[FM10] Scottish Hero - Forfar Athletic - 10.3 Update

[marksablade]

Hey, now I do know my last Career Update failed but I’m aiming to get this one going seeing as I have an achievement to aim for. So my aim is to see how close I can get to this Scottish Hero achievement on Steam. Never managed in Scotland before and really looking forward to the challenge. Not got any of the ‘Hero’ achievements yet or for that matter, never got promoted since the 08 Version. In the saves I have done, I haven’t done too well, so don’t be surprised if this ends up the same, but nevertheless I will keep updating no matter how bad I do. Now I’m unsure what I will do if I am sacked, heaven forbid that happens though. Now enjoy . . .

Well on there 125th Anniversary Forfar Athletic appoint new manager Mark Swift, he is given a 2 year contract, basic wage. His aim is too take this team to the dizzy heights of Europe. He believes that with patience they shall get there. His first aim though is to get the team into the Premier League and keep them there before he challenges the likes of Celtic and Rangers. He knows he has work to do and knows that it may not plan out like he wanted but he is willing to give it his best. On a very minimal budget of 5k transfer budget and 2.4k wage budget with the team spending 2k on wages already, he knows its not going to plain sailing. But hey ho, this is what we have to work with and I'm really looking forward to get going. Hope there is interest

Version: 10.3.0 Update

Leagues Loaded: Argentina (Premier Division) | Austrailia (Hyundai A-League) | Belgium (Pro League) | Brazil (Third Division) | England (Blue Square North/South) | France (CFA) | Germany (First Division) | Greece (Superleague) | Holland (Eredvisie) | Italy (Serie C2) | Portugal (Liga Sagres) | Scotland (Third Division) | Spain (Second Division B) | Turkey (Premier Division) | USA (MLS)

Database Size: Medium

Approximate Player Count: 80,000

Game Start Date: Scotland June 2009

[Manager Milney]

Good luck. i'm playing a similar save with montrose also in the Scottish 3rd divsion. mid way first season dead middle of the league in 5th.

[CAFCIan75]

Good luck with Forfar Mark. Scotland is somewhere I have never really considered managing before so I will keep on this and maybe I will get inspired!

[Feedolover]

I did a Forfar save with the 10.2 database.

Won the play-offs first year, finished bottom the second and mid table the third.

[marksablade]

Cheers for your comments guys, now I dont know the average speed for monthly updates, e.g on average people do a month every 2/3 days but I think mine may be every 5/6 days because I dont go on Football Manager 24/7. But I am just about at the end of July so hopefully my first update will be tonight. Any criticism is welcome oh and if your kind enough any praises are welcome lets just say any comments what so ever are welcome, wether your slagging me off completly or labeling me a Hero (which won't happen )

edit: good luck manager milney with your Montrose save, you can keep doing little updates on this thread if you want, e.g. I'm 2nd in the league with 10 games to play and I've just loaned such and such, or make them bigger if you want, or dont do them at all

[StewartJRobertson]

Following this with interest

[marksablade]

Cheers Stewart, I was worrying for abit that no-one would follow!

Will definatly try and doo a july update tonight cos I have some free time on my hands! Woo

[FM andy]

Best of luck Mark,after reading this I will have to post my Jena on the FM Forums now:)

[marksablade]

andy your Jena one will take like 4 hours (like you said)

but would love to read it, forgot what happend in the lower divisions

[FM andy]

I have forgot a fair bit Mark,but I am sure once I read back through the transfers in and out it will come flooding back to me.

[Nobby_McDonald]

I played with Forfar in the Zealot Clan, I think it was on FM07. They were rubbish.

[marksablade]

July 2009 - First month in charge

July 2nd: Loan repayments to begin, paying 1k per monthly, towards the 45k bank loan.

July 5th:Forfar Athletic sign former Blade, Bobby Ford on a 1 year full time contract, £90 p/w, Player/Assistant manager.

July 6th:Raphael Nade joins on 4 week trial. | League Cup first round draw: Partick Thistle vs Forfar Athletic, so first division against third, lovely. | Challenge cup first round draw: Forfar Athletic vs Ross County, so again against a first division club, and I even cancelled a friendly against them, they obviously really wanted to play me

July 8th: Friendly match!

Forfar Athletic 1 - 2 Doncaster Rovers (Bryan Deasley 9, James Coppinger 30, Paul Heffernan 90+4)

Both teams lined-up in the same formation, a 4-5-1. We started off well by taking the lead, but then the quality set in and we just had to defend defend defend! They dominated the game and we couldn’t get up the pitch. Anytime we did get up, they would hit us on the counter. Only one shot on target compared to Doncaster’s 8. There winning goal was sleepy defending, route one, goal keeper hits it up field, Heffernan gets away from his marker and scores the goal. Shame really, we defender okay all game then to loose in last minute, still never the less good result.

July 7th: Steve Claridge rejects a contract offer of Player/Coach but says he is willing to listen to an improved offer.

July 11th: Friendly match!

Haddington Athletic 0 - 3 Forfar Athletic (Ian Campbell pen 2, Chris Templeman 15, Stephen Tulloch 39)

A solid performance against a team I really expected to beat. A little bit disappointed that we didn’t keep scoring the goals but never the less we created decent chances and trialist Raphael Nade had a brilliant game assisting one of the goals with a delightful run and cross. Only got two more friendlies and both against Coca-Cola Championship opposition. Then two cup games before the start of the season.

