corinthiano Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 Here I am again with yet another thread - I will blame this on playing the same save for almost two years and then being to eager to play new ideas and not really thinking it through. So this time I have planned and tested it out, so if this one doesn't stick you can kick me out of the forum . I was looking for the following on a save: Playing in obscure countries and raising their profile Having diversity in the countries I picked so that it didn't feel samey moving across them Stitching the countries together across a common theme. This is where I came across the idea of doing a hexagon, but with the most sparsely populated countries in each continent. Some of these countries are huge, but their terrain is so harsh or they are that isolated that there is a lot of empty space. This does provide a pretty unique set of countries that will need some building up, some more than others. To change things up a bit I will also not be moving from weakest to strongest continent, instead we will go from the biggest to smallest population density. Here are the countries we will venture to: New Caledonia (Oceania): 292,100 people across 19,100km2 - 15.3 people per square kilometers Bolivia (South America): 12,388,571 people across 1,098,581km2 - 11.3 people per square kilometers Canada (North America): 38,782,292 people across 9,984,670km2 - 3.9 people per square kilometers Iceland (Europe): 375,319 people across 103,000km2 - 3.6 people per square kilometers Namibia (Africa): 2,604,172 people across 825,229km2 - 3.2 people per square kilometers Mongolia (Asia): 3,447,157 people across 1,564,116km2 - 2.2 people per square kilometers I will be starting unemployed with Sunday League Experience and no bages with the aptly named Khunbish Mongkebaghatur - which are Mongolian names and (i believe) mean "Not human" (Khunbish) "Eternal Brave Warrior" (Mongkebaghatur). There will be no specific rules other than following the list of countries as above and not moving until we win the continental cup in each of them. We can move move clubs freely as just getting these countries to be competitive will be a challenge in itself. Khunbish has already applied for jobs and found his first gig in New Caledonia. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 25 Author Share Posted January 25 New Caledonia New Caledonia is an archipelago and French Overseas territory located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, with the closest countries being Fiji to the East, New Zealand to the South, Australia to the West and Vanuatu to the North. The Territory is divided into three provinces, the North and South Province in the main island "Grande Terre" and a Loyalty Islands Province that encompasses the three smaller main islands. A British Explorer first discovered the main island and name it New Caledonia as the north of the island reminded him of Scotland, however it was the French under Napoleon in 1853 that took formal possession of the island. It was used primarily as a penal colony at first, with over 22,000 prisoners being sent there until 1897, although the majority returned to France instead of settling in the colony. Nickel was discovered in the island in 1864 and the French brought in laborers from other countries for mining, largely excluding the native Kanak people, which wre confined to reserves. Revolts were attempted across the years but the indigenous population suffered as a result of new diseases and their population declined and would only grow again in the 1930s. In 1946 New Caledonia became a French Overseas Territory and all citizens became eligible for French citizenship. There has been a movement since to make a New Caledonia and independent country, but three referendums were held, and despite some being controversial the decision has remained to stay a French territory. New Caledonia has one of the strongest economies in the pacific due to French financial help and the fact 25% of the world's Nickel being located on their territory. Despite it being located in the Pacific with plenty of scenery, tourism is underdeveloped compared to other countries in the region, with only around 100k visitors per year. Football in New Caledonia Football has popularity in New Caledonia due to French influence, but the size and location of the country limit its global impact. New Caledonia only became a member of FIFA in 2004, but have been part of OFC for longer and have always participated in the OFC Nations Cup. They are one of the strongest countries in the region, having been runners-up and third twice in the OFC Nations Cup. They highest ever FIFA ranking was 95th back in 2008. At club level there has been a top flight running sporadically since 1950 and continuously since 1993. Currently the New Caledonia Super League is the highest league in a 4-tier structure. AS Magenta is the most succesful club at domestic level, having won 12 titles. They reached the final of the OFC Champions League once, but lost to compatriots Hienghène Sport, who are only one of two teams outside of Australia and New Zealand to win the trophy. You can see that both sides are the most reputable in the country and the only two with 1.5 stars. You can probably also see that the third most reputable club have got a new manager in place... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 25 Author Share Posted January 25 (edited) Association Sportive Lössi Association Sportive Lössi, or AS Lössi, are a team from the capital of New Caledonia, Nouméa. Despite being established in 1963 they did not have success until 2008 when they won their first of 3 Coupe Nouvelle-Calédonie, the top domestic cup competition in the country. They have never won the top flight, having finished runners-up in 2014 and 2016. They play their games at the Stade Numa-Daly, which is where most top clubs from the city play in. Season Preview The league is pretty straightforward with teams playing each other twice for a total of 22 games. The top two make the Champions League and the bottom two are relegated. 7th to 10th do go into a Relegation Playoff so it could be easy to slip into danger. The board want a mid-table finish and the media have us at 4th which will do nicely as there seems to be a gap to the big two and Tiga Sport who won the league last year. Finances Seems like a healthy bank balance, lets see if money get drained here although I suspect it is limited by the small wage budget we have. Transfers In Out There was very little wage budget and time left before the transfer window shut, so only two players were brought in to bolster us up front at right back. The loan out was already arranged when we arrived at the club. First XI The squad is pretty thin and we will need to rely on youngsters as back-ups, but the first XI feels pretty decent for this level. Top Rated Players Exactly the sort of left back I like in my team, could be a great attacking threat and is still young. Also a good young player, seems to be the best striker at the club. The veteran in the squad, seems to be more suited to be a Mezzala, but we dont have a lot of options at AP so it is probably where he will play. Initial Fixtures A tough game to start life at the club and another potentially trick fixture away before we host promoted side AS Qanono Sports. Edited January 26 by corinthiano Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KibworthBull Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 Looking forward to this. I know full well the frustration of moving on from an epic save. Nothing ever compares to it. Until you find the next one... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 25 Author Share Posted January 25 26 minutes ago, KibworthBull said: Looking forward to this. I know full well the frustration of moving on from an epic save. Nothing ever compares to it. Until you find the next one... Thanks, hoping this is the one! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 25 Author Share Posted January 25 March 2023 I did not expect us to start the way we did, especially with the few additions to the squad, but it has been mostly comfortable so far including beating big boys Hienghène Sport. Surprisingly them and AS Magenta had terrible starts and have lost all their games so far. What made me a bit less surprised about our start was the number of international players we had called-up (below) - 11 in total with 5 in the Senior side, no wonder we are a decent team. Last surprise will be the points - I checked continental qualification and rules in my test but missed the fact that here we have 4 points for a win, 2 for a draw and 1 for a defeat, which certainly will make things interesting to try and comprehend Next Fixtures Interesting challenge this month as we play the other 3 teams in the top 4, will be a good test to see if we are the real deal or not! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 26 Author Share Posted January 26 April 2023 We are absolutely steamrolling the league, easily getting past our supposed challengers. The only blip was against Horizon Patho where our finishing was off and in the end we were lucky to equalize at the end. AS Mont-Dore took a drubbing from us but continue to win though to keep on our tails. Next Fixtures Ne Drehu away could be tricky as they are third, but despite us playing against AS Magenta I expect the other games to be straightforward. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 26 Author Share Posted January 26 May 2023 Nice and comfortable at the top now as we go through the month without defeat again. The only dropped points are at Ne Drehu, which I thought would be a tricky fixture. AS Mont-Dore has also dropped a few points and we now have a nice cushion at the top with 8 points. Next Fixtures The schedule gets lighter for June and July, but two potentially tough away games in June. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 27 Author Share Posted January 27 June 2023 Both games this month were tight as expected and we did really well to come away with two wins. Dumbéa FC also did their part and are still 8 points behind us, but AS Mont-Dore seem to have collapsed. Next Fixtures A quiet month again but this time we make our cup debut against lower league opposition. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 27 Author Share Posted January 27 July 2023 Some big wins this month which is kind of expected when you play two Amateur sides in the cup and the bottom team in the league gets a player sent off within the first 10 minutes. Dumbéa FC drew a league game so we can stretch the lead to 10 points if we win our game in hand. Next Fixtures It is another lower division side in the Quarter-Final of the cup but it seems to be a stronger side than the last two. