crouchaldinho

PREFACE

This was my first save game on FM 07 and I didn't expect it to last so long or to make such a huge impact (especially on my leisure time)!
I wanted to start near the bottom of the English football pyramid and work my way up with a local club and yet I expected to be relegated on my first attempt, due to my usual incompetence with previous CM&FM games. Indeed, I even named an early save version of this game 'the conference p45 tour', such was my expectation of abject failure and mediocrity.

Having just moved to a village just outside St. Albans, I decided that St. Albans City (the Saints) would be my Football Manager 'guinea-pig' club!

This is my first FM story and I wanted to write it as the journal of a football manager.
I am writing it retrospectively, so I apologise for any inconsistencies or incongruity, plus the inevitable bad grammar and spelling!
In addition, I apologise for the brevity of the early season reviews as they have been written retrospectively, but stick with the story because I think it gets a lot better the further you go with it.

I hope the read is a pleasurable one! Cheers…

crouchaldinho

CHAPTER 1 - MY NEW LOCAL CLUB

This was the first snippet of information I had read about St. Albans City FC. I had moved to the area a few weeks previously and made a point of finding out about my new local club. The St. Albans Advertiser were also running a story about the chairman John Gibson's search for a new manager, announcing that he wanted to bring someone 'young, ambitious and hungry' to manage the club.
Feeling that I easily matched the criteria, being 29 years old and hungry for some managerial experience, I forwarded a speculative CV filled to the brim with details of my coaching work, admittedly undertaken at a much lower level in the football pyramid. To my surprise, a week later, I received a phone call from John Gibson requesting that I visit the club at the earliest opportunity. The rest is history and so the dream began…

Upon first seeing the hallowed turf of Clarence Park I was sure that this was the place for me to build a managerial career. Situated in an attractive setting, with a park on one side and a cricket ground on the other, and with old trees looming large on the horizon, the ground has a very old-fashioned and traditional appeal. Clarence Park is made up of largely open terracing with one wooden stand, having been originally built in 1922, which adds a rather quaint and charming feel to the stadium.
On the very first day of my appointment, Bobby Blake, the clubs loyal grounds man, told me that up until the late 90's the ground was famous for having a large oak tree that sat in the middle of the Clarence Park Terrace (the away end). It was not unknown for visiting goalkeepers to get the odd acorn thrown in their direction! Regrettably the oak tree became diseased and was swiftly removed by the management.

I had undertaken a great deal of research about St Albans City Football Club before deciding the take charge, some of which is detailed below:

In addition, I had done my research about the city itself and its potential for football:

With John Gibson, the City chairman, rumoured to want to move the club into a bigger ground, I am hopeful that I am working with the right man and that the club is going places. He seems rather quiet on the matter, however, with no discussions regarding the future having taken place prior to my appointment.

The brief for this first season in charge is to avoid relegation. The major thing that worried me after my first 'tour' of the club was the ground's open terraces, as I feared that it might be difficult to generate a good atmosphere. I felt the club needed that 'twelfth man' element, especially with City being favourites to be relegated from the Conference.

crouchaldinho

CHAPTER 2 - Season 2006/2007 CONFERENCE

Pre-season:
The fans were cautiously optimistic about my appointment. I read the sacfc.co.uk forums intensely during the pre-season, only to see that the majority of fans were claiming that my appointment was a mistake by a chairman lacking in ambition! Cheers guys! A small minority seemed to be supporting my appointment, if only to be different to the rest!

With this statement of confidence firmly rooted at the back of my mind, I began preparations for the new season. I didn't want to change too much at once and felt that the best way forward would be to strengthen the squad with a few minor signings. I brought in 6 new players, including a couple of hard and experienced centre-backs, a versatile fullback and a young attacking midfielder. The quality of these signings was doubtful, but I was looking to make up the numbers and hoped that they may come good.

The undoubted star of the team was captain Lee Clarke, who had scored for fun under the previous manager. I would be relying on him a great deal this season.