July 12th: Signed Steve Claridge (the pundit from The Football League Show) on a player/coach contract.

July 14th: Friendly match!

Forfar Athletic 0 - 2 Peterborough United (Aaron Mclean 28, Gabriel Zakuani 38)

The score line doesn’t say enough. It was poor finishing from Peterborough, I can't even come out and say we defended strong because we didn’t, unless you call a box with 11 defenders just trying to block the ball good defending then fair enough. They cleaned the table, the wiped the floor, whatever you want too say, Peterborough United dominated the game, 16 shots, 8 on target, 55% possession. That doesn’t even make it look the game it was. To be fair, I'm in the Scottish third division there in the Coca-Cola Championship.

July 14th: I get Hearts as a parent club and they plan the loan of 17 year old Edvinas Petkus (Midfield Centre)

July 15th: Edvinas Petkus joins on a season long loan from Hearts

July 16th: Zander Sutherland an AMRL 21 year old from Buckie Thistle signs a 2 year contract for a fee of nothing!

July 20th: Friendly match!

Forfar Athletic 0 - 3 Barnsley (Daniel Bogdanovic 25, Adam Hammill 30, 41)

This reminds me of my friendly against Haddington, wait no it doesn’t. Sum this friendly up, goal goal goal, where done. Although they did have 17 shots on goal but worryingly for them only 5 were on target. They never threatened until they scored then 3 quick goals game over in every sense of the word. Yes they kept shooting but appallingly so. Well friendlies over, not too disappointed, 2 cup games before the league starts, expecting to get hammered in both seen as the teams are 2 leagues above me.

July 25th: Challenge Cup 1st Round

Forfar Athletic 1 - 2 Ross County AET (Bryan Deasley 90+3, Iain Vigurs 13, Michael Gardyne 105+1)

We battled hard in this game, really gave it our all, but only in defence. When I went one down I feared the floodgates would open but they didn’t, but that was because we never got forward and just like against the Championship sides in the friendlies we put everyone in the box and defended. We scored in the last minute, from a corner, well it was headed out then played around a bit and it was a well taken finish. But really that was our only chance of the game. Then extra time I were thinking beaut I can go in 15 min left set out all defensively hold our for penalties because there is no chance were scoring then 1 more before half time in extra time, goal, there weren’t even any added minutes on Again we had a chance, right at the end, just like the equalizer except we didn’t score. Never the less a brilliant result because they were 2 divisions above me and I expected to get hammered especially after that first goal went in.

Here is my tactic I play for anyone that is interested.

In other news. . .

I will not be signing Raphael Nade because he wants too much wages.

Milos Krasic moves from CSKA Moscow to Manchester City for £19.5m

Chinedu Obasi signs for Chelsea from Hoffenheim for £11m.

Paolo De Ceglie leaves Juventus for Manchester United for £11m.

Aleksandor Kolarov signs for Chelsea for £10.75m from Lazio.

Barcelona sign Fred from Fluminese for £10.25m.

Chelsea also sign American Landon Donovan for £10.25m.

Fernando Gago leaves Madrid for the Red half of Manchester in a deal worth £5.5m

[Nobby_McDonald]

This is more like a story.

[marksablade]

This is more like a story.

Well how do you want me to do it?

Is there a certain 'Career Update' that you like the style of etc. . .

[trincas]

Good luck, i just resigned from them, after taking them to 1st division and being relegated to 2nd again..

But it was a nice way of starting somekind of a journeyman career

Templeman scored a lot of goals in 1st season btw

[marksablade]

Templeman scored a lot of goals in 1st season btw

Well that aint gonna happen with me, what tatic did you use?

Because all that happens in my games are they attack and attack and attack, I defend well but conced 1 or 2 goals and score none. I'm never attacking, always on the back foot.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Well how do you want me to do it?

Is there a certain 'Career Update' that you like the style of etc. . .

There is a Story Forum for careers which has reports on things happening every day of your game.

[trincas]

Well that aint gonna happen with me, what tatic did you use?

Because all that happens in my games are they attack and attack and attack, I defend well but conced 1 or 2 goals and score none. I'm never attacking, always on the back foot.

Yea, the same thing happened with me at beginning, i took a more risky tactic after, 4-3-3

3 strikers. It was the solution with me

[marksablade]

There is a Story Forum for careers which has reports on things happening every day of your game.

Yes, but I dont want to do a story, I would rather do a career updates after looking at quite a lot of them I am interested in doing them.

Yea, the same thing happened with me at beginning, i took a more risky tactic after, 4-3-3

3 strikers. It was the solution with me

I shall try some more tatics and I believe that 4-3-3 would be perfect, but after having no wingers I singed one or two wingers so I may have to adopt round that because I dont want too unsettle them already.

[StewartJRobertson]

There is a Story Forum for careers which has reports on things happening every day of your game.

This feels somewhere in the middle of the two to be honest. Personally i reckon you're good where you are Mark.

Forfar will be a tough tough task. I had a really enjoyable game with queens park for a while. I got them to the first division but couldnt seem to build on it. Floated between first and second division for a season or four before getting bored. The step up from second division to first was very difficult.