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 27 Author Share Posted January 27 August/September 2023 I accidently played through the first game of September so just followed through until the end of the month. We were starting to get complacent and payed the price with two abject performances, one denying us an earlier league title and another to dump us out of the cup at the semi-final stage. Luckily we bounced back from that with a win to seal the league with two games to go! Next Fixtures We now have to wait a bit until we can close our league campaign, hopefully with a couple of positive results. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 28 Author Share Posted January 28 October/November We finish the campaign with another two solid wins and lead the the league by 13 points, which is a lot even with 4 points for a win Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 28 Author Share Posted January 28 (edited) 2023 Season Review I thought we could challenge for the title this season, but I didnt think we would be so dominant. We were brilliant all year bar a couple of blips and won the league comofortably. One of those blips was in the cup, which was a shame not to have won too considering our dominance. What was also surprising was to see the supposed big clubs struggling, with record winner AS Magenta eventually being relegated in the promotion/relegation playoff. Squad by Appearances With a short and spaced out league and our luck with no injuries we ended up using very few players, with 6 playing every minute of the campaign and only 18 players used all year. Best XI Top Performers The veteran was a machine, it is not often you see a centre mid being top scorer, let alone at a ratio of one per game. His influence did diminish towards the end of the season though so he may decline soon and not be as dominant next season. I thought he would be good for us and I wasnt wrong, such a creative force down the left for us. Claude was equally good down the right as our full backs had an excellent year. Finances Decent profit for the year and budget are up which gives us room to make a couple of signings for next season. Progress Great start, it will be interesting to see next season how we do in the OFC Champions League. Edited January 28 by corinthiano Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 28 Author Share Posted January 28 2024 Season Preview The media now has us as clear favorites for the title and we have 5 players in the Dream Eleven. The board is still only expecting a top half finish which eases the pressure, and they want us to reach the Group Stage of the OFC Champions League and Semi-Final of the cup. Transfers In Out With the increase in budgets we did a lot of early deals to improve the squad and also added some African flavor to our team. On the outgoing front we clear some of the fringe players. The Tahitian is only a slight improvement in goal but on a free and at these low wages I had to sign him. Great signing, the young Somali international will be a huge improvement at the back for us. Good signing from one of our Super Ligue rivals, will play as DLP for us. Kinda regret this one, the veteran is better than the declining Wamowe, but he isnt really suited to the way we play. Our best signing from the relegated AS Magenta, will be our AP. Gives us more options up front but is not a guaranteed starter. Best XI Dont entirely agree with the assistant as I would have Bako instead of Wamowe in the midefield diamond and I am not sure why he has not got Wadela as right back. Initial Fixtures The OFC Champions League has a qualifier between the teams in the same country before it goes into the Group Stages. We should be beating Dumbéa FC but they did win 3-0 against us at their place last season which makes me a little uneasy. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 28 Author Share Posted January 28 February 2024 It was a lot closer than I would like, we were up 3-0 and 4-2 in the first leg but Dumbéa FC kept getting back at us and with the away goal rule in place I was not feeling great for the second leg. There again we took the lead on two separate occasions just for them to get back at us within 5 minutes each time. This led to a nervy last few minutes but we held on to make it to the Group Stages! There we will play Oceania giants Auckland City, it will be tough but I am not sure where we stand with the other teams. Next Fixtures The OFC Champions League is played in a neutral venue in May so nothing on that front until then, but it does mean we will have some mid-week games to make up for that and they stat this month already. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KibworthBull Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Eek Auckland City straight off the bat. Tough. At least you'll get a guide as to the toughest task from the start 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 29 Author Share Posted January 29 10 hours ago, KibworthBull said: Eek Auckland City straight off the bat. Tough. At least you'll get a guide as to the toughest task from the start Yes it will be good to see where we are against them. New Caledonia is one of the stronger countries in Oceania so hopefully it’s not a huge gap we have to close! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristianT Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 Your two top scorers played midfield. Is that just a one off or something to do with tactics? Looking forward to following this career. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 30 Author Share Posted January 30 1 hour ago, KristianT said: Your two top scorers played midfield. Is that just a one off or something to do with tactics? Looking forward to following this career. Thanks! It is mostly a one off as I havent changed my usual tactics. It is not uncommon for my AP (Cathala) to outscore my DLF, where we rotated between Niemi and Hmaen, but I have never had the Mezzala score as much as Wamowe did. He was on penalties and free kicks which helped him (12 pens scored!), but even so maintaining a goal per game ratio from center mid is impressive. Willy Read, our AF, also underperformed last season - I would have expected him to score more than 10 goals. He has picked up his form this season though and is already on 13 from 7 games! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted January 30 Author Share Posted January 30 (edited) March 2024 I didnt think we could start better than we did last year but I guess I was wrong. We are scoring for fun and very easily beating what is in front us. 5 points ahead of second place after 5 games is great! The only downer of the month was losing RB Claude Wadela for the rest of the season due to damaged cruciate ligaments. We have depth in the position but not anyone quite as strong going forward as him. Next Fixtures A busy month as we play the re-scheduled OFC Champions League games in advance of us heading to Vanuatu in May. Edited January 30 by corinthiano 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 1 Author Share Posted February 1 April 2024 Some tougher and closer games this month, including a first loss of the season. We are still miles ahead of second place though. Next Fixtures One more game in the Super League before we travel to Vanuatu for the OFC Champions League, where we start with the toughest fixture. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 1 Author Share Posted February 1 May 2024 A crazy game in the Super Ligue before we embarked to Vanuatu. There we shocked Auckland City with a solid performance, edging a win despite being second best on the day. The rest of the opposition was pretty straightforward and it was clear we would have to beat Auckland City again to claim the Champions League. We took the lead again in the final, but they quickly turned the game around. We did well to peg them back twice, but with 10 mins to go Ketjijere lost possession on the edge of our box and Auckland City penalized us. They deserved to win the competition but it was encouraging to see that the gap to them is not huge, a couple more improvements and we can give it another real go next season. Next Fixtures We now go a month without games so I'll update again at the end of July after we have hopefully made it past a couple of rounds in the cup. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KibworthBull Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 So close. Keep them Kiwi's in sight and hunt them down 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 2 Author Share Posted February 2 June/July 2024 We keep our march towards the title by beating 2nd place Ne Drehu at their place and a narrow win over Hienghène Sport. I think we need 2-3 more wins and we wrap it up. We are also in the Quarter Finals of the cup after a couple of convincing wins. Transfers Out New Caledonia has a short mid-season transfer window were only one local transfer can be made. We didnt find anyone worth singing but Nemia did fall down the pecking order up front and started complaining, so off to the recently relegated AS Wetr he went. Next Fixtures A tricky Quarter Final in the cup and whilst Dumbéa are not doing great this season, they did beat us 3-0 in the league last year. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 2 Author Share Posted February 2 August 2024 A surprisingly easy Cup quarter final was followed by a tired display as we lose at Dumbéa FC for a second straight year. Still looking good for the title with 6 games to go. Next Fixtures In theory an easy month as we play teams near the bottom of the table, could well seal the title and a place in the cup final this month. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 2 Author Share Posted February 2 September 2024 We were not as dominant as I would have liked, but Willy Read continues to score pretty much every game and we seal the title with three games to go! In the cup we should have won it in normal time, but held on our nerves and will play the recently relegated giant AS Magenta in the final. Next Fixtures Cup final first, and strangely away instead of at a Neutral venue. Then we just need to wrap up the league campaign. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 3 Author Share Posted February 3 October/November 2024 A nice easy cup final win to seal the double was a good way to start the month. From there it was cruise control and another three wins to ensure a record points, wins and goals totals in the league. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 3 Author Share Posted February 3 2024 Season Review An almost perfect season as we claim a very dominant domestic double. Despite losing the final of the OFC Champions League to Auckland City it was pleasing to have beaten them in the Group Stage and gives us optimism to win this trophy in the near term. Spare a thought for Dumbéa FC who went from runners-up last season to relegated this season, considering they have beaten us two years in a row I will not miss them. Squad by Appearances We used a few more players this season with the increase in games and a few more injuries, but still had a very defined first XI, other than a couple of shifts in central defence and midfield. Best XI Top Performers We have to start with him, somewhat underwhelming last year but turned into an absolute goal machine this season with a goal every 61 minutes. The strikers did shine this season. When I signed Christopher I did not see him as an automatic starter on ability but he comfortably claimed his place in the first XI with consistently good performances and a very good goal return for a DLF in our tactic. Perhaps the reason our strikers didnt shine last year was because we didnt have a strong AP? Drawilo was a huge improvement in the position. Finances Looking very good with the extra OFC Champions League money and an additional $50k in sponsorship. With a decent wage and transfer budget increase for next season we'll be able to further improve the squad and I will look to do so as soon as possible. Progress Domestic domination continues, now we just need to go one step further in Oceania to be able to move. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 3 Author Share Posted February 3 The board has been less than receptive to any request I have made, but I was finally able to push one improvement through. We are up to Average Youth Recruitment Network now. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 3 Author Share Posted February 3 2025 Season Preview We are now overwhelming favorites to win the league and the board also expect us to retain the league and cup, as well as get far in the OFC Champions League. Our team is also dominating the Media Eleven and you will notice some not so Oceanian sounding names. Transfers In Out With more money and more visibility we suddenly had Latin American players show up and be interested in joining us. We signed some extremely talented players but it has ruffled some feathers amongst the squad, so I would not be surprised if a few players left in the next month, Hnautra Enoka was the first unhappy one out. These players will be in or around the first XI: We double our Somalian contingent as Farah comes in to challenge at right back. An excellent signing, was actually brought in to help our other Brazilian signing. There are some decent players in the Solomon Islands and Alford is one of them, challenging for the DLP spot. Our star signing, so good for this league and Oceania and only 18. Another great signing, controversially takes Willy Read's spot. Completes the Latin front two. Best XI We should do really well with this squad if we can overcome the initial outrage over the new signings. Initial Fixtures We start with OFC Champions League qualifiers and should be able to get through Ne Drehu comfortably. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 3 Author Share Posted February 3 (edited) February 2025 A lot of new signings meant we were not very fluid, but did enough over the two legs to get through. Willy Read is still showing how important he is. The Group Stage has a familiar look to it, but with a big difference. Yes, you are seeing Wellington Phoenix in our Group. No, they should not be playing here. This was a bug I saw when I did the testing on the database but ended up being OK with. Wellington Phoenix sometimes qualify and whilst not ideal it does make the challenge harder, which is a good thing - kinda. Next Fixtures Will be interesting to see if it takes the team some time to gel, once they do we will be unstoppable in the league. Edited February 3 by corinthiano Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KibworthBull Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 Did Wellington qualify for the Asian Champs Lge as well - presumably they did well in Oz Lge Or did Asian CL run with 1 short? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vakama2619 Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 4 hours ago, KibworthBull said: Did Wellington qualify for the Asian Champs Lge as well - presumably they did well in Oz Lge Or did Asian CL run with 1 short? Phoenix can't qualify for AFC CL, it usually just qualifies the next best team Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corinthiano Posted February 4 Author Share Posted February 4 6 hours ago, KibworthBull said: Did Wellington qualify for the Asian Champs Lge as well - presumably they did well in Oz Lge Or did Asian CL run with 1 short? 2 hours ago, Vakama2619 said: Phoenix can't qualify for AFC CL, it usually just qualifies the next best team Correct Phoenix can’t qualify for the ACL and they haven’t done so in game. Their second team plays in the NZ league so I am assuming they must have qualified through that team…which probably isn’t accurate but we’ll see what we can do to beat them. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now