[FM22] Climb The Ladder 2

[TerminalPortugal]

 

I am bringing back the most sadistic challenge I ever tried, but also probably my favourite ever save in Football Manager. This challenge is so sadistic that I had to leave it a whole iteration of the game to bring it back. Last time around we got something like 130 years into the save before eventually my computer died and the journey came to an end. If you want to read the last one you find it below:-

Climb The Ladder 1

For those who did not follow last time, the concept is to start in Oceania limited to a few select country and manage to win enough trophies to advance to the next leg of the journey, or in this case the next rung of the ladder. So this is essentially an ultimate journeyman, but with some specific goals each leg to complete. Last time out even selecting the right club was a big deal, since we want to get each part done as quickly as possible.

How do you get points?

You get points by winning trophies plain and simple. Depending on the trophy they are worth different amounts. The following is a guide of what each trophy is worth

• Top Division Domestic League title (100 points)
• Top Domestic Cup (50 points)
• Any other Domestic Cup (30 points)
• Top Continental Cup (500 points)
• Secondary Continental Cup (200 points)
• Any other Continental Cup (50 points)

If there is any confusion as to what the main cup is, then I will just make a call at the start as to what the top trophy is, if I cannot verify it within the game.

Can you lose points?

Yes, you can lose points. There are two ways to lose points as below:-

• Being relegated at any time at a club (-50 points)
• Being sacked or resigning under pressure i.e. if there are comments in the media that I will be sacked then if I resigned it will be treated as a sacking (-100 points)

Any more rules around the points?

Yes, and this is a key point. The first time you win a trophy with a club, you receive 100 per cent of the available points as stated above. However the second time that we manage to win it in the same trophy with the same club, the points are then halved, and it will continue to half for every time we win that follows.

So to give an example, let says that I am managing Liverpool and I win the English Premier League and English League Cup, I would receive 100 points for the league and 30 points for the League Cup. If in the second season I won the English Premier League, the FA Cup and The English League Cup, then we would get 50 points for the league, 50 points for the FA Cup and 15 points for the League Cup. If in the third season we won the English Premier League again, then it would only be worth 25 points.

So as you can see we will be incentivized to plan our route through each stage and move on when it makes sense to do so.

There is an exception to the halving of points. All continental competitions are never halved, even if we win it with the same team multiple times.

How many points are required to get through a stage?

There are two types of stage. The first are the normal stages whereby there are normally 3 or 4 nations loaded for the stage and we can pick a club at any of them. In these stages we need to win 500 points, to advance to the next stage.

In Golden stages, which are normally at the end of the continent and will only have one country available we will need to win 1,000 points to get through the stage.

In the diagram below, normal stages are in a variety of colours related to the continent they are part of. Golden stages are yellow on the diagram and should be easily identifiable.

Who is the manager you will be using?

The manager will be from a random nationality. I will use a random number generator to give me the nationality. The manager must then start with no coaching badges and Sunday League experience. So I still don't know who my avatar will be.

How often will you be providing updates? 

As you can see from the diagram, this is a major challenge, that will last at least a few hundred years if I get anywhere near the middle or end of it. So each update will be a seasonal update, and focus mostly on results rather than players, since there will be many many different clubs. The other time I will update is when we switch clubs, and that will let you know the results at the last club before we moved.

Where do we start?

We start at OFC4 at the bottom of the chart and will work our way up.

Where is the Diagram?

It's just below:-

 

Edited March 31, 2022 by TerminalPortugal

[TerminalPortugal]

SEASON 2019/20

Introduction to the Manager

Introducing Bruno Zurcher. The random nationality we got was Swiss. 

Our first stop is Pago Youth of American Samoa. It was quite a fortunate job to get as they are the best team in American Samoa and so gave us a good opportunity to get some early points.

FFAS Senior League

The league was really very easy for us as at one point it looked like we might go the entire season undefeated but we did eventually lose to PanSa for our only loss of the season. We won the league an a canter some 18 points clear of Black Roses in 2nd place. That is our first 100 points in the bag

FFAS President's Cup

The next trophy of note was the President's Cup, the American Samoan version of the FA Cup, and we also picked up the trophy here as we again suffered very few problems on the way to the final where we faced the only team to beat us domestically this year in PanSa but this time managed to defeat them 3-0 in the final. Another 50 points in the bag.

OFC Champions League

We started in the Preliminary Round of the Champions League against other island opposition. We managed to beat Lotoha'apai convincingly 7-0, but that was as good as it got as we lost by a big margin to Lupe o le Soaga of Samoa and then were dumped out by Cook Islands Nikao. Unfortunate but realistically we were never likely to do much in the Champions League so it is not a great loss to me.

Squad and Transfers

The American Samoan league is much like other Pacific leagues, where everyone is an Amateur team, so it a free for all of offers for players, and this helped us as we were able to poach a few faces in where I felt it might help us. In the end the stand out was 15 year old going on 16 year old Kuresa Latu, who scored 22 goals in 19 appearances. A quite amazing total for what is still a child.

Manager Thoughts

We picked up realistically the maximum number of points that I think we could get. That means we have 150 points on the board, and I think that unless a really good job comes on the market we will be staying for another season and seeing if we can repeat the the double which would mean another 75 points added to our score. Remember the target is 500 points, so eventually unless we pull off a miracle and win the Champions League we will need to move on to pastures anew eventually as the points dwindle for winning things.

Manager Profile

There we have a 26 year old Bruno, after his first season in American Samoa.

