Stuniverse Posted June 10, 2019 Share Posted June 10, 2019 (edited) Falkirk What’s the story behind Falkirk’s fall from SPL to League 1? My wife and I went on a road trip around Scotland a couple of weeks ago and we stayed two nights in Falkirk. The very impressive Kelpies and the engineering achievement that is the Falkirk Wheel were on our To Do List. Right by the Kelpies was Falkirk Stadium and I thought to myself that I wouldn’t mind doing a Falkirk save in FM as we both liked the place. Now, I’ll admit, I don’t follow Scottish football quite as closely as I should. To my mind, Falkirk were a SPL team but googling the SPL league table showed me they weren’t. Falkirk must be Championship then, I thought, probably pushing for promotion. Google again, revealed to my surprise, that Falkirk were bottom of the Championship and had been relegated to League One. I still want to do a Falkirk save but my dilemma now is do I do one in FM19 (starting Championship) or do I wait for FM20 and start in League One? So, what’s the story behind Falkirk’s fall from grace? Also, is it true that the impressive looking (from the view we had from the main road) Falkirk Stadium only has three sides? Cheers. Edited July 2, 2019 by Stuniverse 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sl92 Posted June 11, 2019 Share Posted June 11, 2019 They were relegated from SPL to First Division (now known as Championship) back in 2010. They bled through a lot of youth within the last 5-7 years and they have always been a top 5/6 team and narrowly missed out on promotion through play-offs in 2014, 2016 and 2017 and even reached the Scottish Cup Final in 2015 but lost 2-1 to 10 man Inverness! But they have always been raided therefore the past 2 years have seen a high turnover of players coming in and out. The past two seasons 17/18 and 18/19 they have been battling relegation and did well in the second half of last season to stay up, but lack of investment and poor footballing decisions from their board in the summer of 2018 have led to their down fall in 2019. Their fans revolted somewhat and the chairwoman and another member of the board of directors have since resigned. Probably favourites to be promoted this coming season and just announced two new signings yesterday. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted June 11, 2019 Author Share Posted June 11, 2019 Many thanks, @sl92, that’s very interesting. Falkirk been outside the SPL a lot longer than I thought then. Is it true that Falkirk Stadium only has three sides? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sl92 Posted June 11, 2019 Share Posted June 11, 2019 Yes for some reason they only have three stands surrounding the pitch, no idea why... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kopsy101 Posted June 25, 2019 Share Posted June 25, 2019 Money, that's why. They're planning on a 4th stand. Falkirk have had some good young players, but just haven't had good investment to build on that and eventually have them poached. Even so, i'm surprised they were relegated, embarrassing. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted June 25, 2019 Author Share Posted June 25, 2019 (edited) Thanks, @sl92 and @kopsy101. I’m very seriously considering Falkirk as my first FM20 save. Edited June 25, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
warlock Posted June 26, 2019 Share Posted June 26, 2019 From what I've read online, they seem to have developed the stadium piece by piece for financial reasons. There's also some info online about the fourth stand being too close to a local chemical works and therefore hazardous. But the safety requirement may have been relaxed and there are plans to build on the vacant side. This is Internet wisdom so caution is advised . 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kopsy101 Posted June 26, 2019 Share Posted June 26, 2019 Could be right @warlock but i've always heard that it's money stopping them, and as you said, they've developed it stand by stand. They do have a mini, temporary stand where the 4th one will be. Would be a good save to take on @Stuniverse, I wish you all the best in leading my home-town to glory 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted June 26, 2019 Share Posted June 26, 2019 As a falkirk fan I can say that that is nonsense, the demise has nothing to do with a 4th stand as this was only in the initial planning and has never been talked about since; with an average attendance of 5000 why would a 4th stand we needed when the stadium without is just below 8. Also the temp stand has been removed since being relegated from the premiership over 10 years ago. The thing stopping falkirk has nothing to do with money considering we were and still would be one of the wealthiest in the league. The MSG ( group of idiots) who run the club has drowned us with monumental errors for some time especially since the play of final, one of the biggest being hiring Paul Hartley who signed 16 duds last summer who are now all released. Also scraping the academy was pretty stupid considering we have made large profits from this, you can google for yourself all the other errors like blaming fans for certain stuff. The club are also in takeover talks but unfortunately the idiots currently who are in charge seem to want one more year. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted June 26, 2019 Share Posted June 26, 2019 Also the board somehow managed to illegally hire ray McKinnon from Morton ( current manager) resulting in a fat fine 🤣 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted June 26, 2019 Share Posted June 26, 2019 (edited) So yeah basically it has nothing to do with money as Falkirk do have decent sums, however the board have managed to waste quite a bit and in this position due to them, would make a great save in either game and good luck Edited June 26, 2019 by HarrisFFC 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted June 26, 2019 Author Share Posted June 26, 2019 (edited) Thank you, @HarrisFFC. Very informative but sad to read. I really feel for any fans when it's bad owners that are the root cause. When FM20 comes out I'll be doing two saves (most likely with posts in the Career Updates section of this Forum). One will be a Derby County save; the other not. At the moment, my intention is to manage Falkirk in the other save. My wife and I loved Falkirk when we visited recently. I think it would be a pleasure to manage the club and either bring back success or get sacked by the MSG (group of idiots!). Thanks again. Edited June 26, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kopsy101 Posted June 28, 2019 Share Posted June 28, 2019 On 26/06/2019 at 16:38, HarrisFFC said: As a falkirk fan I can say that that is nonsense, the demise has nothing to do with a 4th stand as this was only in the initial planning and has never been talked about since; with an average attendance of 5000 why would a 4th stand we needed when the stadium without is just below 8. Also the temp stand has been removed since being relegated from the premiership over 10 years ago. The thing stopping falkirk has nothing to do with money considering we were and still would be one of the wealthiest in the league. The MSG ( group of idiots) who run the club has drowned us with monumental errors for some time especially since the play of final, one of the biggest being hiring Paul Hartley who signed 16 duds last summer who are now all released. Also scraping the academy was pretty stupid considering we have made large profits from this, you can google for yourself all the other errors like blaming fans for certain stuff. The club are also in takeover talks but unfortunately the idiots currently who are in charge seem to want one more year. Is that a fact? Shows how out of touch I am Isn't one of the 16 players on Love Island now? The one who accused the fans of racial abuse? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 Falkirk has always been wealthy with income from tickets & transfers but admittedly will have suffered heavily in being relegated with the board blowing loads on 3 different teams & tapping up Ray mckinnon resulting in a fine, half the fans are not buying season tickets till this board are gone. We must be fine though as we have brought players like michael tidser to the club who will be on more in league 1 than he would be in the champ. Also Will Vaulks had a 20% clause in his contract so we will get 20% of his fee going to cardiff(2.1m). Thank god for him and what an unbelievable player btw. Yeah lol, pretty embarrassing that he didn't apologise as it was clearly not true and was proven in court. Even when falkirk fans had a red card against racism display he didn't seem to bother that much and didn't apologise, pretty embarrassing seeing your club on the front of BBC sport for all the wrong reasons. The damage was done and falkirks rep was made out to be pretty bad. Seems the thing he is most famous for is that so his career is most definitely done lol 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 @kopsy101 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted June 29, 2019 Author Share Posted June 29, 2019 17 hours ago, kopsy101 said: Isn't one of the 16 players on Love Island now? The one who accused the fans of racial abuse? Is that, Dennon Lewis? @kopsy101 @HarrisFFC Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 If you have the time you can start a save as unemployed and then holiday between Falkirk matches and make sure they get relegated using save and reload Then create your real manager and start playing with them in 3rd tier from the summer of 2019. It's frustrating as hell, but shouldn't take more than an hour or two to set up the scenario. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted June 29, 2019 Author Share Posted June 29, 2019 (edited) Thanks, @Haiku, that’s a good suggestion. Unfortunately, though, I may not have the time to do that and then get a decent save in before FM20 comes out... but I will bear that in mind. Right now, I’m about to start pre-season in the fourth season of my Derby County - Director of Football challenge which, I’m hoping, may have a few more seasons left in it at least. If anybody’s interested, I’m blogging about it in the FM Career Updates section of this Forum: Edited June 29, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted July 1, 2019 Share Posted July 1, 2019 On 29/06/2019 at 17:14, Stuniverse said: Is that, Dennon Lewis? @kopsy101 @HarrisFFC Yeah, that’s him and nice one I’ll have a read mate 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted July 1, 2019 Author Share Posted July 1, 2019 1 minute ago, HarrisFFC said: Yeah, that’s him and nice one I’ll have a read mate Thanks, @HarrisFFC. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted July 5, 2019 Author Share Posted July 5, 2019 (edited) As a Derby County fan 🐏, this has clinched it. Definitely doing a Falkirk save on FM20 now! ”Feed the fish and he will score!” And I’m loving Bairns as a nickname. Edited July 5, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted July 6, 2019 Author Share Posted July 6, 2019 (edited) Conor Sammon was a Nigel Clough signing for Derby County in the summer of 2012 for £1.2M. He went on to play for us 84 times, scoring 10 goals, which is 1-in-8 and rubbish for a striker. But I couldn’t help liking the guy. He worked tirelessly hard, he was big and caused opposition defenders problems, he created goals for others, but he couldn’t finish and for a 6’3” striker he was poor in the air. What better than to link up with Conor Sammon in Ladbrokes League One in Scotland to see if I can get him scoring goals! Edited July 6, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted July 6, 2019 Share Posted July 6, 2019 So Conor Sammon is the Scottish Emile Heskey then lol. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 On 06/07/2019 at 10:29, Stuniverse said: Conor Sammon was a Nigel Clough signing for Derby County in the summer of 2012 for £1.2M. He went on to play for us 84 times, scoring 10 goals, which is 1-in-8 and rubbish for a striker. But I couldn’t help liking the guy. He worked tirelessly hard, he was big and caused opposition defenders problems, he created goals for others, but he couldn’t finish and for a 6’3” striker he was poor in the air. What better than to link up with Conor Sammon in Ladbrokes League One in Scotland to see if I can get him scoring goals! I think this save is just meant to be for you LOL Pretty exited to see how he does for us this season, however his goal stats are poor throughout his career especially last season for motherwell. That being said he should bang them in dropping 2 leagues lower but we shall see. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted July 9, 2019 Author Share Posted July 9, 2019 (edited) 1 hour ago, HarrisFFC said: I think this save is just meant to be for you LOL Pretty exited to see how he does for us this season, however his goal stats are poor throughout his career especially last season for motherwell. That being said he should bang them in dropping 2 leagues lower but we shall see. Thanks, @HarrisFFC. I must admit I’m getting quite excited about the prospect of trying to get The Bairns two promotions back to the SPL and then trying to compete with Celtic and Rangers... or get sacked in the process! Edited July 9, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 1 hour ago, Stuniverse said: Thanks, @HarrisFFC. I must admit I’m getting quite excited about the prospect of trying to get The Bairns two promotions back to the SPL and then trying to compete with Celtic and Rangers... or get sacked in the process! I just recently managed to win the league, took to my 5/6th season... definitely my fav save; managing your club always is though. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted July 9, 2019 Author Share Posted July 9, 2019 1 minute ago, HarrisFFC said: I just recently managed to win the league, took to my 5/6th season... definitely my fav save; managing your club always is though. Congratulations, @HarrisFFC. That’s brilliant! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 Just now, Stuniverse said: Congratulations, @HarrisFFC. That’s brilliant! thank you very much, and best of luck when fm20 comes out! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted July 9, 2019 Author Share Posted July 9, 2019 (edited) 7 minutes ago, HarrisFFC said: thank you very much, and best of luck when fm20 comes out! Cheers, @HarrisFFC. I’m enjoying the interaction in the Career Updates section on here on my current Derby County - Director of Football Challenge thread so I’ll almost certainly do updates of the Falkirk save in a similar way. Edited July 9, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 Just now, Stuniverse said: Cheers, @HarrisFFC. I’m enjoying the interaction in the Career Updates section on my current Derby County - Director of Football Challenge thread so I’ll almost certainly do updates of the Falkirk save in a similar way. Sounds great, always enjoy it more whist reading other peoples updates... will be good to see a falkirk one as well. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
davehibb Posted July 18, 2019 Share Posted July 18, 2019 A quick question for anyone playing as Falkirk: There's no U19s? Do they still get a youth intake? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kopsy101 Posted July 19, 2019 Share Posted July 19, 2019 23 hours ago, davehibb said: A quick question for anyone playing as Falkirk: There's no U19s? Do they still get a youth intake? Could be because they scrapped the youth system, as @HarrisFFC above said. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
