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Great group of games.
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Jun 21, 2020 20:47
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GruntMountain posted:Thread challenge: Please tell me what Giles Ferdinand was doing in this highlight It looked like he was rolling around injured, was he booked for time-wasting or for not leaving the pitch to be treated? Edit: I've just watched it again and it said that he tripped The Institute. Maybe he caught him while he was writhing around on the ground? Rocket Baby Dolls fucked around with this message at 22:01 on Jun 21, 2020 |
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Jun 21, 2020 21:58
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If you want to keep the adam smith institute then you must learn to keep attuned to the invisible hand of the free market.
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Jun 22, 2020 08:21
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It seems fitting the Ziltoid the Omniscient has the best pass completion rate
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Jun 22, 2020 08:52
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sebmojo posted:It seems fitting the Ziltoid the Omniscient has the best pass completion rate Indeed
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Jun 22, 2020 13:48
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BONUS: Meet the Striker FM19 offers a fair bit of tactical flexibility for its frontmen, with the above 8 roles being able to be tailored to however you want your Number 9 to play. Most of the time, these are the guys that you want putting the ball in the back of the net, but, as we'll soon see, that isn't always the case. Deep-Lying Forward While the striker is the most advanced position on the pitch, the DLF role asks him to sometimes drop deep into midfield to pick up the ball, either to play his strike partner or a winger in, or to draw the opposition defenders out of position to give auxiliary attackers space. The DLF can be a potent goalscoring threat him, especially if he is fast and strong. These two traits mean that he is fully capable of driving at the opposition goal from deep, causing a bit of panic at the back as the opposition defenders are forced to commit to tackling him or standing off and letting him crack off a long shot. The players you want for this role are team players, with high teamwork, vision, passing and composure, and physical players that can ride the challenges of the opposition defenders. The DLF comes in two flavours. On Support, he will be withdrawn compared to a regular striker, being in the hole just behind a regular frontman. His primary duty will be to play partners in, with goalscoring a secondary concern. He is an excellent link between the midfield and the attack. On Attack, he operates in the same tier as a regular striker, being the primary goal threat but also threading passes for anyone else that may be around him. This is a good role for possession-based systems with a single striker and even as the main goalscorer in a two. A good example of the Deep-Lying Forward is Wayne Rooney in his prime. Fast, energetic and with a great eye for a pass, Rooney is the second-highest scorer in the history of the Premier League and its third-highest assist-maker as well. Often playing second-fiddle to another forward, be it Carlos Tevez, Cristiano Ronaldo, Dimitar Berbatov or others, his game was to play off of them, his footballing intelligence and sheer power as a forward turning him into a superb goal threat. Now plying his trade as a deep-lying playmaker for Derby County in the Championship, he lacks a bit of his youthful energy, but his expansive passing range still shines through. Advanced Forward A sort of classic striker, the advanced forward chases down clearances from the defence, charges after through balls from midfield and looks to burst past a high line to go one-on-one with the keeper. His main aim is to score goals, meaning that he is an advanced option down the middle, but he is happy to work the channels and hit crosses for his strike partner or a late-arriving midfielder. You can expect them to string together a few passes but by and large, you want the ball to them being the last ball in the movement. Given how attacking this position is, it can only be used in an Attack mentality. A good example of the Advanced Forward is Jaime Vardy of Leicester City. An extremely hardworking forward with electric pace, Vardy has been Leicester's top scorer for a few seasons now but he is a team player as well, harassing defenders on the ball and running the channels to give Barnes or Maddison space in the middle. His finishing is top class and his timing shows a good football brain. He'd be an excellent pressing forward as well, with his boundless energy and willingness to press a sleepy defence. Target Man That archetypical big man up top, the target man is someone who you build your tactic around. The game automatically causes your team to play more long balls up to the target man if you're playing one, and he'll use his strength to shrug off his man and turn to score. You want an excellent header of the ball here, as well as someone with a good first touch and excellent work rate. A dominant target man can absolutely tear apart even the most meticulously planned tactic, as all it takes is one ball over the top for the big guy to win to get the rest of his teammates in. A target man with good finishing and good passing can make a truly deadly striker. A TM comes in two types. On Support, he'll use his power and presence to open up space for a teammate to attack, playing them in with a riskier passing range. A TM here works well with a late arriving attacking midfielder like a shadow striker or an inside forward, midfielders with strange movement that will confuse the opposition. On Attack, the TM is your primary goal threat, playing short passes and looking to get at the end of a cross or a through ball. A good example of a Target Man is Brighton's Glenn Murray. A wily old fox in the box, Murray attracts both the ball and the opposition players to him, his footballing smarts and good passing allowing him to worm his way out of these sticky situations and play in striking partner Pascal Gross. He offers an outlet for the long pass and his ability to hold up the ball gives his teammates the opportunity to surge up the pitch and get in positions to support the