Season review:
The Saints faithful only had to wait three games for their undoubted highlight of the season, a 5-2 drubbing of a poor Cambridge City side! Yet, mediocrity followed that, with the side dropping points all over the place. We were beaten at home by local rivals Stevenage Boro but achieved a 1-1 draw at Broadhall Way with the Saints fans in full voice singing 'we pay your benefits' and 'is your daughter on the pill?' to the home fans! Terrific stuff!
We never really looked like getting relegated, with Lee Clarke's fantastic goalscoring escapades surely the sole reason we stayed in the division, as he finished the season with 25 league goals.

crouchaldinho

CHAPTER 3- Season 2007/2008 CONFERENCE

Pre-season: Last season the side managed to achieve a safe position in the league and it appeared that the chairman, John Gibson, simply wanted more of the same. I felt that it was surely time to try and consolidate and establish the side in the top flight of non-league football - perhaps aim for mid-table. After some serious conversations, John Gibson reluctantly gave me 18k to spend, at the cost of a reduced wage budget. I went out in the market and spent quickly on John Dawson for 14k from Hitchin Town FC. John was a big, powerful centre-forward who was extremely strong in the air- exactly what we needed at this level. I strengthened the squad with 6 other players, one of who was a young centre-back called Rhys Powell for 4k.
It was time to improve on last season and so a tactical revamp was in order. The side would play long ball football, hitting balls to John Dawson early in the hope that Lee Clarke could run off him and put the ball in the back of the net.

Season review:
This season saw us strengthen our position and we finished with 7 more points than last season, but something was seriously wrong with the home form. Away from Clarence Park we caused some serious upsets, with our long ball tactic to John Dawson. Yet, at home, the tactic just wasn't paying off and we dropped silly points all over the place. We lost 1-0 away to arch-rivals Stevenage and then managed to beat them 1-0 at home, but the goals just weren't flowing at Clarence Park. Staying in the division was good enough for me, but it was really a nothing season and in that respect it had been disappointing.

crouchaldinho

CHAPTER 4- Season 2008/2009 CONFERENCE

Pre-season: Time to get rid of some dead wood, with 7 members of the squad axed, mostly on free transfers, and only 1k recouped. As a result there wasn't much to spend, so I concentrated my efforts on free transfers and loans. Lee Collins was a notable free transfer, a young fullback with lots of promise at this level.
I went back to basics with the squad and worked hard on some new tactical ideas. We stuck with the long ball, defensive, counter-attacking tactic and focused on using John Dawson as our target man. At home, we kept the same tactic rather than going out and attacking sides like last season.

Season review:
What can be said about this season, except for that it was completely unexpected and had an emotional roller-coaster finish. With Stevenage having been promoted to the football league the season before, there was no local derby, but the side didn't seem to need any motivation to play football.
Their form during the first half of the season led the local papers to dub the side 'the little Brazil', which I am sure had more to do with the fact that the side were playing in yellow and blue, and winning football matches, rather than the style of play, which was gritty, ugly stuff. The side played direct football up to John Dawson, who won headers and scored goals. He was easily our star player of the season.
I expected that John Gibson would be ecstatic that the club had achieved the unthinkable and won its first ever trophy, yet he seemed to worry more about the wage bill, which was increased dramatically by a great deal of player contract promotion clauses.
The first trophy in St. Albans City history was an emotional moment for the long-suffering fans, although the celebrations were restricted to Clarence Park, with the fans gathering to pay their tributes to the playing squad. On Saints march to the football league!
Still no sign of that new stadium and I was beginning to believe the fans on sacfc.co.uk forum when they said that John Gibson had no ambition.

