5th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2020/21 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 2nd Quarter Final 2nd round Semi Final - 2021/22 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 1st 4th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2022/23 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 4th Quarter Final 2nd round Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners 2023/24 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 2nd Quarter Final Semi Final Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners 2024/25 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 1st 5th round 2nd round Semi Final League Champions 2025/26 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Premier League 3rd Runners up Semi Final - - Trophy Cabinet Ladbrokes League 2 Winners - 2019/20 Ladbrokes League 1 Winners - 2021/22 Ladbrokes Championship Winners - 2024/25 Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners - 2022/23, 2023/24 Edited March 8, 2020 by Raware 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidthekid Posted February 28, 2020 Share Posted February 28, 2020 Great first season in the SPL Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 1, 2020 Author Share Posted March 1, 2020 (edited) On 28/02/2020 at 20:39, kidthekid said: Great first season in the SPL Thanks @kidthekid A quite unbelievable first season in the SPL for us! We taken the first step in breaking Auld Reekie by finishing above both Hearts and Hibs this season, we've just got to do it on a consistent basis now and become a bigger club than both of them . Then it'll be onto knocking the Glasgow clubs off their perch Edited March 1, 2020 by Raware 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted March 2, 2020 Share Posted March 2, 2020 Excellent SPL debut. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 3, 2020 Author Share Posted March 3, 2020 20 hours ago, Nobby_McDonald said: Excellent SPL debut. Thanks Nobby. Surprised a lot of teams I think...and myself! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 3, 2020 Author Share Posted March 3, 2020 I must be doing something right Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 5, 2020 Author Share Posted March 5, 2020 I obviously turned down the two interviews but it's nice to know that I'm catching the attention Also, how could I leave when the club have just agreed to improve the training facilities, the youth facilities and to build a new stadium! (Fingers crossed I get it named after me as I've never had a stadium named after me on FM!) 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 8, 2020 Author Share Posted March 8, 2020 Edinburgh City - Pre-Season 2026/27 League expectation Ladbrokes Premiership : Board expectation - Top half finish : Media expectation - 10th (out of 12) Cup expectations Scottish Cup : Quarter Final Betfred Cup : Quarter Final Europa League : Be competitive Transfer budget : £2.5 million - (last season : £25k) Wage budget : £45k p/w - (last season : £23k) Current wage bill : £35k p/w - (last season : £24k) Season tickets sold : 1423 - (+952 from last season) My views for the season ahead… : Expectations have certainly been raised after our amazing season last year as while the media are expecting us to struggle and are predicting us to finish 10th, the board are aiming higher as they’re expecting a top half finish while also making the Quarter Finals of both the Scottish Cup and Betfred Cup! As for the Europa League, we’re only expected to be competitive which I’m obviously more than happy with, especially as we’ve drawn either Czech side Jablonec, Austrian side Linzer Athletik Sport Club or Portuguese giants Benfica…not something I’d have thought I’d say at the start of this save! To help us try and achieve our objectives this season, I’ve spent some of the transfer budget available to me as I’ve brought in 6 players. In come John Kane from Hibernian for a club record £350k while Connor Barron joins us from Aberdeen for £1k after already amassing 53 league appearances for us over 4 separate loan periods from 2019 to 2025. We fended off a few clubs to capture Nathan Kenny from Northern Irish side Crusaders for £200k while Duncan Kelly joins us on a free transfer. Completing our action in this transfer window was the addition of two exciting youngsters, both from Celtic as Russell Thomson joined us for £1k after his contract expired andMitchell Harrison joined us for £200k. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DazRTaylor Posted March 8, 2020 Share Posted March 8, 2020 Just read this from the start. Thoroughly enjoyable. Well done! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 8, 2020 Author Share Posted March 8, 2020 5 hours ago, DazRTaylor said: Just read this from the start. Thoroughly enjoyable. Well done! Thanks @DazRTaylor. Glad you're enjoying the read. Seems like us FMCU 'oldies' are all coming back out of the woodwork . I remember some of your old saves back in the day Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DazRTaylor Posted March 9, 2020 Share Posted March 9, 2020 12 hours ago, Raware said: Thanks @DazRTaylor. Glad you're enjoying the read. Seems like us FMCU 'oldies' are all coming back out of the woodwork . I remember some of your old saves back in the day Yeah, they were stat heavy, to say the least. I just don't have any inclination to post my own thread again. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted March 9, 2020 Share Posted March 9, 2020 On 03/03/2020 at 18:54, Raware said: Thanks Nobby. Surprised a lot of teams I think...and myself! I've just realised you're now the best club in Edinburgh. Quality. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 10, 2020 Author Share Posted March 10, 2020 (edited) 23 hours ago, Nobby_McDonald said: I've just realised you're now the best club in Edinburgh. Quality. I've managed to 'Break Auld Reekie' Just got to break the Old Firm now Edited March 10, 2020 by Raware Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 13, 2020 Author Share Posted March 13, 2020 Edinburgh City - Youth Intake 2026/27 Not a great youth intake for us but interestingly we had 3 more Kosovan youth players who join our other Kosovan youth player Arbnor Preniqi (25D),who joined us in the 2024/25 season which makes it 4 Kosovans at the club now. We don’t have any links with Kosovo or any staff from Kosovo at the club so I’d be interested to know why we’ve had an influx of Kosovans over the last few years. Kieran McBride (27A) Agron Jonuzi (27B) Mohammed Bunu (27C) Alan Watson (27D) Fisnik Dervishi (27E) Michael Currie (27F) Max Ingram (27G) Steven Walker (27H) Valent Azizi (27I) MacKenzie Nevison (27J) David McInally (27K) Gary Duncan (27L) Calum White (27M) Daryl Forster (27N) Andrew King (27O) Stevie Cameron (27P) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 15, 2020 Author Share Posted March 15, 2020 (edited) Edinburgh City - Season Review 2026/27 Ladbrokes Premier League/Ladbrokes Premier League progress/Ladbrokes Premier League fixtures : There was no sign of the dreaded second season syndrome for us as we had another incredible season, losing just twice in the league which saw us finish 2nd and with that, qualify for the preliminary rounds of the Champions League! While we obviously did have a fantastic season, I do think that it was helped by Celtic having a poor season as they lost 11 league games this year! Not something I think will happen again next season. Scottish Cup : A few lucky draws against weaker opposition saw us progress to the semi final of this competition after losing in the final last season. There we met Hibernian who, if I’m honest we should’ve beat as they were poor but they grabbed an equaliser 3 minutes from time to force the game into extra time and penalties where they kept their nerve to beat us and it was them who progressed to the final. Betfred Cup : Again, I felt we got a few lucky draws in this competition as we avoided Rangers, Celtic, Hearts and Hibs to make it all the way to the final where we met Dundee. While the final itself wasn’t a great spectacle, a goal from Nathan Kenny in the 90th minute was enough to win the game for us as we claimed the Betfred Cup for the first time in the clubs history! Europa League Group E/ Europa League fixtures : Our first ever appearance in a European competition saw us make it through the playoff stage , top our group by winning every game and make it all the way to the semi final where we were unlucky to lose to European giants Milan! I couldn’t quite believe the run we had in this competition as we gave some big European clubs a run for their money, not to mention making a few quid along the way too! Transfers : Our transfer activity came at the start of the season as we brought in John Kane, Connor Barron, Nathan Kenny, Duncan Kelly, Russell Thomson and Mitchell Harrison for a total cost of £750k. Squad : The squad of players were unbelievable again as they once again surpassed all expectations of them. Billy Campbell continued to rack up the goals as he hit 30 goals for the season while Craig Mackintosh and Euan Henderson scored 31 goals between them. Paul Logue also got in on the goal scoring as he grabbed himself 15 goals as well as claiming the Ladbrokes Premier League Young Player of the Year. Finances : Looking very secure now as crowds continued to grow and with that came higher gate receipts. TV revenue and prize money also helped us as we sit with £17.7 million which will hopefully go towards further improvements of the clubs training facilities, youth facilities and development of our new ground, which should be complete by 2030. My views of the season… : We somehow managed to top last seasons amazing achievements as the group of players finished 2nd in the league and won the Betfred Cup, while also making it all the way to the Semi Finals of both the Scottish Cup and the Europa League! While we obviously had a fantastic league campaign, I do think it was helped by the fact that Celtic had probably one of their worst seasons as they lost 11 league games which helped us to finish 2nd in the league! More importantly though, for the second successive season we finished above city rivals Hearts and Hibs which was the main aim of this save…Breaking Auld Reekie. While I’m not saying we’ve overtaken the other two Edinburgh clubs in stature just yet, I do feel like the swing of power in the city has started to swing our way . If we can sustain that over the next few seasons, then our focus can change to trying to become the best club in Scotland by overtaking both Rangers and Celtic. My aims for next season… : The board I suspect will be wanting us to at least qualify for the Europa League