counterattack. Poacher The most attacking striking option is the Poacher, the goal-hanger who lives and thrives in the eighteen-yard box and nowhere else. Don't expect him to start or really support the build-up of moves. Don't ask him to throw crosses in. This guy is a goalscorer. Feed him half chances and he'll take them and score. He loves to hover around aggressive defensive lines, using his anticipation and speed to break past a high line. What you want here is a good finisher with speed and good off-the-ball movement. He might struggle as a lone striker, so play a strike partner next to him or have an attacking midfielder near him to help out. Naturally, the poacher can only be played with an Attack mentality A good example of the poacher is Javier Hernandez aka Chicharito. During his time at Manchester United, he was used as a super-sub, climbing off of the bench to grab goals in the limited time his minutes allowed. His stint with the Red Devils saw him turn, at least briefly, into the man with the 3rd best minutes-to-goal ratio in the history of the Premier League because of how he played. Chicharito would hang around the opposition box waiting for something to fall his way before smashing the ball into the net. At the time, United were a dominant force, so the rest of the team could afford to carry Chicharito and just work on feeding him chances. Complete Forward The Complete Forward is as his name implies, a striker who can do a bit of everything. His goal return rivals the poacher, his assists tally that of the deep-lying forward, his physical presence that of the target man, while adding that maverick streak that just keeps the defenders guessing. This role is reserved for the best of the best and is absolutely a role you build your team around. This guy is your focal point and he'll win you games, one way or another. The complete forward comes in two mentalities. On Support, he'll come deep to help the midfield before turning to attack, playing in auxiliary attackers or cracking off long shots to keep the opposition keeper busy. He does his own thing, causing havoc in the defence. On Attack, he is your main goal threat, combining with the wingers and midfielders to run the show and get himself into the box to get on the end of chances. A good example of the Complete Forward is Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski. Popularly regarded as the best striker in the world, Lewandowski is a pacy, powerful striker whose football brain allows him to dominant a game up top for Bayern. As capable of putting chances on a plate for his teammates as he is at putting the ball into the back of the net, he's a dangerous forward that teams find very difficult to cope with. He famously scored 5 goals in 9 minutes against Wolfsburg after coming on as a sub, giving an indication of just how lethal this frontman is. Pressing Forward The pressing forward is one of the more modular forward options in FM19. He tries his best to rob the opposition of the ball, whether it be the goalkeeper, the defence or the midfield, and takes it from there. The most important attributes for the PF are anticipation, work rate and stamina. With these, he'll work tirelessly to disrupt the rhythm of the opposition. Naturally, this time of forward works best in a pressing tactic. There are 3 types of pressing forward. On Defend, he'll sit a little bit deeper and break up any attacking opportunities the opposition might craft and tries to play simple passes to a teammate to get them moving up the pitch. On Support, he'll move a little bit further forward and will be riskier in his passing. On Attack, he'll be your main goalscorer, attacking the defence and goalkeeper out of possession and acting like an AF when in possession. A good example of the Pressing Forward is Roberto Firmino of Liverpool. Not the main goal threat of his team, Firmino is a slightly-withdraw striker to endlessly harries the opposition when they are in possession and then uses his significant technical qualities to play in either Salah or Mane, two wingers who come narrow to attack the goal when in possession. His raw goal and assist numbers are rather low for a forward of his quality, but his importance to an enormously impressive Liverpool side cannot be overstated. Trequartista Italian for 'Three Quarters', the trequartista is a non-standard striker who operates in the number 10 position i.e. 3/4 up the pitch. Creative, quick and very intelligent, the trequartista is a player with the finishing ability of a regular striker with the passing range and footballing guiles of a traditional number 10. He needs to be carried by his midfield and defence, as he won't do any defending, but he will be the primary outlet for attacks, playing others in and making chances for himself. This role can be used in the striker slot, in the AMC slot or on either wing slot. Up top, he is, in essence, an uber DLF with less defensive responsibilities and is only available with an Attack mentality. A good example of the trequartista as a striker is Cesc Fabregas during Spain's Euro 2012 campaign. Going strikerless, Spain put midfield playmaker Fabregas up top ahead of the legendary trio of Iniesta, Busquets and Xavi, letting him do his thing without worrying about what was behind him. His movement and passing gave opposition defences headaches and Spain went on to lift the trophy. False Nine The False Nine is a bit of a weird one. He's a striker whose main purpose isn't really scoring goals. The F9's role is defined by his movement and intelligence. His job to move about at the front end of the pitch, using his dribbling and speed to move defenders out of their usual positions before playing in a teammate in that vacated slot. He won't do a lot of defending. He just wants to cause panic and confusion in the opposition box. This player tends to drop very deep and adds another body in midfield, making him excellent for a possession-based tactic. He can, of course, get goals on his own by driving from deep and placing shots beyond the keeper. This role is only available with a Support mentality. A good example of this role is Barcelona's Lionel Messi. Famous for his dribbling ability and his eye for a pass, Messi was placed in the middle by Pep Guardiola, where the Argentine's speed and agility caused havoc among opposition defenders. He plundered 50 goals in one La Liga season playing in this role, showing that with movement and timing, you can turn a support striker into a deadly attacker.