Career Summary

Edited March 30, 2022 by TerminalPortugal

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2022/23

FFAS Senior League

The league this season was just as easy as last season, the main difference was that the unbeaten season was extinguished early on. There was a period where Vaiala Tongan were in contention with us but they fell away, although they only finished 9 points behind in the end showing that they had a very good season themselves. Anyway that is another 50 points in the bag for the 2nd league title

FFAS President's Cup

The President's Cup did not provide too much resistance against us. Black Roses in the final were probably the best we faced in terms of competition but even the final was a very easy game for us as we dominated and got the result. Another 25 points for the second Cup win in a row.

OFC Champions League

We had a pretty amazing Champions League campaign all told. Last time out we did not even get past the Prelims, but this time we got the same amount of points but it proved enough to go through to the next round. I expected to exit the competition here but we absolutely raised our game and won against PNG's Lae City and Tahiti's AS Dragon, before a draw with Henderson Eels of Solomon Islands. This got us a Quarter Final tie against Fijian side Lautoka, and we looked like we may even make the semi finals after a very impressive home win 3-1, but we ended up bowing out in the second leg losing 2-0 and exiting on away goals. A very nice little escapade we had there, and very much unexpected.

Squad and Transfers

Paul Moe was the top scorer this season, he found his scoring boots this season as he suddenly exploded on the scene. Palauni Tapusoa also had a great season for us as he contributed with a lot of assists. Latu, still only 17, continues to be brilliant, and by far the best player at the club, he bagged himself 21 goals this season to still continue to contribute handily for the team.

Manager Thoughts

It's another 75 points for us, and we are looking to move on. The issue at the moment is that there are not really many jobs available at the moment. We may look around and then make a decision once the season starts to close. If we leave we may open up another job in American Samoa, although that probably is not a great options are Pago Youth are stacked so I would not want to go against my own club. Hopefully a route materialises for us, it could be our last season, or worst case we stay one more season and then we resign as soon as the season ends to signal our availability.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[oche balboa]

Nice Start 

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2023/24

FFAS Senior League

The league was a little bit closer this season as we lost 2 and drew three giving Utulei for a time a chance to catch us but they never did and we claim our third league title in a row, and another 25 points.

FFAS President's Cup

It was at times a tougher road to win the cup this season, especially in the semi final where we needed some late goals to get us over the line against Royal Puma, but we managed it and then the final was a pretty simple affair for us. We claim another 12 points as we round down for half points.

OFC Champions League

We had a very impressive run in the Champions League, and we were not very far away from reaching the final. We started our campaign with a perfect Prelim campaign an then followed it up with a perfect Group Stage before dispatching AS Tefana in the next round. Henderson Eels proved a little too tough for us in the end. The home leg was what really hurt us, but we almost pulled it back against them in the away leg. Late goals got them through.

Squad and Transfers

No real business done this year, as we really do not need additional players. A bit of a more subdued year this time around with the key players no really hitting the heights of previous seasons but still very much good enough to win a double again. Moe hit 19 goals this season which is still a very good haul. We spread the goals around a bit more this season I think as more players got in on the act.

Manager Thoughts

With that final trophy haul our time in American Samoa is up, we have already secured our next move, which will be in Samoa next year. The transfer goes through on the 15th of May 2024. We had to move on because of reducing benefit we got from winning trophies with Pago Youth, so pastures anew were required. I do now think we may have even had a shot at the Champions League this season and maybe we could get close next season, but we will have to close the chapter on Pago Youth there. In terms of points for OFC4 we are now over halfway so a similar set of achievements in Samoa would get us over the line for this leg of the journey.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[TerminalPortugal]

1 hour ago, oche balboa said:

Nice Start 

Thanks.

[oche balboa]

Just thinking have you got the French League loaded as Teams from Mayotte, Reunion, Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guinea, Tahiti & New Caledonia play in the Coupe De France 

[TerminalPortugal]

16 minutes ago, oche balboa said:

Just thinking have you got the French League loaded as Teams from Mayotte, Reunion, Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guinea, Tahiti & New Caledonia play in the Coupe De France 

At the moment it is only the nations from OFC4, which is American Samoa, Samoa, the Cook Islands and Wallis & Futuna that are loaded. In principle I only load the countries that are relevant to that leg. It is an interesting point regarding the French Cup, but I think I will likely not load France when those countries you mention are playable. Not sure if that means we won't play in it or whether we will with a club from those countries. Needless to say the chances of winning it are remote, so just for processing times I think I will leave France out until it is time for France in a few eons time.

Great point though had not thought of that.

[oche balboa]

12 minutes ago, TerminalPortugal said:

At the moment it is only the nations from OFC4, which is American Samoa, Samoa, the Cook Islands and Wallis & Futuna that are loaded. In principle I only load the countries that are relevant to that leg. It is an interesting point regarding the French Cup, but I think I will likely not load France when those countries you mention are playable. Not sure if that means we won't play in it or whether we will with a club from those countries. Needless to say the chances of winning it are remote, so just for processing times I think I will leave France out until it is time for France in a few eons time.

Great point though had not thought of that.

You will need France loaded to play in it. Even if its just View only 

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2024

Introduction to Club

It is a short hop from Pago Pago to Vaitele  of around 150kms. Lupe o le Soaga are one of the best teams Samoa and are perennially seen as the most likely to win the league. Last season the manager got the sack because they were off the pace all season. This allowed us to get the manager's job and the task here is to put Lupe back on their perch as the best team in Samoa.

Samoa National League

We started the season very badly, and I was fearing that we were likely to be mid table again and we might be staring at a sacking but the form improved and we took the leadership of the league and we never relinquished it. USP drove us reasonably close, finishing just 3 points behind. Another 100 points gained in OFC4.

Samoa Cup

The Samoa Cup is split into a Group Stage followed by the Semi Finals and Final. The Samoa Cup actually quite affected our league form and to be honest, the games are played so close together that it was difficult to manage, but we had few problems in the group stage as we topped the group, advancing with Vailima Kiwi. In the knockout stages we were brilliant, knocking out Sogi in semi finals and smashing Kiwi in the final 5-0 to win the cup. Another 50 points gained.