next season after the last couple of seasons we’ve had and I probably expect that now too, so finishing anywhere between 5th and 1st will guarantee us that. With relegation a distant objective now as well, I’ll be turning my attention to regularly finishing above Hearts and Hibs to Break Auld Reekie once and for all. While we did finish above Celtic this season, I don’t think they’ll have another poor season next season and both will look to strengthen their squads in the summer which will make it difficult for us. Career Summary Season Team League Position Europa League Scottish Cup Betfred Cup Tunnocks Wafer Cup Achievements ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2019/20 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 2 1st - 5th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2020/21 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 2nd - Quarter Final 2nd round Semi Final - 2021/22 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 1st - 4th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2022/23 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 4th - Quarter Final 2nd round Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners 2023/24 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 2nd - Quarter Final Semi Final Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners 2024/25 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 1st - 5th round 2nd round Semi Final League Champions 2025/26 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Premier League 3rd - Runners up Semi Final - - 2026/27 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Premier League 2nd Semi Final Semi Final Winners - Betfred Cup Winners Trophy Cabinet Ladbrokes League 2 Winners - 2019/20 Ladbrokes League 1 Winners - 2021/22 Ladbrkes Championship Winners - 2024/25 Tunnocks Wafer Cup - 2022/23, 2023/24 Betfred Cup - 2026/27 Edited March 15, 2020 by Raware Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidthekid Posted March 15, 2020 Share Posted March 15, 2020 (edited) Really good season. The Europa league group stage was mad. Edited March 15, 2020 by kidthekid Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 19, 2020 Author Share Posted March 19, 2020 On 15/03/2020 at 19:32, kidthekid said: Really good season. The Europa league group stage was mad. It was crazy! To win 6 out of 6 in the group and push Milan close in the Semi's was mad! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 21, 2020 Author Share Posted March 21, 2020 Edinburgh City - Pre-Season 2027/28 League expectation Ladbrokes Premiership : Board expectation - Qualify for the Europa League : Media expectation - 4th (out of 12) Cup expectations Scottish Cup : Semi Final Betfred Cup : Semi Final Champions League : Be competitive Transfer budget : £13 million - (last season : £2.5million) Wage budget : £95k p/w - (last season : £45k) Current wage bill : £80k p/w - (last season : £35k) Season tickets sold : 1710 - (+287 from last season) My views for the season ahead… : As I suspected before the start of the new season, the board are expecting us to qualify for Europe as are the media as they’re expecting us finish to finish 4th. That expectation is probably something I agree with too as the last couple of seasons have shown that we’re better than most of the bottom half teams in the league, probably on a level par with Hearts and Hibs and quite a way behind Rangers and Celtic. I’m expecting Rangers to dominate again while Celtic won’t have another season like the last one so if we can push for 3rd and finish above Hearts and Hibs, that will be a successful season for us I think. To help us try and achieve that, I’ve spent a hefty chunk of the £13 million transfer budget that I was given as I’ve brought in 15 players. Not all of those players were brought in as first team players though as Ian Galvin, Scott Booth, Harry Reid, Josh Ryan, Ben Scott, Barry Topley, Adam Sinnott, Matteo Martin and Gregory Heitz were brought in with a view of the next few years in mind, due to the fact that our youth academy is failing to produce any players that are capable of pushing for our first team. Of the players that I did bring in for an immediate impact on the first team though were Josh Mitchell who joined us from Hearts for £1.9 million, Robert Ghevondyan who joins from Dundee for £3 million, Luke Matheson who joins for a club record fee of £3.5 million from Dundee United, Ali Sahin who joins on a free transfer from Galatasary, Roberto Gonzalez who joins on a free transfer from PSG and Matthew Henry who joins us from Larne, also on a free transfer. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 23, 2020 Author Share Posted March 23, 2020 (edited) So, I’ve just seen that Paul Logue has just been dubbed as the next George Best! He definitely wasn’t described as this last season so I presume it’s an in game dynamic? Anyone else seen this? Edited March 23, 2020 by Raware 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidthekid Posted March 23, 2020 Share Posted March 23, 2020 It happens even on older FMs. I saw it on 15. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 23, 2020 Author Share Posted March 23, 2020 49 minutes ago, kidthekid said: It happens even on older FMs. I saw it on 15. First time I've seen it change in FM...and I've been playing since day dot (yep, I'm that old!) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 24, 2020 Author Share Posted March 24, 2020 Edinburgh City - Youth Intake 2027/28 As is customary now, our youth intake failed to deliver any prospects as I only offered contracts to Ross Webster (28C), Jonny Rodger (28H), Chris McGowan (28M) and another Kosovan to come through the ranks, Ardit Osmani (28I). Anyone have any idea why my youth academy is producing so many Kosovans with no other Kosovan staff at the club? Ian Mitchell (28A) David Brown (28B) Ross Webster (28C) Rhys Wright (28D) Bobby Brown (28E) Ronnie Rice (28F) Elliot Lavery (28G) Jonny Rodger (28H) Ardit Osmani (28I) Mark Naismith (28J) Jim Walker (28K) Aaron Bell (28L) Chris McGowan (28M) Jim Home (28N) Danny Roberts (28O) Dave MacLennan (28P) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 26, 2020 Author Share Posted March 26, 2020 (edited) Edinburgh City - Season Review 2027/28 Ladbrokes Premier League/Ladbrokes Premier League progress/Ladbrokes Premier League fixtures : After last seasons 2nd place finish, I knew it was going to be harder this year as both Rangers and especially Celtic strengthened their squads. But, so did we as we pushed them all the way, even topping the league for a few weeks towards the end of the season. In the end though, just 5 points separated the top 3 as we all clearly broke away from the rest of the teams in the league to finish as runners-up again this season. Scottish Cup : I’m obviously delighted at winning the Scottish Cup for the first time in the clubs history even if we did get a few lucky draws along the way as we avoided Rangers, Celtic, Hearts and Hibs to go on and beat Hamilton in extra time in the final. Betfred Cup : For a second successive season we claimed the Betfred Cup after somehow smashing Celtic 4-0 in the final! I’ve no idea how we did it, but I’m not complaining! Champions League Group B/ Champions League fixtures : Our debut season in the Champions League saw us progress through the qualifying stages as we disposed of both Slovacko and PSV where we were placed in Group B alongside European giants Manchester United, Inter Milan and Anderlecht. Some impressive wins in the group stage particularly against Inter Milan saw us finish the group in 2nd where we were drawn against Liverpool in the 1st knockout round. We somehow managed a 2-2 draw at our place before Liverpool taught us a lesson at Anfield. Nevertheless, a remarkable journey for us in our debut Champions League season! Transfers : 6 more players joined us throughout the season after 15 players joined us in the summer. In came Craig Clark from Rangers on a 2 season long loan, Alex Pearson joined us from Hearts for £3 million, Euan Maley joined us from Raith for £125k, Jonathan Quispe joined us from Tigre for £2.5 million, Marc Bitsindou joined us from Havre AC and another Craig Clark joined us from Ross County for a club record £4.8 million, which took our season spending to £20 million!!! Squad : Another fantastic season for us as the squad of players grew in both ability and accomplishments. Billy Campbell once again finished as the clubs top goal scorer as he netted 25 times while Paul Logue grabbed himself 22 goals as well as claiming media acclaim as the next George Best…some accolade! Craig Mackintosh scored 17 goals which takes his league goals total to 60 for the club while loanee Craig Clark got himself 11 goals, predominantly from off the bench. Roberto Gonzalez struggled to adjust to life in Scotland as he’ll be heading back to France in the summer while I’m also starting to worry that we’ll lose Nathan Kenny in the summer too as he requested to be allowed to leave if an offer of £17 million comes in for him…and Newcastle are sniffing around him. New signing Alex Pearson also made an instant impression after his £3 million move from Hearts as he forced himself into the Scotland squad and picked up his first cap while he also claimed the Scottish Football Writers Young Player of the Year award Finances : Any worries of debt are long gone now as we’re financially very secure even after spending £20 million this season thanks to increased attendances again, more TV money and more prize money. My views of the season… : An unbelievable season as we claimed the Scottish Cup for the first time in the clubs history, the Betfred Cup for a second successive season, finished as runners-up in the SPL for a second successive season and made it through to the Champions League knockout stages! I also mentioned at the end of last season that while I didn’t think we’d overtaken the other two Edinburgh clubs in stature just yet, I did feel like the swing of power in the city had started to swing our way…and that seemed to be confirmed as the rankings of Scottish clubs were released which places us above both Hearts and Hibernian…can I now say we’ve broken old reekie? My aims for next season… : Pushing for the top 3 will be the minimum expectation now as I think we’ve overtaken both Hearts and Hibs to become the 3rd biggest club in Scotland. Chasing down Rangers and Celtic will obviously be the next aim but that won’t be easy because of the size and financial clout of both clubs. If we can also maybe pick up another cup win next season or at least make the semi’s that will be an achievement while we’ll also automatically qualify for the Champions League Group Stage so there’ll be no qualifying