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Jun 22, 2020 15:49
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THE PAUPER PRINCE (30/1/2019) _______________ (The Sunshine Stadium. Two players are talking to another one, the elder of the two leaning against a goalpost, the younger with his hands on a wooden box labelled 'fragile'.)  : It's all about trickle-down economics. If my business is making more money, then my workers are making more money as well. I pay more taxes, something, something, everyone gets paid. : But you're not paying me anything.: ... Special circumstances. This is valuable work experience. It'll help your job prospects in the future. Now move that crate. : What are you two getting up to over there?: There are gaping market opportunities that The Institute needs to fill. Ronnie and I, but mostly me, are starting up a business to supplement our wages. We've founded the Goonfleet Fund For Youth Development. On paper, it's funding for a youth league team. That means we're tax-exempt. Ronnie here is still on a youth contract, so he makes it official.: ... : Come on, don't give that look. Look, Riyad gave us the go-ahead.: He did?: Riyad gave us the go-ahead, Ronnie. C'mon, back me up, Bass.: This whole thing stinks of bullshit. Count me in._______________ We're in the last third of the season. It's crunch time. If we're winning the league, these last few gameweeks are going to be absolutely vital. February (2/2/2019) Match Report: Slough Town The Institute continued his excellent form against his former club, scoring a brace to keep distance between us and the chasing pack. He kept getting offside, though, which he absolutely shouldn't be doing, considering his pace.  We're looking very solid at the moment to the point where our unbeaten record is right up there with the best the division has ever seen.  (9/2/2019) Match Report: Dartford A back and forth match like this was stressful to go through, but a late winner by the excellent To managed to get us over the line. Behind us, Torquay and Billericary fought each other to a draw, meaning that Dulwich Hamlet slid back into 2nd, a full four points behind us.  We have our own personal records to chase, with both the total points haul and record number of wins for the club within our capabilities of surpassing. If we plan on winning this title, we are almost certainly breaking those records.   (16/2/2019) Match Report: Dartford Well, that's a start, I suppose. The gap between us and Dulwich Hamlet dropped to 2 points again, but at least we still have that buffer. We can't afford to get complacent at this stage of the season. The Institute didn't manage to grab a goal here, but he's firing on all cylinders. We'll see a high scoreline soon with that sort of performance.  (23/2/2019) Match Report: Welling This... isn't quite what I had in mind. While To had a good performance, the defence really let us down this evening. New signing Joey Jones seems to be finding it a little tough, but, for once, the unwashed masses of social media seemed sympathetic to his troubles.   In other news, Riyad finally found some money to bribe children into joining our youth set-up. Most of these guys will just fill ranks, but a couple of them might turn in first-team players over the years. Even the ones that don't give the club anything will still bring us some money in the form of compensation fees after being released if another club snaps them up.  March (2/3/2019) Match Report: Billericay The lads remembered what happened the last time we played Billericay and decided to get a little payback. Our opposition never really got out of first gear, while our boys ran rampant, racking up 5 goals with ease. It's performances like this that will serve us well going forward. Every win boosts confidence, especially big wins, and we'll need to be mentally strong to make it past this last stretch of fixtures. We'll have to do it without Moistie, who pulled up lame in the match versus Billericay.   (9/3/2019) Match Report: Hungerford After March had started so well and Moistie declared himself fit to play, we just had to hand in this sort of tepid performance, didn't we? The lads didn't look like they even wanted to be there, just going through the motions as Hungerford grabbed two early goals and the team just gave up.  (16/3/2019) Match Report: Chelmsford Rubbish. Just rubbish. Two cheap freekicks went straight into the top corner after the boys downed tools, apparently believing that The Institute's opener would be enough to see us through. Suffice to say it wasn't and a team we should have breezed past handed us a defeat that, were it not for a late goal by Welling's Danny Mills against Dulwich Hamlet, would have seen us slide into 3rd.  (30/3/19) Match Report: Dulwich Hamlet Torquay United lost to Weymouth Wanderers, so another draw between Dulwich Hamlet and us was enough to get us both over the line and ensure our places in the playoffs. Both teams are searching for something more, so that little tidbit would be academic at the end of the day.   April (6/4/2019) Match Report: Truro City With The Institute struggling with supply, Oliver Goodsir stepped up to fulfil the demand, smashing in a fine hat-trick to get us back to winning ways. A natural right-winger, I've been playing him on the left side to give him opportunities to cut in on his strong right foot. Based on his goalscoring record, it's not been a bad move.  Only a handful of games remain. Of the four teams fighting for the title, I believe we have the easiest run-in, with our highest-placed opponent being 7th placed Eastbourne Borough. In all honesty, we should be getting a 100% record out of the rest of the season. The title should be ours.  (13/4/2019) Match Report: Weymouth Wanderers We should have this match in the bag, seeing as how our opponents were dead-last in the standings. Instead, Weymouth, with their new coach, really gave us a tough game, giving Lex a fair few things to think about in goal. A late goal by Dale Johnson baled them out and gave us a bit of a stuttering start to the title run-in.  With his absurd record of 25 goals plain to see, The Institute is getting a lot of attention from the press, many of them backing him to be the player of the season not only for us but for the league as a whole. Certainly, he deserves it, but let's complete the season before we rest on our laurels.  (20/4/2019) Match Report: Wealdstone 4/20 saw us a grab a scruffy win, with The Institute getting the winner and Moistie earning his 4th red of the season. He'll be gone for two matches because of prior offences.   (22/4/2019) Match Report: Eastbourne Borough We did it. It took a hat-trick from The Institute and a late wondersave from Lex Metzger, but we finally did it! With one game left, 3 points to play for, and a 4-point gap at the top, we've been mathematically confirmed as champions.    Of course, they have to remind us about some of the ignominious moments over the last season, but still. We've got our hands on the cup, the board are absolutely delighted and we're going to play in the Conference next season! We're just one step away from the official English Football League. _______________    : Well done, Mr Berardi. I'm pleased you managed to bring us our first piece of silverware. : I had a tenner on you getting sacked before Christmas so that I could step in, but this is good too. We've done well, you and I.: I wasn't quite so... presumptuous as Mr Lake, but nonetheless, I'm rather surprised you managed to pull this off. Just be careful, Mr Berardi. Our stars on the pitch are aging and the stars above our heads may not align the way they did this season for the next one. Rest assured that I will back you in the next window but... spend responsibly, if you would.: Um, about the next window, Mr Hakimi..._______________  _______________  : One season played and one trophy gained. Do you think you can keep that sort of record up? : Absolutely not. I'm just looking stay in the division next season and build from there.: Don't you think that shows a lack of ambition, given your success this season?: Not at all. Listen, I just want to be realistic here. We've done fantastically well, but we have to keep ourselves grounded._______________   Somewhere, some football hipster is bragging to his friends about being an Exmouth supporter after starting to follow us from December. His friends will have no idea what the Vanarama National South is and will laugh him out of the room. Post-Season _______________ (A hotel lobby in Exmouth. Gio and Riyad sit on opposite sides of a small table. Riyad's lip is raised, the chairman clearly not enthused by the smell of cigarette smoke.) : What brings you here, Mr Hakimi?: Business, what else?: Of course. : You've done quite well, Mr Berardi. You've done what even Clark couldn't: bring a trophy, however small, to Exmouth. While your losses in the cups were embarrassing and almost certainly preventable, you've more than exceeded expectations in the league. Back-to-back promotions aren't something for any club to scoff at. Though our wage budget is... well, has been exceeded, I still think that we'll be alright on a financial front.: Yeah, I've had a good time here. Though, I've always known that this was just a one-year job. You'll be on the hunt for a permanent boss soon, won't you?: That we are. We'll need someone who can get these players motivated to make another push.