Squad and Transfers

The squad performed pretty brilliantly this season with almost everyone averaging above a 7. Cheshire and Bell were the guys bagging the goals and Malo who came in this season as one of my signings was on another planet creatively to everyone else. Everything is looking great.

Manager Thoughts

Another 150 points are gained and that brings us above the 400 point mark. Unfortunately we know that another double next season will not be enough to complete the challenge in year, but with the performance this year, and Champions League football next year, which after the experience with Pago Youth I know have more faith we might have a chance, we need to stay at Lupe and just accumulate the points. If we manage to get a double next season then we would need the league title the season after that as only the cup that season would leave us a point shy of winning the stage if my maths is not failing me. Either way it is too early to speculate on two seasons time. We are making decent progress through this first stage.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[TerminalPortugal]

3 hours ago, oche balboa said:

You will need France loaded to play in it. Even if its just View only 

Interesting, still not sure about adding France, for some reason I feel like I should keep them separate at the moment. But thanks for clarifying.

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2025

Samoa National League

Last season we did not start the league season that well, this season we put that behind us and got off to a great start, and to be honest it just continued all season as we went the entire season undefeated in the league and finished 14 points clear of Moata'a. Another 50 points for us.

Samoa Cup

The Samoa Cup start pretty amazingly for us as we got an 8-2 win against Kiwi in the first game and we never really looked back from there. We dominated our Group to qualify for the semi final and that semi final game was probably the hardest one we had in this competition as Vaitele-Uta gave us a good game and it require an injury time penalty to win the game for us. The final was not similar at all as we put the game to bed inside 30 minutes. Another 25 points earned.

OFC Champions League

We were back in the Champions League for the first time since we left Pago Youth, and I felt a bit hard done by. We got out of the Prelims without much problem, disposing of our former side Pago Youth in the process. However in group stage proper was about as tight as it gets. All teams finished on 4 points and we finished bottom on account of goal difference and presumably goals scored. Very tough pill to swallow really. We should have done more against Port Moresby Strikers but we just did not have enough to win the game and that was the result.

Squad and Transfers

We ended up going and getting a familiar name to us in Kuresa Latu. Probably the best player from our time at Pago Youth, we decided to sign him and some other foreign imports from the Cook Islands as well and it really improved our team as we were unbeaten domestically. Malo was still the pick of the players this season but there were of standouts to be honest.

Manager Thoughts

We seem to be a season away from completing OFC4, as long as we win the league, the 25 points from that win would be enough to secure passage to OFC3. However if we do not win the league, and presuming we do not win the Champions League, then it will not be enough as the 12 points from a Samoa Cup win would leave us a point short. So I am very much hoping we can just wrap up another league title in the coming season and get the job done.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[BoxToBoxFM]

Was just looking for the old journeyman save when I came across this, and what a challenge it is! Look forward to following along 

[TerminalPortugal]

9 minutes ago, BoxToBoxFM said:

Was just looking for the old journeyman save when I came across this, and what a challenge it is! Look forward to following along 

Yeah that was my favourite journeyman I did. I linked in the first post in case you want to go back and experience my pain first time around!

[BoxToBoxFM]

1 hour ago, TerminalPortugal said:

Yeah that was my favourite journeyman I did. I linked in the first post in case you want to go back and experience my pain first time around!

I had a very brief look and flicked to the end to see where you made it, 130 seasons is still very impressive. Completing this is probably one of the hardest challenges out there!

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2026

Samoa National League

The league season has not yet ended, but it is all already over when it comes to establishing who the champion is. That would be us, as we lead Moa'ula by 20 points. Those 25 points for the league are enough to complete OFC4, so we can end the adventure right when we won the league on the 11th November 2026.

Samoa Cup

The Samoa Cup is still underway and we were looking decent value to make it to the next round, but we left the club before the competition ended.

OFC Champions League

The Champions League was the first competition we played in this season, much like every other season so we got to see the conclusion of it. We did very well getting all the way to the semi final where we eventual succumbed to Lower Hutt of New Zealand. I was at one point thinking that we could get everything done for OFC4 in extravagant fashion by winning the big 500 for the Champions League before the league season even started but we could not get over the final hurdle.

Squad and Transfers

There were not transfers in and out of the club. Latu was the top goalscorer when we left the club, he has been our key player through OFC4 both at Pago Youth and at Lupe. Samuelu Malo was ridiculously good this season with 37 goal contributions. Overall the squad has performed very well.

Manager Thoughts

We got the job done in OFC4 in around 5 and half years, which is not too bad. We really didn't have a bad season. We never could get to the final in the Champions League but I am surprised we made it as far as the semi final. In the end we get the job done across two clubs in two countries and we can move on to OFC3, where we will have Kiribati, Tuvalu and Tahiti to choose from. 

OFC4 COMPLETE

Manager Profile

Career Summary

 

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2027

Introduction to Club

Having completed OFC4, we loaded up the new leagues and we were waiting for quite some time to find a job. We had pretty much sat through a whole Tahitian season, when one of the best jobs available became one of the first to become available. A.S. Venus were technically the favourites for the league, and the manager had just got the sack. They were sitting in 4th, out of qualification for the Champions League and had just lost in the Cup and that was all the board could stomach. We come in with just two league games to go, and not a lot to play for.

It is quite the journey from Samoa to French Polynesia, as you can see the distances between some of these islands in the Pacific are vast.

Ligue 1 Vini

We had just two games in the league as manager this season. We took over right at the end of the season and I am happy that we got two wins out of two against two good sides. 

