shaunvamos Posted November 18, 2021 Author Share Posted November 18, 2021 (edited) Preseason 2023 A less than ideal preseason, but we did play teams much better than us, and we can take positives from the results against Huddersfield and Shrewsbury. Transfers I culled the deadwood from the team again, and set myself to sign 11 players with the remaining budget we had. Better than expected negotiations meant that I was able to pick up 17 players for the price of 11, meaning me are set to have plenty of depth. It's a new look first XI once again. Our two loanees form our CB partnership for this season. Debayo comes from EPL side Leeds and Thomson is a former Glasgow Rangers junior currently playing in the Scottish League One. Veteran midfielder Nicky Featherstone will try and learn new tricks despite being an old dog, set to be our starting RB. He's been a bit of an EFL journeyman, but played for Hull City back when they were in the Premier League. Our new look defensive midfield consists of converted fullback Myles Judd, a player who never made it above League 1, and former Norwich academy product Ray Grant, who has spent the last 7 seasons in the Scottish lower leagues. Tyreik is an exciting prospect for us, having just been released from Aston Villa. He's quite versatile, but LM will be his primary home for the season. Our main strike pairing this season is National League veteran Rob Ramshaw, and Leeds reject Charlie Allen. Rolt will still get his fair share of game time, but only as a rotation option. Predicted last again, but once the recruitment drive finished we're now predicted safely mid-table. Based on our performance last season and the belief that we are stronger this season, I'm aiming for a playoff spot that won't be achieved on the final day. Edited November 18, 2021 by shaunvamos 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefinitelyTaylor Posted November 18, 2021 Share Posted November 18, 2021 Some very tidy acquisitions this season - glad to have caught up with this. A very enjoyable read and looking forward to becoming a more active follower from this point onwards. Saves like this always interest me when you get to this stage simply because of the blend of ex-Football League and Non-League stars. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 August/September 2023 I got a bit too excited and simulated a game into September, so both months feature here. It's been a pretty good start, we've been pretty solid away, but Chorley always have our number. Goals are pouring in on both sides too, making our matches exciting but stressful. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 9 hours ago, DefinitelyTaylor said: Some very tidy acquisitions this season - glad to have caught up with this. A very enjoyable read and looking forward to becoming a more active follower from this point onwards. Saves like this always interest me when you get to this stage simply because of the blend of ex-Football League and Non-League stars. Thanks! I don't know too much of the who's who of lower league football being based in Australia, but it's fun to see where these guys have come from and the journeys they have made. Ironically enough, the only live games I've seen in England was an FA Cup qualifier between Guiseley and Stourbridge and a Championship game at Elland Road against Ipswich, so I should know a bit more about lower leagues Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 October 2023 A good month, and we're into the playoff spots. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punch Posted November 19, 2021 Share Posted November 19, 2021 33 minutes ago, shaunvamos said: based in Australia Hello there fellow Aussie A solid start to the season 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 11 minutes ago, Punch said: Hello there fellow Aussie A solid start to the season I knew there had to be a reason you were the only one awake when I was posting my updates around the middle of the day 😀 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punch Posted November 19, 2021 Share Posted November 19, 2021 4 minutes ago, shaunvamos said: I knew there had to be a reason you were the only one awake when I was posting my updates around the middle of the day It all makes sense now 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pompeyboyz Posted November 19, 2021 Share Posted November 19, 2021 1 hour ago, shaunvamos said: Championship game at Elland Road Why would you subject yourself to that drivel?? Guiseley I get and you could have gone to Harrogate or Garforth for better football than Leeds F'n Utd 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 November 2023 A horrible month heavy rotation due to the two FA Cup games, and we were punished for it. We haven't lost too much ground though, but being out that early in the FA Cup is a little disappointing. I have been offered interviews as well for the first time, with the most reputable club being Bristol City in the Championship. They offered me the job, but I respectfully declined. Really should have taken it Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 2 minutes ago, Pompeyboyz said: Why would you subject yourself to that drivel?? Guiseley I get and you could have gone to Harrogate or Garforth for better football than Leeds F'n Utd Funnily enough I did actually go to Harrogate to see some family, but there were no games at that time. What div do Garforth play in? Gotta be pretty low. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pompeyboyz Posted November 19, 2021 Share Posted November 19, 2021 2 minutes ago, shaunvamos said: Funnily enough I did actually go to Harrogate to see some family, but there were no games at that time. What div do Garforth play in? Gotta be pretty low. They are currently in the Northern Counties East Premier League which is 3 leagues lower I think than the National League North where your save started 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 December 2023 An excellent month in the league, but with a dark cloud after the shock FA Trophy loss to a team in the division below. But I need to look at the positives: no more midweek games means less tired players! An okay preview, but I'm not expecting much until we can upgrade some things. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punch Posted November 19, 2021 Share Posted November 19, 2021 A good month, still hanging around up there. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 January 2024 Inconsistency plagues us to start of the new year, as fixture congestion led to heavy rotation. It's closer than I'd like it to be around the playoffs, but with only 4 games in February I'm pretty confident we can have a good month. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 February 2024 A much better month which puts us in a great position. March however, will be tough as we have 7 matches in 27 days, basically a match every 4 days. Will our rotation policy fail miserably like it always has this season? Or will the second string players finally realise that they're good enough? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 March 2024 A much better month than I expected, and with one month to go we're 4 points safe in the playoff spots. Can we hold on? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted November 19, 2021 Share Posted November 19, 2021 Nice work so far, looking good for another crack at the playoffs this year. The fans are definitely getting their money's worth, best attack and worst defence in the division. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 2024 Youth Intake Chris Gilchrist 3A - Jordan Ironton 3B - George Beattie 3C I can't help but feel very underwhelmed with this intake. Maybe because we've upgraded so much in the first team that the youth have suffered. It's interesting to note that all of our English players have come from Ashton or just down the road in Manchester. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 7 minutes ago, DaneBramage said: Nice work so far, looking good for another crack at the playoffs this year. The fans are definitely getting their money's worth, best attack and worst defence in the division. Thanks mate! I think we're operating under the philosophy that it doesn't matter how many goals the opponent scores, as long as we score more Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 April 2024 Playoffs! We also set a record for most goals ever in the National League. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 19, 2021 Author Share Posted November 19, 2021 (edited) We're into the Football League! And we'll be doing it as a professional club! The players did their best to stress me right out too in those last two games. Best XI Tyreik Wright - James Debayo - Bradley Rolt I forgot to mention we signed Doyle from NI's Ballymena in January as CB cover, and Thomson was recalled by Clyde due to injury so he stepped into the first team for the playoffs. Debayo was insane, and it considered "promising", and Rolt continued to be a great contributor. Record Breakers Progress Edited November 19, 2021 by shaunvamos 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefinitelyTaylor Posted November 20, 2021 Share Posted November 20, 2021 Massive congratulations! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 22, 2021 Author Share Posted November 22, 2021 Preseason 2024 An okay preseason, but getting shellacked by teams in the leagues above us is slightly disappointing. Transfers Not as active on the recruitment side of things, as the average wage I was willing to pay was not acceptable to a lot of the better players we were targeting, and the the ones we wee targeting accepted contracts with higher reputation clubs. So there's a bit of a reliance on loan players here. I still do think we're better than we were last season, but not enough to my liking. We welcome back Jarell after Liverpool released him, so here's hoping we can make Liverpool realise what they've lost. Coby will be Jarell's CB partner, on loan from fellow League 2 side Grimsby. Jack Hunt, a product of Huddersfield's academy, has actually had quite a bit of money spent on him (2M by Crystal Palace, 1.5M by Sheffield Wednesday,1.6< by Bristol City) so to get him on a free with minimal wage impact is a hell of a steal. Van is the first newgen to feature in the first team, and he comes with plenty of hype around him coming from Arsenal. The Vietnamese/English DM doesn't look very Vietnamese, so I may have to employ the use of the NewGAN face creator to make things a little more realistic. We add more veteran experience with Jamie Ness playing defensive midfield. He's a Glasgow Rangers junior, and was even signed to Stoke while they were in the Premier League (never appeared for them though). He's been plying his trade in the Scottish lower leagues before making the jump to us. Jake Cain is another former Liverpool junior who couldn't crack it there. I'm hoping he contributes plenty of assists from the left wing this season. Peter Miller, a Welshman out of Derby County, will be our primary creator through the middle part of the final third. Predicted pretty low, but that may have more to do with our reputation rather than our less active recruitment drive. Our striker Bradley Rolt is predicted to win the league's Golden Boot, so maybe we can do a little better than narrowly avoiding relegation. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 22, 2021 Author Share Posted November 22, 2021 August 2024 I'm not too worried about this start. Besides the game against Port Vale, we've kept things really close. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 22, 2021 Author Share Posted November 22, 2021 September 2024 Another okay month, when we're losing it's not by much. The Preston game doesn't count because they're League One and minor cups aren't really a priority at this stage. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 22, 2021 Author Share Posted November 22, 2021 October 2024 Another mixed month, but we're still doing okay. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 22, 2021 Author Share Posted November 22, 2021 November 2024 We had a couple of good wins, but the defeat to Exeter hurts. Our squad just isn't big enough once injuries and such come into play, and our U18s play on the same day most weeks, so we can't blood them. It's so frustrating, but it is what it is. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share Posted November 23, 2021 December 2024 Belted out of the FA Cup, but then we hit a fantastic run of form, thrashing Mansfield, Exeter and Gillingham for a combined score of 13-0. We just need to find a way to unlock that kind of consistency in the second half of the season. This preview is exciting, we definitely need a keeper and a striker. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punch Posted November 23, 2021 Share Posted November 23, 2021 Three wins gets you away from the relegation zone in a hurry Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share Posted November 23, 2021 January 2025 What a start to the new year! In the space of two months we've gone from a spot above relegation to potentially sneaking into a playoff spot. The playoffs will definitely not happen, but midtable is way more than I expected at this stage. Transfers I utilised our affiliation with Huddersfield to pick up some free loans, but they're only going to be used for desperation cover. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share Posted November 23, 2021 1 hour ago, Punch said: Three wins gets you away from the relegation zone in a hurry And another three wins gets us within playoff range 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share Posted November 23, 2021 February 2025 Our form has begun to fall away, and I think mid table is where we will stay. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share Posted November 23, 2021 March 2025 A mixed month, which is fitting given our league position. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