(Riyad slides a closed envelope over the table towards Gio. He stands up and speaks briefly before leaving.) : Think it over, Mr Berardi. At the end of the day, it's your choice. _______________ End of Season Summary: League Position: 1st (Champions) FA Cup: Eliminated by Weymouth FA Trophy: Eliminated by Dover Top Goalscorer: The Institute (30) Top Playmaker: Rob Case (11) Best Average Rating; The Institute (7.45/10) Most Yellow Cards: Big Mouth (9) Most Red Cards: Moistie (4) Transfers IN: George O'Neill, Causso Darame, Oliver Gardner, Jack Challis, Matthew Carr, Grant Beeney, Joey Jones Transfers OUT: Jack Challis   Our young goalie had a very, very good season, beating out our old record by one and putting in an average rating of 6.9. He even got 1 assist in the FA Trophy.  Unfortunately, we'll have to say goodbye to the Sunshine Stadium for now. She's served us well, hosting the 2nd highest average attendance across the Vanarama National League South. We'll be renting Torquay United's Plainmoor, seemingly just to rub in the fact that we beat them in the title race.   This pleases The Institute.  I left a vote for Gavin Rose, our second-placed rival for the title. He did a good job, I felt, the best among the non-Berardi rest.  This also pleases The Institute.  _______________ And so ends the season with Exmouth. The squad seems to think they'll be fighting against relegation next season, so careful recruitment is needed for them to stay up. In the meantime, they, and Gio, have a well-earned break and time to think about what's happening next season.
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Jun 23, 2020 20:44
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The Sunshine Stadium is such a charming name. Can we upgrade it down the line?
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Jun 23, 2020 21:02
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KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:The Sunshine Stadium is such a charming name. Can we upgrade it down the line? It's possible if we can find the funds. I can't quite remember what I set the expansion capacity to, but it might be enough for some of the higher leagues. If not, we can always give a new stadium the same name.
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Jun 23, 2020 21:11
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Congratulations on an excellent first season. How long are you planning on continuing with this?
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Jun 23, 2020 22:49
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Rocket Baby Dolls posted:Congratulations on an excellent first season. How long are you planning on continuing with this? I'd like to end the game either after we become a consistent top team (a title or two, several seasons in the top four) or if I get sacked. It's easy to make updates and I'm enjoying the game, so I'm having fun doing this.
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Jun 23, 2020 22:59
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Rest assured that the institute will give ronnie a good, possibly better than average, reference for his work.
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Jun 24, 2020 00:00
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Hmm Big Mouth achieved what I expected with the most yellows. Surprised he didn't eat more reds with last ditch fullback tackles.
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Jun 25, 2020 03:56
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Post-Season I've got access to the Editor, so we can change kit colours in-game and then, with the kit textures being custom ones, the sponsors can be altered at will. Currently, our outfit is as follows: Home: Black and Gold Away: Light Blue and White Third: Red and Black Are we putting a new sponsor on the front of the shirt? Are we getting sponsors for the sleeves? Are we turning out in totally new colours next season? You decide. GruntMountain fucked around with this message at 12:12 on Jun 26, 2020 |
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Jun 26, 2020 12:08
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Look, you know what we want. Make it as hideous as possible. To aid in this, make Monster energy drink a sponsor.
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Jun 26, 2020 13:21
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Behold, images of beauty and success .png)
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Jun 26, 2020 16:51
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Amazing. How did you get Wall's pixelman to be so huge?
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Jun 26, 2020 17:00
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You can change a player's size in the pre-game and in-game editors, up to a maximum of 210cm/6'11" and 120kg/265lb. This is entirely independent of in-game attributes, so your titan could have the touch of a football god and speed like Usain Bolt.
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Jun 26, 2020 17:05
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GruntMountain posted:Behold, images of beauty and success 
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Jun 26, 2020 17:28
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Now that we're in the National League, we're going to need squad numbers for everyone. First come, first claimed, 1-99. Traditional Number Placements: 1: Goalkeeper 2: Right Back 3: Left Back 4: Centre Back 5: Centre Back 6: Defensive Midfielder 7: Right Wing 8: Box-to-Box Midfielder 9: Striker 10: Attacking Midfielder 11: Left Wing
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Jun 27, 2020 17:35
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Ziltoid claims 69
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Jun 27, 2020 17:47
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Avals claims 5
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Jun 27, 2020 20:04
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Wall claims 420 Edit: Oh Uh... 1
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Jun 27, 2020 20:32
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I'd like to claim 13.Namtab posted:Rest assured that the institute will give ronnie a good, possibly better than average, reference for his work. Don't worry, like a lot of home grown footballers I'm sure that he will fade into obscurity and be managing the under-12's team by the time he hits the ripe old age of 25. Rocket Baby Dolls fucked around with this message at 00:30 on Jun 28, 2020 |
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Jun 27, 2020 21:02
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The institute is number $$ seeing as how someone already took 69, the sex number
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Jun 28, 2020 00:13
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I'll take the 2, because someone are the 1.
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Jun 29, 2020 12:14
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based on a google search for 'the most dangerous number' I'm gonna claim 1 for moistie because he will gently caress you up
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Jun 29, 2020 12:35
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Bass will take 21
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Jun 29, 2020 20:30
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Too bad I didn't check what Rob Case's favourite number was before I fired him, fwiw his 'diva' trait makes players perform slightly worse when not given them. Crisis averted?