Coupe de Tahiti Nui

Already knocked prior to joining the club

Squad and Transfers

We did make one transfer that was ours and that Daniel Duarte, who came up on a scout report and he was a no-brainer to bring into the club. The Brazilian adds a lot of quality and he could be lethal next season. He already bagged 2 goals in his only appearance against AS Dragon. The squad picture looks a little grim to be honest, not too many top performers in there, we will look to change that next season.

Manager Thoughts

We waited around for a long time, but it was unavoidable since all the teams already had managers in the top division and I did not fancy going down to the 2nd Division. Kiribati and Tuvalu only loaded in towards the end of the Tahitian season and again they also had managers, so we had to wait. The club we got is a good team and I think we can do well with them. Hopefully we can go in next season and immediately challenge for the honours.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2028

Ligue 1 Vini

When we lost our first game of the season, I am not going to lie I was a little bit worried that what had happened to the last manager would happen to me, but after that match we seemed to kick into a new gear and it was 5 months until we lost again. The main issue we had towards the end of the season as we started to drop points was suspensions and injuries but we managed them well enough and the gap was huge to Tefana, it was just a matter of time until we lifted the league title. In the end it was 13 points difference to AS Tefana. We pick up our first 100 points of OFC3

Coupe de Tahiti Nui

We managed to complete a double with the win against Central Sport in the final. Really it was easy apart from the Second Round game against Mataiea and the final itself. We pick up another 50 points.

Squad and Transfers

Two sets of transfer as they were done across the two seasons. I highlighted Daniel Duarte as the guy who could potentially rip the Tahitian leagues up and he did just that with 19 goals and 13 assists. Giving him the trifecta of most goals, most assists and best average rating at the club, a rare feat. Pretty much the whole squad performed well even some of the guys I had doubts about but could not find replacements like Jean-Claude Salmon, who did well enough up front, but is not a good match for the role. Overall we did really well and really there are probably just a few roles where I think we may be able to get better.

Manager Thoughts

A good way to open things up in Tahiti, we will be going to the Champions League and I kind of think we have a chance to lift it. Not a good chance but probably more of a chance than we had in Samoa and American Samoa to be honest, and there we managed to get to the semi finals and were a bit unlucky. We have picked 150 points and we will be looking to remain in charge probably for three seasons in total since I think the other two nations we can manage in probably don't have a shot at Champions League glory, which we have an outside chance of here at AS Venus.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[ucdark]

Love this kind of histories! It's gonna be a long path

[TerminalPortugal]

1 hour ago, ucdark said:

Love this kind of histories! It's gonna be a long path

Thanks. Yeah very very long. Last time I was 130+ years in and I think we got through two continents and had just started the next one. 

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2029

Ligue 1 Vini

It was a season to remember as we went unbeaten to claim another league title. There really was only one period where I was a bit worried where we suddenly picked up four of our five draws back to back, but we snapped out of it and eventually claimed the title with games to go. We win the title from AS Dragon by 9 points. Another 50 points in the bag.

Coupe de Tahiti Nui

Another Tahiti Cup is in the trophy cabinet, the semi final was probably the closest match. We had a lot of suspensions going into that game so we had to scrape through it. The final against AS Pueu provide no problems as we ran out 3-0 winners. Another 25 points in the bag for us.

OFC Champions League

It was an interesting campaign for us, we just about got through the group. The key was to not get beaten by Marist on the final game day and we managed that to reach the next round. Qualifying in 2nd place though meant that we would likely face a big boy, and we did in Auckland United. The first leg in New Zealand put us up against it, but we did grab a crucial away goal. However we could take advantage of it in the 2nd leg and were out of the tie already when we equalised late on. No Champions League win this year.

Coupe des Champions

Well we definately left points on the table with this one. It could have been worth 30 points by itself, more than the Coupe de Tahiti, but we could not get the breakthrough in normal time, and in extra time both sides scored and we suffered the loss on penalties. Very disappointed, these are the points you wish you had won later in the leg.

Squad and Transfers

Only one transfer in this season and it was the very impressive David Mani. The standout of this side remains Daniel Duarte, he is almost unplayable at times. He is so good that he is already considered a legend at the club after just two seasons. 

Manager Thoughts

It's been a good season, we could have won more points, but you can't win them all. I think next season will be our last season at AS Venus, since the points will begin to dwindle considerably, so we will be on the lookout for a good club in distress.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[ManUtd1]

What a season!  Well done!

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2030

OFC Champions League

Yes, that's right. We only went and bloody won the Champions League. I have to say I was very surprised. We were decent in the group stages but were not good enough to win the group finishing 2nd behind Lower Hutt. Then we got good draws although these were still games we could lose and be knocked out from. First was New Caledonia's AS Magenta and we won home and away to set up a semi final clash against Lautoka of Fiji, and the home leg was key to put us in the ascendency and we then finished the job early on in Fiji despite a spirited comeback from the Fijians. That set up the tie against New Zealand Auckland United. They had knocked us out last year pretty easily and I was expecting to lose. Although we were at home, I could never have expected this as Duarte showed his class as he picked up a hat-trick including 2 penalties as we steamrolled Auckland United and put island football on the map with a 5-1 demolition. We are OFC Champions League Champions, and with that this leg of the journey is over, with the 500 points we bagged as a result.

Ligue 1 Vini

We were motoring along in the league and I have no doubts we would have won another league title. It will be left to the next manager to finish the job.

Coupe de Tahiti Nui

It had barely started, but we did get through AS Tiare Hinano in a very tough game. Next was Tiare Anani, again we were looking good to make the later stages again.

Squad and Transfers

The squad was performing great much like they have over the last 2 season before this. Daniel Duarte is playing like an alien at the moment, and he was key to our Champions League win. He has bagged 19 goals and 10 assists in 20 games. Essentially he is worth 1.5 goals a game, kind of amazing.

