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FM24 - Basquing in Bayonne


ToMexico!!
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December 2025

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Just two games this month as we defeated the New Caledonian side Hienghene in the cup before we beat third-placed side Entente Feignies 4-2. We face Ligue One side Clermont Foot in the 9th Round. 

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We remain in 7th into the new year. We're eight points above the relegation zone. 

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January 2026

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We were no match for Clermont as they ran out 3-0 winners, but £20k gate receipts and £10k TV Money helped soften the blow. A good, solid win over Furiani-Agliani before an impressive draw away at 3rd placed Beziers. 

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Back up to 5th based on results before goal difference. 

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February 2026

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A decent month with four more points gained. It could have been much better though, we had three goals disallowed against Dinan Lehon. 

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We drop down to 7th but have a five-point gap to 8th place. 

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May 2026 - Season Review

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A really good end to the season with an unbeaten May, we beat 3rd placed Biesheim, drew with relegated Sable and then beat 1st placed Montpellier 2. 

French National 2 Group D - 4th - predicted to finish mid-table by the media and asked to avoid relegation by the board, we've done extremely well to finish in fourth place. Its probably a false position in all honesty, this squad shouldn't be finishing in the top half let alone in fourth place. We scored 41 which was the 7th most in the league but only conceded 29 which was the joint 2nd least, I would have to put our performances down to a more solid defence than those around us. 

French Cup - 9th Round - another solid showing in the cup, we beat Biscarosse, Chataigneraie Vendee, Creteil-Lusitanos and New Caledonian side Hienghene Sport en route to a battle with Clermont. The Ligue 1 side were far too good and beat us comfortably 3-0. 

Top Scorer - Mickael Fari (15) - leaner times for Fari but in a tougher division, still 15 goals in respectable with all coming in the league and that saw him finish 3rd in the goal-scoring chart. 

Most Assists - Cameron Sainte-Rose (7) - one of two players to achieve seven assists, the winger did it in fewer games though. 

Ave. Rating - Cameron Sainte-Rose (7.13) - Cameron also managed four goals and two POM awards. 

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We didn't last in the black for long. Despite our average attendance increasing from 621 last season to 1055 this season and the increase in ticket prices, we've struggled for money. And, despite having had three takeovers in as many seasons, the two newest chairmans have only got bank loans to clear the balance debt. 

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July 2026 - Pre-Season

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A pretty decent pre-season despite only playing lower-league sides. 

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Two players arrive; Iban Vazquez joins from Colomiers on a free transfer to act as another backup striker and we pay a small but record fee for Stanislas Salles from Egues to be back up for both LB and LW. 

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We've been predicted up in 5th place which I don't think Lightning can strike twice, can it? We have Bordeaux 2 and Toulouse 2 now as well as Montpellier 2 who won the division last season but couldn't be promoted. Vendee Herbiers are favourites and have a couple of million-pound players in their ranks including Ukrainian Viktor Kovalenko. 

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August 2026

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A good start to the season, beating Montpellier 2 on the opening day of the season before a solitary set-piece goal beat Biesheim. A loss to Entente followed but we should have gotten at least a point as we were the better side. An Iban Vazquez hattrick sealed the three points against promoted Gueugnon, he was in for the injured Fari. 

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2nd after the four games. 

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October 2026

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Just three games this month with just one of those in the league, a win over Loon-Plage. We needed penalties to beat Gruissan in the cup before we smashed six past Dax. 

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Up to 2nd, a false position in my eyes. 

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November 2026

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Two more wins in the league as we beat Evian and Bergerac. We lost to strong Toulouse 2 and Vendee Herbiers sides, no shame in those losses. We also won in the French Cup again as we beat Guadeloupe side Jeunesse Evolution 4-0, the tie was over in the first half. 

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We drop down to 4th with Beziers up next. 

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January 2027

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We spent most of the month rejecting derisory bids for Iosu Madariaga from the likes of Versailles and Dunkerque, which made him unhappy and we rejected a transfer request from him. On the pitch Bordeaux sent us out of the cup and Montpellier 2 also put three past us. We improved towards the end of the month as we drew wth Biesheim and then beat Entente Feignies. 

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5th, level on points with Bordeaux 2 and Toulouse 2 above us. 

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March & April 2027

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A couple of good months with two wins and two draws, the win over Toulouse 2 was especially satisfying. 

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We're nowhere near ready to go up, we have three games remaining which will decide our fate. 