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Jun 29, 2020 20:46
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A STEP UP IN CLASS _______________ (16/6/2019) (The conference room at Plainmoor in Torquay, Devon. Riyad Hakimi stares stonily forward at the pack of journalists. To the chairman's right is Norman Lake. To his left, an empty chair. Draped over the table both men are sitting at are the three kits for the 2019/20 season.) : Mr Hakimi, can you explain the thought process behind the design of your new kits?: No.: ...: ...: Um, next question. Supposedly the club, due to bonuses in player wages after promotion, is going through a bit of a tough patch financially. Do you have any comments on that story?: The club's finances are healthy. The increase in wages will have no effect on incoming transfers and negotiations.: We've moved Oliver Gardner and George O'Neill off of the books, so a significant chunk of the wage budget has been freed up. Don't rule us out of pulling off astute business yet.: Have you agreed a transfer plan with your manager? Reports indicate that Giovanni Berardi has signed a new contract with you.: Yes, we have agreed to an extension to his contract for another year. We're both pleased to keep him around for continuity.: Yes, both of us, very pleased.: Where is Mr Berardi, may I ask?_______________ (A coffeehouse somewhere in Torquay. The players are spread around the coffeehouse, looking for all the world like gangsters gathering in their corners to play poker or dice. A replica of the Vanarama National League South Trophy stands on one of the tables. It looks a little more beat-up than before Gio had let each of the players have a turn taking it home. A lone, somewhat fearful barista listens to the order coming from one of the Exmouth players.)  : Five minutes! Make it perfect!: I'm glad you could all make it for mandatory team bonding and I hope you guys enjoyed it. Let's get ourselves up to speed. We need to be at our best in the new league. We've had our fun, we'd had our laughs, it's time to knuckle down. We'll be starting our pre-season program next week.: What?!: I've done some thinking and I think that we'll be needing a fitness edge against the other teams in the league. They might be better than us, for now, but if we want it more than they do and we get there before they do, we'll win.: But, boss, we've barely had any time off.: I know... but... this is the decision I've made. I'll see you guys in training.(A murmur goes through the crowd of players. That decisions, it seems, has not gone down well.) _______________ We're back and we've been promoted to the Vanarama National League. We played some National League quality opponents a couple of times last season, and they flattened us most of the time, except for that great game against Billericay. Our guys are good and they've still got enough in the tank to get us through the season, but just getting through the season shows a lack of ambition. The media has picked us as one of the sides predicted to struggle, judging that we'll finish down in 21st, just one place above the drop zone. To defy those expectations, we'll need to reinforce and rethink. On the first front, Rob and Roy aren't getting any younger. We dug deep to find £4.5K to sign Keston Davies, a former Swansea youth player. We happen to have Causso Darame, another former Swan, on our books, so a familiar face will do them both some good. As preseason dragged on, the acquisition looked a good one, with Davies adding stability at the back. I also grabbed Junior Monndal, a natural left winger, on loan from Forest Green Rovers in League Two, while allowing Paul Paulson to go to Truro on loan.. Preseason went well. However, a disturbing pattern emerged in our goalscoring records. 90% of our goals were coming from one man: The Institute. At 32, turning 33 this season, he's approaching the time where his primary asset, his pace, might start to go. We're going to need to find a replacement. Luckily for us, a bunch of top clubs released their players from their academies. I was happy to find any sort of goalscorer in there, be it an advanced midfielder or a striker. Most of the players available had heard Chrissy's report on our finances and didn't see the benefits of joining our cash-strapped outfit. A fair number of players outright refused to enter negotiations due to the stature of the club not matching their ambitions. But then, there was this guy.  For a young guy, his attributes are similar to, and in respects better than, The Institute's. His dribbling is excellent, as is his finishing and heading. He's quick off the mark and has bags of pace. His mentality and anticipation leave something to be desired, but that can be coached. What's more, he only asked us for £500 per week. That's average wage around this club! We had to pay Southampton, the loftiest of our south coast rivals, £2.5k in compensation, but this guy looks like a steal and well worth the fee. On the second front, I had good reason for us starting pre-season early and it wasn't because I misclicked the start date. At this level, fitness is extremely important for all clubs, but especially for what I want to turn this team into. For the majority of last season, we were playing at a balanced tempo, sometimes unnecessarily dallying on the ball or slowing down play. I've upped our tempo to Faster, which has boosted the intensity of our training to a dull red. This means that, as long as the players aren't used to this and/or have poorer fitness than the tempo requires, we'll have an increase in muscle injuries and fatigue. But I honestly believe that moving the ball more quickly will really enhance the lethality of the side, as it looks to exploit the pace of The Institute, Darame, Goodsir and Afolabi. Roy announced his intention to take up coaching, using last season's winnings to fund his coaching course. Getting him into the coaching setup is something I'm happy to do, as his personality and traits mean that he will be a good youth coach.   The season would start with a match against a familiar opponent: Dover Athletic thrashed us and put us out of the FA Trophy the last time we met. The boys will be itching to get them back. August (10/8/2019) Match Report: Dover Athletic  We've come a long way from last season and we didn't really look out of place against Dover. Both goalkeepers had good games between the sticks, and a draw was a fair result. (17/8/2019) Match Report: AFC Fylde  An absolutely amazing performance from our front two. The Institute pulled out a range of passing I didn't even know he had, while To kept the game ticking towards the high tempo I wanted us to use. Everything wasn't, however, completely rosy, as we lost Moistie to a relatively long term injury.  (25/8/2019) Match Report: Salford City  Salford City are a very, very strong team at this level, having picked up striker Adam Rooney from Scottish Premiership side Aberdeen and boasting a professional set-up. The boys said 'stuff it' to all pretences of respect and fought toe-to-toe with them, a clinical performance from The Institute grabbing us the win on the day. We look a very good team at the moment, moving the ball from front to back with serious speed. We can unsettle even very tough opposition. My decision to increase the tempo has, however, claimed another victim. With both Avals and Moistie out, our midfield is absolutely barebones at the moment.  