metallimuse Posted October 27, 2019 Share Posted October 27, 2019 On 09/07/2019 at 21:04, HarrisFFC said: I just recently managed to win the league, took to my 5/6th season... definitely my fav save; managing your club always is though. Did you get a youth team as the game went through the years? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted October 28, 2019 Author Share Posted October 28, 2019 (edited) @HarrisFFC, what’s the thinking behind Falkirk disbanding the Youth Team? I’m very much looking forward to starting my FM20 save at Falkirk FC, which I’ll be updating in the Career Updates section on here. Edited October 28, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
metallimuse Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 2 hours ago, Stuniverse said: @HarrisFFC, what’s the thinking behind Falkirk disbanding the Youth Team? I’m very much looking forward to starting my FM20 save at Falkirk FC, which I’ll be updating in the Career Updates section on here. From what I remember reading about it, it was due to the running cost. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nev10 Posted October 29, 2019 Share Posted October 29, 2019 On 27/10/2019 at 13:15, metallimuse said: Did you get a youth team as the game went through the years? just finished season 1 with them. no signs of a youth team on the horizon i dont think Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 On 28/10/2019 at 10:21, Stuniverse said: @HarrisFFC, what’s the thinking behind Falkirk disbanding the Youth Team? I’m very much looking forward to starting my FM20 save at Falkirk FC, which I’ll be updating in the Career Updates section on here. Yeah as he said above it was as they thought by scrapping the youth setup they would have a couple hundred thousand pounds extra every year to invest into the first team budget which did not work whatsoever as they are all duds, also this season hasn't started very well either... forfar away tomorrow 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 On 27/10/2019 at 13:15, metallimuse said: Did you get a youth team as the game went through the years? None whatsoever, very annoying! was upgrading all my facilities as I went spending millions, junior coaching etc and never had 1 intake! 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted November 1, 2019 Author Share Posted November 1, 2019 1 hour ago, HarrisFFC said: Yeah as he said above it was as they thought by scrapping the youth setup they would have a couple hundred thousand pounds extra every year to invest into the first team budget which did not work whatsoever as they are all duds, also this season hasn't started very well either... forfar away tomorrow Oooops, sounds like a short-sighted decision that backfired then. Last time I looked Falkirk were 3rd having W5 D4 L2 I think. I suppose in readiness for managing Falkirk in FM20, I ought to get my head around how promotion from League 1 works. Is it Champions go up plus a play-off for a second promotion spot? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 1 hour ago, Stuniverse said: Oooops, sounds like a short-sighted decision that backfired then. Last time I looked Falkirk were 3rd having W5 D4 L2 I think. I suppose in readiness for managing Falkirk in FM20, I ought to get my head around how promotion from League 1 works. Is it Champions go up plus a play-off for a second promotion spot? One of the major reasons with the fans discontent with the board, also the takeover was called of today adding fuel to the fire. Yeah that’s correct! The league 1 play of is different from the championship playoff which is very confusing! In league 1 there are 4 play of games but in the championship a team can play up to 6 if they finish 4th, hard to get your head around lol positive in league 1 the team who finished 4th play the team who finished 2nd bottom in the championship and then 3rd vs 2nd in league 1, then the winners of that play a final. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted November 4, 2019 Author Share Posted November 4, 2019 (edited) Thanks, @HarrisFFC. Looks like it's going to be fun managing Falkirk on FM20 and for me, personally, getting used to the nuances of the Scottish League System. There's also a split league thing part way through, isn't there? Well I've called time on my FM19 Career Update save on here and am waiting for the full-game later this month, before starting my FM20 Career at Falkirk. I'm really excited about the prospect. Thanks for all the input on here as I found out more about Falkirk. No youth team...hmmmmmn. I'll post an update once the save is up and running and anybody who's interested is welcome to follow along in the Career Update section on here. Wish me luck... Edited November 4, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