robterrace Posted November 23, 2021 Share Posted November 23, 2021 Firmly in midtable though. Allows a definite breathing space for you to look at things for next season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share Posted November 23, 2021 2025 Youth Intake Kristian Richman 4A* - Adam Thompson 4B - Olaolu Nolan-Alderson 4C Not a very deep intake, but when the board refuses to upgrade anything I'm not sure why I'm surprised. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share Posted November 23, 2021 3 hours ago, robterrace said: Firmly in midtable though. Allows a definite breathing space for you to look at things for next season. Definitely, it’s an excellent platform to build upon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share Posted November 23, 2021 April 2025 With two games to go, we're still just in the top half. We've also had a board takeover, but nothing exciting has come out of that. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 23, 2021 Author Share Posted November 23, 2021 Two draws against teams in the playoffs ends a very successful first season in the Football League. Best XI Jarell Quansah - Coby Rowe - Jake Cain Our two CBs get the best ratings, despite conceding a large amount of goals. I shudder to think how many more that could've been had it not been for these guys. Record Breakers Progress 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 24, 2021 Author Share Posted November 24, 2021 (edited) Preseason 2025 An excellent preseason, one that's boosted by our new look team. Transfers We had another big cull to player numbers, with 13 or so leaving us. Add to that the board doubled our allocated wage budget, and I was good to go, signing a whole host of players for decent wages. I even have some extra wage money left over! Joe will be our man in goal this season, after being released by QPR in the Championship. McDonald will be partnering Jarell Quansah in the centre half position. He's on the back end of his career, but our CB pairing has the perfect combination of youth and experience now. The first player I've signed so far that I actually know. This is a massive pickup for us, even if the former Everton player is on the back nine of his career. He'll test himself at RB. Cunningham is another player that will add experience to our back four. He's a Man City academy product and actually played 2 games for them back in 2009/10, and 7 games for Cardiff City when they were in the EPL. We re-loan Khanh after his excellent debut season. George was surprisingly released by Brighton despite being so young, so I'm excited to see what he can do for us as a DM. Dylan Connolly is a lower league journeyman, but that pace is excellent for this level. Cresswell is one half of our new strike pairing, and looks to be a bit of an all-rounder, even though he can't finish. Cresswell is joined by Tom Lloyd, a player with similar attributes who we picked up from non-league Boston United. He's definitely not non-league quality that's for sure. Still predicted quite low, but I have the confidence in the team that we could push for the playoffs. It's a much stronger team than we had last year. Edited November 24, 2021 by shaunvamos Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 24, 2021 Author Share Posted November 24, 2021 August 2025 A fantastic start to the season here, and we've even decided to win cup games! In the 3rd round of the EFL Cup we head to Anfield to play Liverpool. I hope the gate receipt rules are similar to the FA Cup because if they are we're in for a big spike in finances. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 25, 2021 Author Share Posted November 25, 2021 September 2025 Terrible. Injuries everywhere, we are yet to field our ideal first team and it's really showing. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 25, 2021 Author Share Posted November 25, 2021 October 2025 Injury free now, but results haven't really changed. Still plenty of time to turn this around though. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punch Posted November 25, 2021 Share Posted November 25, 2021 Ouch, that September hit hard 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 25, 2021 Author Share Posted November 25, 2021 (edited) November 2025 Now this is more like it Back within touching distance of the top half. This is not a good sign. Edited November 25, 2021 by shaunvamos 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 25, 2021 Author Share Posted November 25, 2021 December 2025 A mixed month, but if we win our games in hand we'll be in a great spot. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 25, 2021 Author Share Posted November 25, 2021 January 2026 Changed the tactic mentality from Attacking to Control and the results seem positive. We are within playoff distance. Transfers The manager of Preston recalled Cresswell and Ngo because they weren't playing in the desired role (ridiculous) so I loaned a better CF in MacKenzie and somehow loaned Ngo back on much better terms than when he was here at the start of the season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 25, 2021 Author Share Posted November 25, 2021 February 2026 A near perfect month, but we were far from convincing. Transfers (Out) We sold someone! I tried to deter offers for him by raising his asking price, but Wednesday called my bluff and the board went over my head. So bye Jarell And here's his replacement. Nowhere near as good, but he'll do until I can find someone a little bit better. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 25, 2021 Author Share Posted November 25, 2021 March 2026 A strong month, and we're up to 5th. There's an outside chance we can get automatic promotion, but I think a playoff spot is pretty safe if we keep our form up. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaunvamos Posted November 26, 2021 Author Share Posted November 26, 2021 2026 Youth Intake Harry Brannigan 5A - Tyrone Firth 5B - Agron Rufati 5C Not an overly impressive intake. I don't expect any of these guys to feature unfortunately, but I've been wrong about these things before. We finally get an Englishman born outside the Manchester area! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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