Manager Thoughts

The job is done, and in good time as we lift the Champions League trophy for the first time in our career. We had been close, visiting the semi finals before at other clubs but this time we went two steps better, and made the final and won it. Next up we have OFC2, which contains Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu and New Caledonia.

OFC3 COMPLETE

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[TerminalPortugal]

8 hours ago, ManUtd1 said:

What a season!  Well done!

Thanks, yeah always special to go unbeaten.

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2031

Introduction to the Club

We were out of job for about 7 months, before the Veitongo job became available. They were one of the best teams in Tonga, but were predicted to finish 3rd. It seems they never had a manager before, not sure if they were picking the team like in the olden days by committee or what was going on, but we got the job and our job was to attempt to challenge for the Tongan league.

In terms of the club, they have won 14 previous titles so are one of the better teams along with Lotoha'apai who are the other serial league winner in Tongan history. As you can see it is again quite a journey from our previous job in French Polynesia all the way to the island of Tonga. Almost 3,000 km.

OFC Champions League

The first competition we competed for at Veitongo was the Champions League. In fact we came in with the first Prelim game having already been played. We got through the Prelims without much issue and then we knocked off the group quite easily as well and I started to believe that we might just turn up, win the Champions League and then leave having accomplished our goals, but we did in the end fall to Tiga Sport in the Quarter Finals. We were just not good enough to get through their defence.

Tonga Major League

Between the Champions League and the League season we had a lot of time, months to plan. I will talk more about the transfers in the next section, but they made a huge difference. We were pretty much unplayable the entire season. We had won the league before we even dropped a point and in the end we completed an unbeaten season dropping just 4 points all season and making a bit of mockery of the league. That is our first 100 points of OFC2 in the bag.

April Gift

It gets me every time.

Squad and Transfers

As you can see from the transfers section, we had a clear strategy to target the best possible players and almost transplant them into our squad. The amateur status of the teams in the league worked to our advantage and we were able to pretty much bring whoever we wanted and that completely changed our overall quality. overall across the team the team performed really well. None of the new signings played in the Champions League, so perhaps next time around we can do better than the Quarter Finals.

Manager Thoughts

We came through and got the league win and got the points winning underway in OFC2. I think we will give it another year in Tonga. The points are limited here because of no cup competitions. I would probably rather get into another country where there are more opportunities to win points. Of course if we can win the Champions League then it will be done and dusted but I suspect it will be very close to impossible with a Tongan team.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

Edited April 1, 2022 by TerminalPortugal

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2032

OFC Champions League

Another Champions League campaign and I felt we most certainly had a better team this time around but it was going to be very difficult to win this competition with a team from Tonga, and we didn't win the Champions League, but we did pretty well to get all the way to semi finals before Western Suburbs completely outclassed us on their way to winning it. 

Tonga Major League

I can't call it a bad season, but it was not so dominant as last season, or should I say Lotoha'apai were much better this season and ran us until the penultimate game of the season. In the end they just ran out of steam at the end and we managed to keep our nerve. We lost two games this season, the first two games we have lost domestically in Tonga. Another 50 points for us for our second title win.

Squad and Transfers

Chris Seau was the man this season, with the most goals scored, most assists created and best average rating in our team, the trifecta as I call it. There was some pretty consistent performers this season across the side. On the transfer front having more less got all the top Tongan talent we venture afield to Micronesia and Tahiti to pick off a few reinforcements this season and thye played their part in our season.

Manager Thoughts

Well we did what we set out to do and that is great. Tonga is just too value for us now to continue to manage here. With just 25 points realistically obtainable next season, we will be resigning from our role and moving to new shores. There are a couple of jobs available which I would consider and I am waiting to see if are able to get any of these roles.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2033

Introduction to the Club

We left Tonga, and arrived in Noumea, New Caledonia to take up our new job as manager of AS Magenta. They had missed out on the title last season and I guess the board was not happy enough to keep the manager on for the coming season and that is why we managed to come in. They are one of the prestigious and most successful clubs in New Caledonia having lifted the league title 17 times and the cup 17 times in their history. They would also be in the Champions League as two teams from New Caledonia make into the competition as opposed to smaller islands which only generally get one.

It's another quite large journey from Tonga to New Caledonia, running in around 1,900 km.

OFC Champions League

Well would you believe it. We started the season in the Champions League, which happens mostly before the New Caledonian season and we only went and won the Champions League in our first attempt. We did okay in what was a pretty weak group, where we got through in 2nd place, but certainly it was nothing that provided me with any kind of reinforcement that we had much chance of lifting the cup at the end of it. The next round saw us almost exit to Erakor GS of Vanuatu as we lost away but came back in the home leg and got a late winner to take us to the next round. The semi final was against Labasa of Fiji, which was far more comfortable for us as we beat them 2-0 at home and despite trailing most of the game away, we killed Labasa's challenge off with two late goals. The final was to be played at home against New Zealand heavyweight Miramar Rangers. It was a mad game. At the 30 minute mark we trailed 3-0 and it was looking like an absolute disaster was about to happen, but we got a goal back before half-time to make it 3-1. Then in the 2nd half we Istanbulled Miramar as we came roaring back with a penalty on 56 minutes and another on 78 minutes to force extra time. There were no goals there and it was on to penalties. They missed twice, we missed once and we won the cup and with 500 points and completed this leg.

New Caledonia Super League

Not a lot to talk about here, we has just started the season, won all our games, and had games in hand on the rest of the league.

Coupe de Nouvelle-Caledonie

Not yet started

Squad and Transfers

There is not a massive amount to say, we only played a few games together before we won the Champions League. We brought in quite a few foreigners which somehow my scouts kept picking up, or perhaps it was the agents flogging them to us. Ndalu Campos of Angola and Fabian Mariquez of Chile were great acquisitions and particularly the Chilean was performing really well. Remy Roux as well is another one who was producing some amazing substitute appearances for us.