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May 2027 - Season Review

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Any chance of promotion was scuppered against Bergerac. We improved to beat Vendee Herbiers and left it late for a point against Beziers. 

National 2 Group D - 4th - Our biggest problem was scoring goals, we'd only scored 23 goals after 18 games, we improved to end the season having scored 39. Our defence was pretty good, 28 goals conceded was the 3rd least. 

French Cup - 9th Round - Gruissan, Dax, Jeunesse Evolution and Beziers beaten before Bordeaux beat us. 

Top Scorer - Stanislas Salles (14) - the summer arrival from Egues scored 14 goals mainly from LW. 

Most Assists - Cameron Sainte-Rose (8) - a second successive season as the player with the most assists.

Ave. Rating - Stanislas Salles (7.30) - Stan also made seven assists and was given POM six times. 

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Talk of the takeover has quietened but we need it to clear the debt. We also have an issue that Madariaga (CB) and Imaz (GK) are both wanted, they could bring in some much-needed cash but weaken us severely. 

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July 2027 - Pre-Season

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A pretty decent pre-season overall with just one loss against Rennes 2. 

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Just one player joins the club, Louis Badier from Salamanca on loan, the young centre-back will rotate into the first XI. 

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Predicted down a few places in 7th. We've been joined by Nantes 2 and Angers 2, two promoted sides predicted up in the top three. 

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August 2027

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A pretty decent opening month with just one loss to Nantes 2 who have some pretty decent players available to them. Fari scored three goals this month which was 50% of the total league goals he scored last season. 

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5th place at this early stage. 

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I currently have a Bilbao save on the go so really interesting following your save. 

Once I am home I will post a link of a few French Basque regens I have came through the academy so far.

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4 minutes ago, Skora11 said:

I currently have a Bilbao save on the go so really interesting following your save. 

Once I am home I will post a link of a few French Basque regens I have came through the academy so far.

The save is struggling to bring them through at the Spanish sides, it seems to have dried up since the first intake. I'm going to persevere as I'm enjoying the save but I may have to select another nation like Comoros or Seychelles and bring their players in to help strengthen and improve the side. 

I look forward to seeing your newgens. 

Edited by ToMexico!!
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September 2027

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A great month with three wins from three. Fari should have had a hattrick against Bergerac but had two goals disallowed. I managed to get Madariaga to sign a new contract, it was a 3-year deal with the option for a further three years. He scored twice against Biesheim which saw him take his tally to 9 goals in 50 games from CB. 

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Second behind the unbeaten Montpellier 2. 

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4 hours ago, ToMexico!! said:

The save is struggling to bring them through at the Spanish sides, it seems to have dried up since the first intake. I'm going to persevere as I'm enjoying the save but I may have to select another nation like Comoros or Seychelles and bring their players in to help strengthen and improve the side. 

I look forward to seeing your newgens. 

Here is my wonderkid French Basque. Although he was born in Bilbao.

 

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October 2027

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A goal-fest of a month with 16 scored in four games, albeit 11 of those coming against smaller clubs in the cup. A probably expected loss against Montpellier 2, Salles breaks the club goalscoring record with four goals against Pertuis and another two against APM Metz. 

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Montpellier 2 opening up a gap at the top. 

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2 minutes ago, Skora11 said:

Here is my wonderkid French Basque. Although he was born in Bilbao.

 

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He looks class, I would love to have someone as half as good as him to pop through at the club. I look forward to seeing any more that come though for you. 

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November 2027

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A surprise loss against Redon but probably deserved in the end. A comfortable win in the cup to advance to the 8th Round where we will face Aigues-Mortes. Only one goal was needed to down Toulouse 2, in an even game that we edged. A Mickael Fari hattrick sealed the three points and took his tally to nine for the season. 

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Montpellier 2 remain unbeaten. 

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December 2027

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Unceremonially dumped from the cup by Aigues-Mortes, our downfall was rotating the squad. We beat Trelissac in the last game of the year, a few days later than scheduled due to a waterlogged pitch. 

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We end the year in 2nd place behind the still-unbeaten Montpellier 2. 

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January 2028

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A big win over Nantes 2 in the opening game of 2028 before a solid draw against Vendee Herbiers. 

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The table includes an early Feb game. A small gap has opened up to 3rd. 

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We're going to lose first-choice goalkeeper Sergio Imaz to Ligue 2 side Dunkerque, it's going to be a huge loss. 

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February 2028

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A good month could have been a great one had we not lost narrowly to Bergerac. A goal-shy month thanks to Mickael Fari being out for 5/6 weeks with an ankle injury, thankfully we still have Salles on the left wing. 