September (2/9/2019) Match Report: Dag and Red  New signing Afolabi got his first two goals for the club after coming in for The Institute, but it was Junior Mondal who grabbed the headlines with an energetic, productive performance down the left flank. Big Mouth is putting in perfectly acceptable performances in the middle of the park, but he's also getting on in years and I much prefer him at full back. Against faster opponents, we might have something to think about. (7/9/2019) Match Report: Barnet  Barnet are a professional side who got dropped into the division from League Two. That wasn't a fact that really bothered our boys, as they ran out 4-1 winners. Our starting two strikers struggled a little, but the dream team of To and The Institute bailed us out late on, every single goal coming after the 80th minute in a game I was rapidly fearing we were going to lose. (11/9/2019) Match Report: Wrexham  Previous LP Allstars Wrexham gave us a great game, grabbing an early lead and giving us real scares all through the game. New signing Keston Davies got a good headed goal, but Joey Jones knocked in his 2nd own goal of the season. It's a bit worrying that he's given up a couple of those. (14/9/2019) Match Report: Braintree Town  Braintree were no match for our brain geniuses, our lineup featuring the return of Ivan Avals. Davies kept up his good goalscoring form, hitting a headed goal at the first time of asking. Knypersley had a great game at the back, his experienced head giving Keston pointers. I gave Jones a run-out later on to boost his confidence as the team kept a clean sheet. (17/9/2019) Match Report: Crewe Alexandra  Crewe are another professional team and they really showed off their prowess in this game. We were never really in the game. The defence had a good game, which is worrying because of the scoreline. If they'd had worse games, Crewe might have hit double digits. Then, the inevitable happened.   The work permit system, for reference, requires players from non-UK regions to achieve a certain number of points to be eligible for a work permit. These points are achieved based on: the quality of the league the player is playing in, the number of international caps the player has achieved and nationality. For example, let's look at Percy Tau, from my native South Africa.  Tau was signed by Premier League club Brighton and Hove Albion from PSL side Mamelodi Sundowns. Sundowns have won several recent titles and have been participating in the CAF Champions League fairly regularly. Tau is a regular international player with Bafana Bafana, popularly regarded as our best player at the moment. When signed for Brighton, he failed to get a work permit, so the Seagulls loaned him out to Belgian side Union SG in the Belgian Second Division, where he won the Proximus Player of the season. He returned to Brighton, still not eligible for a work permit. He went out on loan again, this time to Club Brugge, the Belgian champions and regular participants in the UEFA Champions League. The Belgian League's UEFA coefficient is fairly high, so the chances of him getting a work permit have increased. Whether he wants to ditch a Champions League side for relegation strugglers is another matter entirely. The game follows much of the same logic. You can buy a guy that doesn't have a permit and loan him out to another country where the permit laws are more relaxed, allowing him to get playing time and another chance at acquiring a permit. Another away around this problem is the matter of nationality. If a player lives in a country, let's say England, for 5 years, he gets nationality for that country and no longer needs to get a work permit. In-game, because of the UK being in the EU, it's generally just Eastern European, African, South and North American players that need the permits. Now, with Brexit, we'll see many more permits being needed. This brings us to the half-joking of matter 'Brexit Football'. For the longest time, England has had a reputation of being brutish, unrefined and haphazard, with the football being scarcely much better. Many English teams were decried as being proponents of hoofball, a system of play in which midfield technicians are bypassed via long balls to the strikers or wingers. These teams were full of big bullies who would bend the rules, putting in 'proper English tackles' that had an equal chance of breaking a limb as getting the ball. In the modern-day, with the influx of foreign managers in the league, this style has mostly fallen away, with Wengers silky technicians in a modified 4-4-2, Ferguson's rockets in a fluid 4-3-3, Mourinho's solid 4-2-3-1 and Conte's revolutionary 3-4-3 being much more popular in recent years. One club seems to be bucking that trend.  Burnley, managed by Sean Dyche, play a classic 4-4-2 with outside wingers and a little and large striker combination up top. They are well-known for the allergy for possession, their tough-tackling style and their reliance on British players, with only 5 of the 26 Clarets players being non-UK players. Burnley as a city overwhelmingly voted Leave, so people like to joke about anything their team does to perpetuate the English football stereotype as a staunch 'Brexit means Brexit!' stance. Certainly, with a throwback style and a tendency to throw in tackles that only the English refs would ever let them get away with, Burnley aren't doing much to break the stereotype. (28/9/2019) Match Report: Leyton Orient  Our bad luck continued with a game against table-toppers Leyton Orient, who really took no prisoners. An attempt to let some of the 2nd-choice players play backfired. Still, I didn't expect us to get anything from this game, and the guys got some valuable game-time. October (1/10/2019) Match Report: Maidstone United  Both teams served up a treat, but it was ultimately the Excavators who emerged victorious. Afolabi grabbed his first ever senior hat-trick, while The Institute added a goal to complement his two assists for Afolabi. Ronaldo Brown gave me heart palpitations late on, but we saw the result through. We honestly have an extremely inconsistent team. There are times where we look like prime Madrid, tearing through teams with pace and power, and then there are times when we really look like a National South team and make amateur mistakes. I'll put it down to the youthful nature of many of our players. We'll see more consistency as they grow up. (5/10/19) Match Report: York City  It was The Institute's turn for a hat-trick this time, his pace causing real problems for the York defence. Strangely, despite there being 20 minutes left, we couldn't grab another goal after the sending-off, which was slightly disappointing. At the moment, we're the second-highest scorers in the league, with The Institute being the outright top scorer. I told him he did a good job.  (8/10/2019) Match Report: Grimsby Town  This match was about as grim as our opponents. We weren't at the races and looked like a bunch of amateurs. For whatever reason, we couldn't hold onto the ball in the middle of the park and the boys weren't at their usual pressing best. On we go, I suppose. (12/10/2019) Match Report: Ebbsfleet United  Another day, another hat-trick from Afolabi, who already looks like our signing of the season. I almost feel bad for Southampton for fleecing them for a mere £2.5k for this guy. This game is also excellent evidence for our amazing inconsistency. The press backed Grimsby and they took us apart. The press backed Ebbsfleet United and we walloped them. Next up is Chelmsford Town in the FA Cup. We each took 3 points off of each other in the fixtures last season, so there's no way I can take Chelmsford lightly. With our finances struggling a bit, we need to progress fairly far in the cup to recoup costs. (19/10/2019) Match Report: Chelmsford Town  A good professional job from the boys, with goals from Mondal, To and, of all people, Tribune for his first ever goal, a cross that made its way into the top right corner of the goal. Lex Metzger was magic at the back, making 8 saves in a performance that I can show the boys if I ever want to showcase a complete performance. We'll face Solihull Moors, a fellow National League side, in the next round. (26/10/2019) Match Report: Harrogate Town  I wasn't happy with this match. There shouldn't have been this gulf in class, but Harrogate showed up and we didn't. Everything ahead of the defence worked, but the defence itself struggled, the normally extremely reliable Eaufort really struggling. (29/10/2019) Match Report: Hartlepool United  We really, really should have won this match. We had a number of shots in good places, but for some reason, we just couldn't convert any of them. All in all, our start in the new division had been very respectable. We find ourselves in 7th place, in the playoff places, and, will a little more consistency, we can make our home here and gun for back-to-back promotions.   _______________ First Third Summary: League Position: 7th FA Cup: Through to 1st Round facing Solihull Moors FA Trophy: Not started yet Wins: 9 Draws: 2 Losses: 5 Win Percentage (League): 59% (56%) Top Goalscorer: The Institute (13) Top Playmaker: Junior Mondal (7) Best Average Rating; The Institute (7.62/10) Most Yellow Cards: Big Mouth Most Red Cards: N/A Injuries: None Transfers IN: Keston Davies (4k, Swansea, CB), Junior Mondal (Loan, Forest Green, LM), Jonathan Afolabi (2.5K, Southampton, ST) Transfers OUT: Oliver Gardner (Free, CB), George O'Neill (Free, Harrogate Town, ST) Next Opponent: Boreham Wood at home in the Vanarama National South
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Jul 3, 2020 17:28
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I'm glad Gaius Sempronius Gracchus is getting some game time!
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Jul 3, 2020 17:39
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GruntMountain posted:
Fuckkkkkkk that's meta. Well done! 
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Jul 3, 2020 17:48
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I can only hope we've started selling Aflolabi merchandise, because that guy is on fire. I really hope his nickname, 'The Other Institute', doesn't stick though.
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Jul 3, 2020 18:13
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As lomg as there is a market for goals, the institute will be there. When the institute retires, i will make up a new striker
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Jul 4, 2020 01:30
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It will probably be a 22 year old named karl marx
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Jul 4, 2020 01:31
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Namtab posted:It will probably be a 22 year old named karl marx There's a Brazilian No. 10 called Marx Lenin in the database somewhere.
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Jul 4, 2020 01:36
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THE CREST OF THE WAVE _______________ (1/11/2019) (Plainmoor, Torquay.) : With your team in somewhat uninspiring, lukewarm form and several nearby jobs opening up, it seems that you've become a manager in fairly high demand. What's your take on the situation.  : I'm committed to the project here, a project I feel that I've only just started. To jump ship now would be silly and disloyal of me. Mr Hakimi has trusted me with the reins; I need to repay his trust.: How do you suppose you'll go about this 'repayment'.: Improved results and efforts at strengthening the club.: Strengthening how? You're several tens of thousands of pounds in debt. Your wage budget has been overextended and it looks unlikely that you'll win a trophy this season. Where is your budget meant to come from?: We'll find a way. This team always does._______________ November (3/11/2019) Match Report: Boreham Wood  More like bore-draw wood. We made a fair few presentable chances but our forwards really had a tough time of things. We need to sharpen up for the next match, which is against fellow National side Solihull Moors. We've got a good chance of beating them, I think. (9/11/2019) Match Report: Solihull Moors  A well-deserved win, with good performances from top to bottom from our first-choice team. We're in the hat for the next round and we'll do well to pick up a favourable opponent to keep our run going. (16/11/2019) Match Report: Sutton United  A good performance, but not quite good enough. Sutton really showed up for this match, hitting two early goals. I thought we were going to drop all 3 points until a late Afolabi goal, his first in eight matches, grabbed a point for us. That sort of fightback will be great for both his confidence and the teams. (23/11/2019) Match Report: Gloucester City  Our old enemies Gloucester hosted us for this matchday and we left them wishing for the safety of the National South with a 5-star performance. Shite put in one of his best performances in the shirt, really getting stuck in in that midfield area. The front two had chances galore and it honestly could have been more but for a good performance from their right back to keep Mondal fairly quiet by his standards. Elsewhere, Roy passed his coaching course with flying colours. At this rate, I might have to hire him on the spot!   (26/11/2019) Match Report: Solihull Moors  The matches are coming thick and fast and our boys will have to keep up with a hectic schedule. They did well for themselves here, dominating from literally the very first minute, as To scored Exmouth's fastest ever goal. A quick ball from the goalkeeper to the pacy man up top to feed to his strike partner might be a tactic looked down upon, but hey, if it works...  