crouchaldinho

CHAPTER 5- Season 2009/2010 LEAGUE TWO

Pre-season: With the squad looking extremely thin with questionable quality for a football league club, I called a meeting with John Gibson who refused to allocate any funds to me. However, a number of clubs were circling like vultures around my young centre-back Rhys Powell, who I unloaded to Huddersfield for a stonking (if such a word exists) 190k! With these funds secured as my transfer kitty for the season, I released a shocking 24 players(!), mostly deadwood and youngsters and began to rebuild the squad from it's foundations.
Notably signings included a cocky centre-forward of the name Darryl Duffy, another cocky and pacey forward named Darryl Knights and an all-round versatile and young midfielder from Doncaster named Paul Hill. Rob Marshall, a centre-back from Cambridge United, was a record signing for 50k! He was going to have a big future at the club, that was for sure. I brought no less than 20 players to Clarence Park with my new revolving door transfer policy and foolishly spent the whole of my 190k. But I intended to cement the sides place in the football league, no matter what John Gibson thought. Nobody was going to hold me back. And so we began a season with almost a new squad, with only a small spine of the older players, such as Lee Collins, Lee Clarke and John Dawson still strutting their stuff at Clarence Park.

Season review:
An amazing season, which included a few traded blows with Stevenage (a 2-0 loss at Broadhall Way and 2-0 win back at Clarence Park). Saints were ready from the off thanks to a fantastic pre-season and a great start which saw the side pick up points fairly quickly. League Two didn't seem much of a step up to City, with John Dawson in particular terrorising professional defences!
Come the end of the season, Saints had secured a play-off spot and were drawn to play Rotherham. The first leg was away from home saw the Saints emerge as victors with a 2-1 win. Following that, City had an easy second leg at home and cruised to a 1-0 win. Through to the play-off final to play Hereford - yet the side didn't have the mental strength to win that game and eventually succumbed to a 3-2 loss, Hereford's goal coming, tragically and devastatingly for Saints, during the 90th minute.
I praised the lads and told them that next season could be their season. If I could just keep the squad together, yet John Gibson is breathing down my neck about the wage budget, which I have exceed dreadfully due to my 20 new signings!

crouchaldinho

CHAPTER 6- Season 2010/2011 LEAGUE TWO

Pre-season: The media seem to have us down as one-season wonders, but I feel that we can really challenge this season. Especially seeing as the team have really gelled and John Dawson is such a big deal for any defence to cope with!
During the summer, I let 11 players go, mostly on free transfers. This was really the legacy from our conference days of players who wouldn't make the grade. Darryl Knights, last season's top scorer, was sold for 26k to balance the books (having been signed on a free the previous season). His stay at Clarence Park has been short but sweet. I brought in 11 players on frees, mostly youngsters to add depth to the first team squad. I didn't feel I would have to change much. One big pre-season moment was the loan signing of a young West Ham centre-back Freddie Owen, who would eventually go on to have an exciting future at Clarence Park, but that's a story for later.

Season Review:
Darryl Duffy replaced Darryl Knights as Dawson's partner up front and scored 25 goals in the process as Saints scored a fantastic 78 goals on their way to winning the second trophy in our history. West Ham young centre-back Freddie Owen really kept things tight at the back - I would love to get him on loan again next season, as I feel he has undoubted quality at this level and could make the step up to League One.
Once again, the local media dubbed us the 'Little Brazil' as we had our best season ever! I must confess that my head was beginning to get a little big at this stage, with two promotions (and two trophies) in five seasons, my ego was starting to take over.
John Gibson, the chairman, arranged a full celebration, including a bus tour of St. Albans City centre, with thousands of fans singing 'oh when the saints, (oh when the saints) go marching in (go marching in), oh when the saints go marching in, I want to be in league one, oh when the saints go marching in!' In short, a fantastic atmosphere. And finally, St. Albans City centre had some people wearing the yellow and blue of their local club. Genuine pride in their local team had finally made the people of St. Albans sit up and take notice. It was exciting times ahead for the club and on to League One we go!