Manager Thoughts

It was just 133 days between us taking the job and winning the OFC Champions Legaue and completing our journey in New Caledonia and OFC2. It was quite amazing and I could not believe when we won the Champions League final in the manner that we did. I am ecstatic to get it all done this quickly, after what was two long years in Tonga for not many points. Next time around we will be somewhere in OFC1, which consists of New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands

Manager Profile

Career Summary

Edited April 1, 2022 by TerminalPortugal

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2034

Introduction to the Club

Our next job took quite a while to arrive, as we spent some 15 months out of work, awaiting a job. To be honest we arrive at Western Springs, with a lot of work to do, and part of me is still on the look out to see if there is a better job available that comes up in the near future. The New Zealand league is divided into four league in the top division and then the top sides in each league play a mini league to then advance to knockouts eventually culminating in a final. Western Springs have only ever won their league twice, and never been national champions. They also have never won the Chatham Cup which is the cup competition in New Zealand. So this will be a tough one. I figured it was best to at least get myself into New Zealand in case a top job became available and then hopefully even if I am not successful enough with Western Springs to get points, it may prove enough to provide enough reasons to hire me for one of the bigger boys.

We are now based in Auckland where the club is from, and it was another 1,600 km or so from Noumea, New Caledonia.

National League (Lotto Sport Italia NRFL Premier League)

We only had four games left of the season when we arrived and that included playing both 1st and 2nd place, without any tactical familiarity and not knowing the players so I think we did a decent job especially with the win at Birkenhead. Hopefully something we can build on next season.

Chatham Cup

Already eliminated when we joined the club

Squad and Transfers

I don't yet know the players that well. Obviously Adama Coulibaly looks like the main man at the club and we will hopefully utilise his services to the maximum next season, but generally the overall ratings are not very good as you would expect from a side that just finished in 7th place. Lots of work to be done here both in the transfer market and with getting them playing better.

Manager Thoughts

This is definately a risk I am taking by coming here to Western Springs. We will need to hit the ground running next season. The main attraction is that if we can dominate New Zealand we should be pretty sure to dominate the Champions League. Since none of the big boys came up I thought it best to at least make my way to New Zealand and hopefully start ingratiating myself to the locals.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2035

National League

It is a lot of games to basically end up in a one off match, and we ended up getting ultimately screwed by it. We went through the league season undefeated, then went through the Champions Group undefeated, and then had to play a final against 2nd placed Lower Hutt in the Grand Final, and we lost on penalties. It just makes you sick to your stomach that it can happen. So undeserved for us to lose like that. 

Chatham Cup

We got as far as the semi finals but once again penalties reared their ugly head and we were out against Melville United. 

Squad and Transfers

Most teams are amateur in New Zealand, so it is a free for all for players and we Harry Redknapped it to the maximum, players entering and leaving everywhere. Our scouts did a great job especially with the foreign lads, as we got in Peruvians, Argentinians, Colombians and some African players as well just to round up the UN of New Zealand football. Caballero was quite the capture with his 17 goals. Obviously with the amateur status everyone can come and go and we will hope we can hold on to him and the others. A good squad we assembled that deserved far more than they got, although technically they are league champions and get a medal for the initial stage.

Manager Thoughts

Super annoyed and this season and this league format, I always hate it when the team that ends up at the top of the league does not end up the Champion. Ultimately why play all the games to decide who finished top if you just give second place a chance at the title at the end. Very silly in my opinion. Anyway the silver lining is two fold, firstly we were sensational all season, by far the best team in New Zealand in my honest opinion. Secondly I think we have qualified for the Champions League by virtue of being in the top two New Zealand teams, although I have yet to receive a message about it. If we are that is a potential avenue to get the job done. This team should best any other in Oceania maybe apart from Lower Hutt on a bad day should we have to face them. Anyway still not sure about the Champions League qualification at this stage. Ultimately it is an unsuccesful season and we get no points this season.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2036

OFC Champions League

We should have won this Champions League. The final was a real let down against the team that beat us in the Grand Final last year in the form of Lower Hutt. They are really beginning to annoy me as they seem to have the hoodoo over me. A team of our quality had everything ready to win this and not to win it is a big failure in my book. We could have been done and dusted with Oceania but alas it is not to be.

National League

If last year we great, this year we were scarily great, even despite our being unbeaten last year, we seemed more dominant this year and more importantly when it came time to play the Grand Final against arch-nemesis Lower Hutt, we were ready to dispatch steady retribution and finally take the National crown for ourselves. 100 points in the bag.

Chatham Cup

Last year the Chatham Cup was a bit of a let down as we bowed out in the semi finals on penalties, fortunately this time were able to exact revenge against the same opponent at the same stage as we this time took Melville United apart 5-1, before we played Ferrymead Bay and to be honest it was a pretty easy affair as we ran out 3-1 winners on the night and won the Chatham Cup for the first time in our history. Another 50 points in the bag.

Squad and Transfers

The only way to stay ahead in this rat race is to be constantly on the lookout for improvements. We have now become semi-professional so all new signings are coming on paid contracts which will make this whole game go away a bit, as we will then need to worry about affording contracts to replace the transfer game. Again we made some very astute purchases on the bases of eagle-eyed scouts who seem to always spot the players we need. Assane Dione, Manuel Jesus, Adam Barrett, Warren Ebondo and Jack Killock just a few of the great players we managed to bring in. However we did lose Caballero this season as he decided to move back to Argentina, after lighting up the New Zealand divisions, but Manuel Jesus we have a forward that is more suited to our style of play and it shows as he bagged himself 27 in 26 and half the season he was annoyed at me over a misunderstanding over playing time. He eventually got over it and now seems to be staying.