metallimuse Posted November 4, 2019 Share Posted November 4, 2019 On 01/11/2019 at 17:02, HarrisFFC said: None whatsoever, very annoying! was upgrading all my facilities as I went spending millions, junior coaching etc and never had 1 intake! Wow that bull. Obvs true to life so no complaints about it but makes a save pointless to me, might appeal to some folk the challenge of always having to be thrifty in the market but I love my newgens so I'd never take on the club now. Had a great save with them in FM18 I think it was. In fact no I didn't, they became a dominant force in my save! I left Scotland to go manage in Italy then Spain and was away about 10 year and all of a sudden I was seeing Falkirk winning leagues and Cups and competing in the champs league so I returned to Rangers to get normal order restored lol. Not sure what happened, I think they may have been bought out. THAT was a GREAT save that year Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted November 4, 2019 Share Posted November 4, 2019 9 hours ago, Stuniverse said: Thanks, @HarrisFFC. Looks like it's going to be fun managing Falkirk on FM20 and for me, personally, getting used to the nuances of the Scottish League System. There's also a split league thing part way through, isn't there? Well I've called time on my FM19 Career Update save on here and am waiting for the full-game later this month, before starting my FM20 Career at Falkirk. I'm really excited about the prospect. Thanks for all the input on here as I found out more about Falkirk. No youth team...hmmmmmn. I'll post an update once the save is up and running and anybody who's interested is welcome to follow along in the Career Update section on here. Wish me luck... Yes there is a split, only for the Scottish premiership though! No problem at all my friend, I am doing the exact same thing, doing a short term save then as soon as the full game is released I will begin my Falkirk save. Good luck 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted November 4, 2019 Share Posted November 4, 2019 8 hours ago, metallimuse said: Wow that bull. Obvs true to life so no complaints about it but makes a save pointless to me, might appeal to some folk the challenge of always having to be thrifty in the market but I love my newgens so I'd never take on the club now. Had a great save with them in FM18 I think it was. In fact no I didn't, they became a dominant force in my save! I left Scotland to go manage in Italy then Spain and was away about 10 year and all of a sudden I was seeing Falkirk winning leagues and Cups and competing in the champs league so I returned to Rangers to get normal order restored lol. Not sure what happened, I think they may have been bought out. THAT was a GREAT save that year Definitely my favourite way to play football manager is signing players on the cheap then selling for profit. Tend to get to the English premiership and just get bored with all the big fees etc. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted November 4, 2019 Author Share Posted November 4, 2019 (edited) 11 minutes ago, HarrisFFC said: Yes there is a split, only for the Scottish premiership though! Oh, cool. I thought it was in all divisions. 11 minutes ago, HarrisFFC said: No problem at all my friend, I am doing the exact same thing, doing a short term save then as soon as the full game is released I will begin my Falkirk save. Good luck Thank you. Good luck 🍀 to you too. We shall have to compare notes. I see in real-life Falkirk have gone top of Ladbrokes League 1. Edited November 4, 2019 by Stuniverse Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted November 4, 2019 Share Posted November 4, 2019 2 hours ago, Stuniverse said: Oh, cool. I thought it was in all divisions. Thank you. Good luck 🍀 to you too. We shall have to compare notes. I see in real-life Falkirk have gone top of Ladbrokes League 1. They have indeed, been very poor though... hard to watch Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted November 4, 2019 Author Share Posted November 4, 2019 1 hour ago, HarrisFFC said: They have indeed, been very poor though... hard to watch Still top though. How’s ex-🐏 Conor Sammon doing? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
metallimuse Posted November 5, 2019 Share Posted November 5, 2019 14 hours ago, HarrisFFC said: Definitely my favourite way to play football manager is signing players on the cheap then selling for profit. Tend to get to the English premiership and just get bored with all the big fees etc. I'm more of a youth academy type of manager and do enjoy signing young players on the cheap but not with a view to selling for profit but to enhance my team. Agreed with your comments on the EPL, I won't manage in England anymore due to the silly money. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisFFC Posted November 5, 2019 Share Posted November 5, 2019 21 hours ago, Stuniverse said: Still top though. How’s ex-🐏 Conor Sammon doing? He's been average, for someone so tall how can someone be so bad in the air lol, had a few goals tbf. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuniverse Posted November 5, 2019 Author Share Posted November 5, 2019 1 hour ago, HarrisFFC said: He's been average, for someone so tall how can someone be so bad in the air lol, had a few goals tbf. Yep, that’s the Conor Sammon, I remember. He was a very hard working, team player for us. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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