The next point of order is finding out who we are to face in the FA Cup next. These things can go either way. Either we get a smaller team and we have a good chance of beating them and going through, or we pick up one of the big boys and get a nice boost financially. In the FA Cup, each team gets half of the gate receipts. For example, if we go to Old Trafford and 60 000 fans attend, we'll get the money from 30 000 of those tickets and whatever money TV coverage will give us. Such a financial boost is hugely important both in-game and in real life. Just recently, Colchester United refurbished their training ground after playing United at Old Trafford and getting that gate receipt cash.  Okay, so we're probably not going very far in the cup this year, but this is still a good thing. City have a 55 000 thousand-seater stadium and they will get us some TV coverage. This is sure to completely reverse our fortunes in terms of fortunes. December (3/12/2019) Match Report: Darlington  Wheatley scored such a bizarre own-goal, smashing it into his own net from about ten yards out, that I'm sure the FA is going to investigate us for match-fixing one of these days. The points are ours, for now, and we'll take them. We could have scored some better goals, but teams are locking down our wingers at the moment, so we're having a tougher time of things. The midfield will need to step and take charge from now on. (8/12/2019) Match Report: FC Halifax Town  A game we'd rather forget, with a mix up in defence costing us the points after To got another very early goal. A red card for Jared Bird came far too late in the game for it to mean anything, the Halifax man getting sent off being the last action of the game. (14/12/2019) Match Report: Chelmsford Town  Rubbish. Just rubbish. Chelmsford seem to have our number at home and a freak goal from Cameron Healey was enough to settle this game. It was about the poorest game from The Institute I can remember, with the rest of the team really struggling as a result of the pressing game being completely off. We're out of the FA Trophy, which is only available to teams in the Vanarama divisions, so this might have been our last chance to win it if we get promoted this season. (17/12/2019) Match Report: Eastleigh  An entertaining match for the neutral, but not for the manager. Some of our defending was absolutely shocking, with Knypersley somehow managing to be second-best in the air all day long. An irritating way to drop 2 points. (22/12/2019) Match Report: Dover Athletic  This was much better and a true showcase of our swaggering style of play. For once we took advantage of a sending-off, To the beneficiary of a gap at the back, plundering two late goals. The lads looked up for this one. However, I'm starting to worry about the performances of Joey Jones. He seems to be struggling at the back but does a little better when placed in defensive midfield. That may be something to be explored... (26/12/2019) Match Report: AFC Fylde  Sometimes your opponents play a better game than you do and there's not much to be done with that happens. Fylde were there and they weren't going to lose. We just happened to be in their way. With Moistie playing poorly, the defence had very little cover and Fylde took their chances well when they made them. (28/12/2019) Match Report: Gateshead  I was very, very impressed with The Wall's crossing in this match. His pass completion rate was low because he was trying the risky passes and it paid off here, with The Institute smashing in off of our right back's looping cross. (31/12/2019) Match Report: Salford City  A rotated team did very little against Salford, who dominated this match. Lex did his best to keep the score low, with a banger into the top right corner from Andreu enough to settle the match. Our forwards and wingers didn't really ever look like they could spark an upset and just looked like they wanted the game to be over. Playing in Salford, they all had their minds in Manchester. January (4/1/2020) Match Report: Manchester City  I didn't expect us to get anything from this game and City's second team had enough steel and firepower to sweep us away with a professional performance. Lex had an absolutely astonishing game in goal, stopping a penalty from Foden and holding onto 20 saves, which is almost certainly a record. The young Brit can hold his head high after this game. (7/1/2020) Match Report: Wrexham  A great performance all around, with Lex even getting an assist for Ronnie's goal. Our issues at the back persist, but if we keep outgunning the opposition, we shouldn't have too many issues. We may need strengthening, but it can wait. (11/1/2020) Match Report: Dag and Red  Another game in which we threw caution to the wind and just went for it. Goodsir took the plaudits for this match, a goal after 30 seconds and one in the 84th sealing the win. We look a bit more stable with Case in a covering position behind another centreback, be it Davies or Knypersley, so I might just have to recall Rob from the wilderness for this last stretch of games. (26/1/2020) Match Report: Barnet  After a slow start to the season, To has really stepped up in this middle portion, taking his tally up to 15 in this game. It was a result that took us up to 5th, a position that is fairly insecure for the most part but something we can doubtlessly be proud about. The January finances have come in, and wow, what a difference after that City game! We made an entire million Pounds this month. Our financial future looks very secure and, who knows, maybe Mr Hakimi will let us invest in something at the end of the season.  Our performances in January were so solid that two of our players made the shortlist for Player of the Month, with To eventually winning. Beyond that, a tight race saw Berardi win the Manager of the Month. With our spirits up and our form golden, we look to have a strong end to 19/20 season. Who knows what we might achieve...     _______________ Second Third Summary: League Position: 5th FA Cup: Eliminated by Manchester City FA Trophy: Eliminated by Chelmsford Wins: 17 Draws: 6 Losses: 7 Win Percentage (League): 55% (57%) Top Goalscorer: The Institute (25) Top Playmaker: Junior Mondal and Causso Darame (8) Best Average Rating; The Institute (7.46/10) Most Yellow Cards: Avals (5) Most Red Cards: Avals and Moistie (1) Injuries: None Next Opponent: Braintree away in the Vanarama National League
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Jul 9, 2020 00:12
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How do we go about increasing performance?
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Jul 9, 2020 15:48
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Deadmeat5150 posted:How do we go about increasing performance? We need to stop shipping so many goals. I feel like our current midfield set-up is a little flimsier than I expected it to be, with Shite trying to make the play and Avals or Moistie running around to get the ball. I've been training the team to adapt to a 4-1-2-3 formation, with a proper CDM to shield the defence. With three attackers, three balanced mids and a stable defence, I think we can kick on and do quite well.
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Jul 9, 2020 18:21
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All we need on D is The Wall. 
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Jul 9, 2020 23:31
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