stages for us, so if we can get a favourable group draw, I’ll be more than happy if we can make it out of the groups Career Summary Season Team League Position Champions League Europa League Scottish Cup Betfred Cup Tunnocks Wafer Cup Achievements ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2019/20 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 2 1st - - 5th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2020/21 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 2nd - - Quarter Final 2nd round Semi Final - 2021/22 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes League 1 1st - - 4th round Semi Final Quarter Final League Champions 2022/23 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 4th - - Quarter Final 2nd round Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners 2023/24 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 2nd - - Quarter Final Semi Final Winners Tunnocks Wafer Cup Winners 2024/25 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Championship 1st - - 5th round 2nd round Semi Final League Champions 2025/26 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Premier League 3rd - - Runners up Semi Final - - 2026/27 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Premier League 2nd - Semi Final Semi Final Winners - Betfred Cup Winners 2027/28 Edinburgh City Ladbrokes Premier League 2nd 1st knockout round - Winners Winners - Betfred Cup Winners, Scottish Cup Winners Trophy Cabinet Ladbrokes League 2 Winners - 2019/20 Ladbrokes League 1 Winners - 2021/22 Ladbrkes Championship Winners - 2024/25 Tunnocks Wafer Cup - 2022/23, 2023/24 Betfred Cup - 2026/27, 2027/28 Scottish Cup - 2027/28 Edited March 26, 2020 by Raware 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 28, 2020 Author Share Posted March 28, 2020 Edinburgh City - Pre-Season 2028/29 League expectation Ladbrokes Premiership : Board expectation - Qualify for the Champions League : Media expectation - 3rd (out of 12) Cup expectations Scottish Cup : Final Betfred Cup : Final Champions League : Be competitive Transfer budget : £10 million - (last season : £13 million later raised to £20 million) Wage budget : £140k p/w - (last season : £95k) Current wage bill : £122k p/w - (last season : £80k) Season tickets sold : 2038 - (+328 from last season) My views for the season ahead… : The media are predicting us to finish behind Rangers and Celtic while the board are expecting us to finish in the top 3 too, which I feel is a fair expectation of us. I think our squad is better than Hearts and Hibs now, who were the next biggest clubs behind the two Glaswegian clubs but we’re not yet on a par with Rangers or Celtic, who are both massively ahead of us. As for the cup competitions…while we won both the Scottish Cup and the Betfred Cup last season, I do feel the club are being overly ambitious by wanting us to reach the final in both of those cups as we did have the luck of the draw last season. As for the Champions League, we automatically qualify for the Group Stage so we’ve already reached our target but if we can get a favourable draw, then maybe we could make the knockout stages again To help us try and achieve this seasons expectations, I’ve spent some of the £10 million I was given as I’ve brought in Ali Chebli for £2 million from Lille and Rodolphe Picard for £4.4 million from Nancy who looks like he could be a future captain …I’ll get my coat! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deisler26 Posted March 28, 2020 Share Posted March 28, 2020 Just now, Raware said: Rodolphe Picard for £4.4 million from Nancy who looks like he could be a future captain …I’ll get my coat! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 28, 2020 Author Share Posted March 28, 2020 1 minute ago, Deisler26 said: ...I know...this self isolation is obviously getting to me! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRL88 Posted March 28, 2020 Share Posted March 28, 2020 Making light work of things so far. Also, welcome back brother Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 29, 2020 Author Share Posted March 29, 2020 22 hours ago, SRL88 said: Making light work of things so far. Also, welcome back brother Thanks @SRL88 League 2 to the SPL in 6 years...I can't complain Got some way to go to push the old firm though Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 29, 2020 Author Share Posted March 29, 2020 I must be doing something right… Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 30, 2020 Author Share Posted March 30, 2020 Edinburgh City - Youth Intake 2028/29 This years youth intake was another disappointing one as none of the youth candidates looked good enough, so all were released. Neal Forbes (29A) David Charlesworth (29B) Kevin Samuel (29C) Grant Forrest (29D) Cameron Penker (29E) Mark Lowis (29F) Kevin Ritchie (29G) Andy Anderson (29H) Andrew Cowan (29I) Cameron Sinclair (29J) Sandy Anderson (29K) Walter Ngwenya (29L) Michael Ross (29M) Derek Dunlop (29N) Adam MacLennan (29O) Nick Ellis (29P) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 Another cracking season fella. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raware Posted March 30, 2020 Author Share Posted March 30, 2020 (edited) *duplicate post* Edited March 30, 2020 by Raware Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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