Manager Thoughts

We probably should have been done and dusted with this season as we could have won the Champions League and perhaps should have won the Champions League as I still feel we have the superior side to Lower Hutt. Next season I expect it to be the same story and if we don't meet each other before the final we will meet again in the final. I just hope the next time we are able to apply a similar performance to the one we applied in the Grand Final this year. The Champions League is just a few months away, due to the truncated league season which where the Champions League ends around the start of the season.

I fully expect to remain at Western Springs now for the remainder of the time in OFC1 since realistically this is a team we can win the Champions League with and that is the shortest path to completion of the leg.

Manager Profile

Career Summary

[BadManager]

I can see why 130 years is nowhere near enough. Still, getting through Oceania in relatively few seasons. How much reputation does a manager get from dominating in the Pacific? I know you're basically starting from scratch in the next continent anyway, but is there likely to be a problem gaining a job so far from where you might be known.

[TerminalPortugal]

1 minute ago, BadManager said:

I can see why 130 years is nowhere near enough. Still, getting through Oceania in relatively few seasons. How much reputation does a manager get from dominating in the Pacific? I know you're basically starting from scratch in the next continent anyway, but is there likely to be a problem gaining a job so far from where you might be known.

At the moment I am at around the 30% mark and that is with 2 OFC Champions Leagues already won. I have never had too much of a problem getting a job, but for example when I got the Western Springs job, before that I was looking at the Auckland United job and they were laughing me off. Since I started to do well Western Suburbs, arguably the best club in New Zealand have tried to headhunt me so the startegy in some places is probably to just get into the league and then work from there. Once you have some track record in the league I find teams have less penalties to giving you the job i.e. interview questions like you have never managed here and we are concerned about that I guess go away and make it easier to get a better job.

Other places though it is just better to wait and see what happens with some of the better clubs. In the Pacific islands I find that is probably a better strategy.

Yeah 130 years might get you through two continents. Oceania is also the smallest continent so despite us being pretty close to end of it, it is tiny in comparison to any of the other continents.

[TerminalPortugal]

Season 2037

OFC Champions League

This year there were to be no mistakes in the Champions League. We breezed through our group, ad then dispatched Henderson Eels with ease, to set up a semi final this time around against our nemesis Lower Hutt. Over two legs I fancied our chances, and we got the job done winning both games 3-1. The final was a case of not becoming complacent and playing the opponent. As long as we did not completely choke we would be fine and that was how it was. Manuel Jesus put himself into Western Springs folklore with a final hat-trick in the second half to give us the Champions League. With that we had the 500 points that completed Oceania.

Charity Cup

It wasn't a top priority, but had we not won the Champions League I would have been pretty annoyed at spurning 30 points. Lower Hutt were again the enemy in the Charity Cup that we succumbed to.

National League

It was a good start to the league for us, and it was looking like another successful season, but we will have to leave it to whomever replaces us as manager of Western Springs.

Squad and Transfers

The same story as previous seasons as we went strong in the transfer window to make sure we had a competitive squad. Notable signing were Schrijvers, Alaza, Nieto in goal and the two Ugandans Muganga and Wasswa. Manuel Jesus has been the man this season and he was the hero in the Champions League with his hat-trick. From what we inherited to what we built this club to be this has been the biggest transformation in our time on Oceania.

Manager Thoughts

We have completed Oceania finally with that Champions League win we have toppled OFC1. We spent 5,782 days or 15 years, 9 months and 29 days in Oceania between getting the job at Pago Youth and winning the Champions League for the third time in Oceania with Western Springs. That is pretty good going, I think last time it toom us over 20 years to get through this series of stages, although the stages themselves were not identical.

This series took us through 6 countries and 6 clubs, as we visited American Samoa, Samoa, Tahiti, Tonga, New Caledonia and New Zealand to complete the OFC stages. Next up we will be moving to the North American continent and will be starting in NA12 which consists of Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, St Barthelemy and Sint Maarten.

OFC1 COMPLETE

Manager Profile

Career Summary

Edited April 2, 2022 by TerminalPortugal

[BoxToBoxFM]

Congrats, absolutely flown through the first continent! How do you get through the seasons so quickly?!

[TerminalPortugal]

Just now, BoxToBoxFM said:

Congrats, absolutely flown through the first continent! How do you get through the seasons so quickly?!

Thanks, yeah it went  quicker than last time, the three Champions League wins helped a lot, and the Magenta win was lucky in that we got that done quick.

The low league count keeps the player count low and processing speeds up, although FM does have a way of inflating the player count over time as you add remove leagues, so it is much faster at the start than towards the end I suspect. Also I use an Instant Result skin, so can use it for run of the mill matches or ones that do not particularly matter. 

[BoxToBoxFM]

4 minutes ago, TerminalPortugal said:

Thanks, yeah it went  quicker than last time, the three Champions League wins helped a lot, and the Magenta win was lucky in that we got that done quick.

The low league count keeps the player count low and processing speeds up, although FM does have a way of inflating the player count over time as you add remove leagues, so it is much faster at the start than towards the end I suspect. Also I use an Instant Result skin, so can use it for run of the mill matches or ones that do not particularly matter. 

Ah ok, I’ll keep that in mind for my own save then and keep an eye on the player count. Had a save last year that was only about 15 years deep and towards the end getting through each day would take ages

[TerminalPortugal]

3 minutes ago, BoxToBoxFM said:

Ah ok, I’ll keep that in mind for my own save then and keep an eye on the player count. Had a save last year that was only about 15 years deep and towards the end getting through each day would take ages

Limiting the number of leagues is super key if you want to keep the processing speed reliably quick long term. The game will get naturally get slower anyway due to the history that is accumulated over time, it is exponential for the increased number of leagues. I have never experimented much with View-Only, but suspect there must be some processing effort going on to do View Only so always have it limiting the number of leagues loaded.