crouchaldinho

CHAPTER 7- Season 2011/2012 LEAGUE ONE

Pre-season: The same old story for Saints pre-season - we are everyone's favourites to go down. With the core of the squad meeting the required standard of the division, in my opinion, I didn't see too much reason to make dramatic changes. With that in mind, I attempted to ease the wage bill with some free transfers - regrettably comprising of a great number of players I had signed in my transfer binge of two seasons ago - they just hadn't made the grade. In came a number of young players, ones for the future, including a young defender named Will Talbot. A young pacey striker named Frazier Campbell was signed on a free transfer, having been released by Blackburn Rovers. He looked like a great prospect. Freddie Owen liked his time at Clarence Park so much, he was back again on loan. And a young lad called Mitchell Bryant signed on a season long loan from Chelsea - he was probably the most talented youngster the Saints faithful had ever seen at Clarence Park. Physically he had bags of pace, lots of strength and great ability in the air. His technique and first-touch were certainly the best I had ever seen. It was clear I would be building a team and tactic around Mitchell Bryant for our best chance of success.

Season review:
How can you sum up a season like this? Literally my best ever in football management. Mitchell Bryant was a dream to have in the team - as a target man, he could run onto the ball, have it played into feet, or win it in the air. His finishing was fantastic and he broke the record for goals scored in a season. Freddie Owen and Rob Marshall formed an excellent partnership at the back and kept clean sheets everywhere they went. The side just wouldn't concede goals and refused to have any mercy on their opposition, locating Mitchell Bryant who poached goals and created for those around him. Fantastic stuff. I even got Saints playing a short passing attacking game at home, centring around Mitchell, and it was a fantastic success. Only Ipswich Town were better than us, finishing above us in 1st. On to the Championship we go as if in some kind of dream! The Saints go marching on!

crouchaldinho

CHAPTER 8 - Season 2012/2013 CHAMPIONSHIP

Pre-season: To me, this season looked very bleak. Mitchell Bryant had decided that he wouldn't be coming back to Clarence Park and we clearly wouldn't be good enough for the Championship without him. In short, I didn't think we had a hope in hell of even staying in the division. I saw the gap between the Championship and League One as being huge, evidenced by clubs like Yeovil Town and Doncaster, who have done what we have done, i.e. come up from the Conference to this level and then yo-yo'ed between the Championship and League One.
Yet due to my ego I went ahead and made a four-year plan with great optimism to get the club into the premier league. The name old big 'ead could easily be attributed to me after my recent endeavours. However, crippling debt along with various other issues surrounding the club had me worried.
To clarify, the club is in severe debts and I have no transfer fees and a wage limit that is less than I was allowed in League Two! Barely anyone with any kind of quality will sign for Saints so I am left with picking up young players with local reputations that I don't think will be capable of mixing it with the big boys of the league. The training facilities and youth academy is poor in comparison to other sides at this level and it cannot be upgraded due to the financial problems. Saints have never had a decent youth product come through the academy.
Sweeping changes were made in the summer, with 50 (!) players sold or released, recouping a fantastic £2.6m, most of which should have helped ease our debts. However, I needed to spend to keep us in the division and spent £2.2m of this income to try to strengthen the squad. Notable signings included youngster Jim Pirie for 20k from Falkirk and Freddie Owen (previously on loan with the club over the last two seasons) signed up for a club record fee of 950k. I felt that with the signing of Freddie Owen, we might have a chance of staying up. I expected him to build up a great partnership with Rob Marshall in the centre of defence. In addition, Carlos Lopez, a young Spanish striker is signed for £275k - he was to play a bit part in the season.
The main problem I could foresee is that the squad was very young - they were clearly a squad for the future. You don't win anything with kids apparently.


Season review:
This season provided the most challenging and frustrating yet thrilling experience I have had as a football manager so far.
Over the last six years, Saints have had great success; consolidating in the conference fairly easily and making short work of a league two full of deadwood and even shorter work of league one. My ego reflected this success, but the Championship was to provide me with my biggest challenge yet.
At the beginning of the season, I knew that the side was well below the standard in terms of the Championship and so made sweeping changes to the whole squad in order to prepare for the new season. As a result, I was still tinkering with the line-up and bringing in new signings up until the end of august. The first 10 games of the season were a mess and saw me at rock bottom of the championship. However, the side seemed to start to gell and pick up points - a rather incredible unbeaten run followed and took us up as high as 12th place.
In the January transfer window I decided that captain and fullback Lee Collins was clearly not up to the standard of championship football and we needed the money from his transfer, with several clubs after him. I sniff out a good deal and show the lad the door for 150k to Sheff Wed. Still the results come, yet, disaster was just around the corner. Three of my centre-backs were injured, along with two of my fullbacks, which left me with a makeshift backline of youngsters. With that, City seemed to fall apart. The strikers couldn't score goals, the defenders couldn't defend to save their lives. In short, Saints found themselves back down in 22nd place with three games left. I swore loudly at the team, fined several of them for bad performance and went to bed a very angry manager that evening, I can tell you.