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Montpellier 2 are running away with it but thankfully we're still clinging onto 2nd place, if we'd beaten or drawn Bergerac we'd have been so much better off. 

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March 2028

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A good month with two wins especially over Montpellier 2 which was actually their first defeat of the season. 

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I think Bergerac would go above us if the level things up on points with us. It's head-to-head results that they would be ahead on just 3-2 on aggregate and then goal difference. 

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April 2028

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A poorer month with just one win in three, we were lucky against APM Metz as we were dominated by the home side. We then dominated by Redon at home and we probably should have lost. We were really poor against Toulouse, amassing just 0.37xG and our goal was scored by them. 

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The loss against Toulouse has allowed Bergerac to close the gap back to three points. We have two games remaining against 9th and 10th-placed teams. 

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May 2028 - Season Review

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Two late goals against Wasquehal all but sealed promotion, and four goals without reply did so even though Trelissac made it nervy bringing it back to 4-3. 

National 2 - Group D - 2nd (Promoted) - An unlikely promotion considering the squad but we're like a band of brothers, we stuck together and battled. The season was built more on the defence with just 29 conceded which was the second least behind league winners Montpellier 2. 

French Cup - 8th Round - Isle-en-Dodon, Pertuis and USC Dijon were all beaten before Aigues-Mortaise beat us. 

Top Scorer - Stanislas Salles (19) - a consistent performer across the season, played mostly at LW but also deputised at LB.

Most Assists - Cameron Sainte-Rose (15) - the right winger has outperformed his attributes for a couple of seasons now. 

Ave. Rating - Stanislas Salles (7.29) - as well as his 19 goals he managed nine assists and is wanted by 14 clubs including Bordeaux, Troyes and Clermont. 

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A fourth takeover didn't materialise but the board did stick £110k in twice to help the club but it was to no avail as we kept losing money hand over fist. 

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Even with promotion, we're struggling to bring players in to improve the squad. Our options are very limited. So, I've decided that I will expand our options...I've opted to be able to sign players whose second nationality is from those nations that can play in the Coupe de France. 

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I've made shortlists for these nations (except St Pierre & Miquelon, as there aren't any players). This should give us enough scope to improve the squad and thus compete in the French National. The players I sign must have French as the first nation with one of those countries as second nationality. 

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11 minutes ago, albertluque said:

I beg one day SI allow custom transfer rules at clubs. 

 

This is a tough challenge. Good luck. Will read!

Is it not possible in the editor, I'm no good with the thing so wouldn't know where to start if it could be done. 

It is a tough challenge so much so I've had to alter the rules for it already. Relegation back to the 4th tier is a real possibility this season, our better players are all wanted and our starting GK is on his way already anyway. 

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15 hours ago, ToMexico!! said:

Is it not possible in the editor, I'm no good with the thing so wouldn't know where to start if it could be done. 

It is a tough challenge so much so I've had to alter the rules for it already. Relegation back to the 4th tier is a real possibility this season, our better players are all wanted and our starting GK is on his way already anyway. 

I do think that Athletic themselves have been more flexible with their rules. I'm sure it's now players who are born or produced in the Basque Country - see this section (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletic_Bilbao_signing_policy#Players_from_outside_the_region) - although it does **** off a lot of the fans.

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16 hours ago, ToMexico!! said:

Even with promotion, we're struggling to bring players in to improve the squad. Our options are very limited. So, I've decided that I will expand our options...I've opted to be able to sign players whose second nationality is from those nations that can play in the Coupe de France. 

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I've made shortlists for these nations (except St Pierre & Miquelon, as there aren't any players). This should give us enough scope to improve the squad and thus compete in the French National. The players I sign must have French as the first nation with one of those countries as second nationality. 

Is there a reason why you wouldn’t open it up to signing Spanish Basque players?

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1 hour ago, albertluque said:

I do think that Athletic themselves have been more flexible with their rules. I'm sure it's now players who are born or produced in the Basque Country - see this section (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletic_Bilbao_signing_policy#Players_from_outside_the_region) - although it does **** off a lot of the fans.

Didn't realise it had changed to a degree. 

8 minutes ago, corinthiano said:

Is there a reason why you wouldn’t open it up to signing Spanish Basque players?

Because I wanted that French angle, I wanted a limitation to the save that didn't allow me the choice of thousands of players to choose from which Spanish Basque would give me. 

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