[BoxToBoxFM]

1 minute ago, TerminalPortugal said:

Limiting the number of leagues is super key if you want to keep the processing speed reliably quick long term. The game will get naturally get slower anyway due to the history that is accumulated over time, it is exponential for the increased number of leagues. I have never experimented much with View-Only, but suspect there must be some processing effort going on to do View Only so always have it limiting the number of leagues loaded.

I’ve never used view only either I don’t think, but I’m pretty sure that it’s got close to the same speeds as if it was on playable. For me view only is pointless, I either want to manage in the league or not. I guess it’s useful for giving you more players available to sign 

[Tommyboy062]

What database you using for the save ? 

 

[TerminalPortugal]

53 minutes ago, BoxToBoxFM said:

I’ve never used view only either I don’t think, but I’m pretty sure that it’s got close to the same speeds as if it was on playable. For me view only is pointless, I either want to manage in the league or not. I guess it’s useful for giving you more players available to sign 

Not sure it adds any players. I think that is why it is meant to stop adding processing times.

49 minutes ago, Tommyboy062 said:

What database you using for the save ? 

 

That is a complicated answer. It is a combination of databases, qwerty on Steam Workshop, Davetheeditors ones which i think can be found most FM websites and an FMScout one for New Zealand. However the issue is because of the update, none of these creators has updated the db to be verified by the new 22.4 update. So I needed to do that. Then I noticed that about 10 or so of those leagues as part of Davetheeditors and qwerty were broken so I had to fix them where I could. So it took me about 10 hours to get everything and more or less working, although probably still a bit buggy.

[BoxToBoxFM]

19 minutes ago, TerminalPortugal said:

Not sure it adds any players. I think that is why it is meant to stop adding processing times.

That is a complicated answer. It is a combination of databases, qwerty on Steam Workshop, Davetheeditors ones which i think can be found most FM websites and an FMScout one for New Zealand. However the issue is because of the update, none of these creators has updated the db to be verified by the new 22.4 update. So I needed to do that. Then I noticed that about 10 or so of those leagues as part of Davetheeditors and qwerty were broken so I had to fix them where I could. So it took me about 10 hours to get everything and more or less working, although probably still a bit buggy.

You’re probably right, I may look into it sometime. I know Zealand made a video about view only, think it was last year  

[TerminalPortugal]

Dear readers, we are gathered here today to remember a save game that has unfortunately passed onto the the afterlife. Met at the pearly gates by St. Maxim Tsigalko and St. To Madeira. We return this save game to the cyberspace of forgotten things.

The game keeps crashing at end of November, it had been crashing for the last few years but we did everything and managed to get through the years. This year however I have reinstalled the game, I have cleared the caches. I have verified the files of the game again. I have done everything but the save is dead. I am very sad about it, I will be back with something similar, with the vanilla leagues since I think it is likely the added leagues that are causing the issue.

Thanks to everyone who followed and read and sorry I couldn't keep this one going.

[BoxToBoxFM]

Noooo!

Always the risk with custom databases but you still got a good few seasons out of it and it was still very a very enjoyable save to follow along with. Was considering playing along myself at one point, good thing I didn’t!

Looking forward to what’s next!

[TerminalPortugal]

2 minutes ago, BoxToBoxFM said:

Noooo!

Always the risk with custom databases but you still got a good few seasons out of it and it was still very a very enjoyable save to follow along with. Was considering playing along myself at one point, good thing I didn’t!

Looking forward to what’s next!

Too true, I knew it was going to happen some time because the crashes were beginning to happen on the save before, but somehow we found a combination that somehow did not crash at the same date. Now I tried everything and it always crashes on the 28th November.

Think it is going to be similar just with the vanilla database. Just need to design the diagram and rethink what goes with what.

[BoxToBoxFM]

19 minutes ago, TerminalPortugal said:

Too true, I knew it was going to happen some time because the crashes were beginning to happen on the save before, but somehow we found a combination that somehow did not crash at the same date. Now I tried everything and it always crashes on the 28th November.

Think it is going to be similar just with the vanilla database. Just need to design the diagram and rethink what goes with what.

Could put them in order based off rankings, so top 5 European would be the top 5 and then probably Brazil and Argentina next, probably followed by Portugal etc. so it’s a similar concept to this one

[TerminalPortugal]

1 minute ago, BoxToBoxFM said:

Could put them in order based off rankings, so top 5 European would be the top 5 and then probably Brazil and Argentina next, probably followed by Portugal etc. so it’s a similar concept to this one

Yeah I am toying with something like this as you mention or still keeping the continents segmented. The main thing I am working out is the total number of points in the whole challenge and then reconfiguring the vanilla teams and seeing what the total number of points is, and then deciding whether I need to change what the points requirements to pass a stage needs to change. At the moment I am getting around 44,500 points to complete the challenge so I am thinking of perhaps keeping a similar total by either changing round amounts, having more gold stages or increasing where possible the number of stages i.e. in Europe. Working on it now, will probably work it out sometime later today and probably get the first post out.

[BadManager]

Frustrating no doubt, but I guess with only default nations it might be possible to complete. Oceania and Africa become somewhat limiting.

Another option might be to do it with leagues, not nations. That throws up all sorts of extra issues if you promote from a lower tier into a league which is out of the league stages. Suddenly you have to take a new job.

Points would need adjusting : more points for winning the main Cup from lower leagues, some points for promotions without winning the league. No continental competition available, so maybe a lower limit to call the stage one. I guess its not the same challenge either. So, on second thoughts, maybe not really a replacement.

 

edit: Just saw "2.1" is up.

Edited April 3, 2022 by BadManager