But it came to me as if in a dream. I saw the error of my tactical ways and so I was up first thing the following morning and back on the training pitch with my squad.
In short, I remembered what our success has been based on up until now - that is, a counter-attacking tactic, with direct passing and a solid target man with excellent jumping and headers. My defenders would all hoof it up to him and he would hold up the ball or flick it on to my faster striker. It ain't pretty - but this is football on a budget.
Somewhere along the line, we've lost our way. We don't have a decent target man. So it was time to bring back St Albans City legend John Dawson, who was currently lamenting his fate in the reserves.
'John,' I said to the big lad, 'with your jumping of 18, heading of 19 and strength of 17, I want you to bruise every defender who comes near you and win headers for our poofy ex-premiership fast striker Frazier Campbell'. I thought it was a big ask, as John's stats were not up to the standard elsewhere, but anyway...
So, to the last three games of the season, and next up was Ipswich (one place above me) at home in a must win game. My Saints team hadn't won in 14 games - the media said it was impossible. Tactically, all was left unchanged, except I set Dawson as the target man and ask the side to play it to his head - no point in them playing it to him any other way as he's too slow and crap for that. The side battled and scored first - Dawson involved in the build up and my Arsenal loanee attacking midfielder putting the ball in the back of the net. But late on Ipswich grabbed an equaliser to dent our hopes of staying up. 1-1.
Two games to go, two points from safety. Still all to play for. More of the same next game at home to Brum please lads. So Birmingham, stuck in the lower half of the table with Ruud Gullit in charge (!) come to Clarence Park. I stick with the same side and beg them to find a win. And win they do, although they make hard work of it, but once again it's Dawson involved in the build up and our crappy and self-indulgent ex-premiership striker Frazier Campbell runs on to it and puts it in the back of the net (only his 8th goal of the season). Saints hold on to the lead. 1-0 win.
And yet, the team above us win to ensure that we are still two points from safety. We have to win the last game away at Millwall.
Gullit is praising me in the press. My keeper is rallying the troops and trying to get a reaction. We're ready for the final day. Same side, same tactic. I tell the lads to do it for the fans.
A quiet first half with nothing to report and I fear the worst. Dawson was involved in a few moves, but overall he looks like he is outclassed at this level. At halftime, in the dressing room all is dismal. I'm seriously thinking about another season in league one. I contemplate leaving the club, we're in serious debt and I've no idea what will happen in the summer. I praise the lads and they get back out there. I ensure, as always, that Dawson is up against the oppositions weakest centre-back.
Middle of the half, still nothing. I sub on my young Spanish striker to support Dawson. I bought this Spanish lad mainly because of his name, Carlos Lopez - he sound like he has to be class. He's 20 with bags of flair and looks like he'll be a star one day. And would you believe it, 75th minute, Dawson up for a header, flicks it on, Lopez through, GOAL!!! I'm jumping around the bathroom (don't ask why).. ahem... I mean pitch! 1-0. And the lads hold on! And even better than that, the team above me lose! I stay up by one point on the last day of the season!!! And it's pure poetry, as the legend that is Dawson sets up the youngster who wishes to emulate him for the goal. The past and the future of the club keeping us up!

The priority after this season is to build for another season in the championship and to expect a relegation battle. The priority for the summer is to sign a target man! I don't want Saints to be involved in another relegation battle.

crouchaldinho

CHAPTER 9- Season 2013/2014 CHAMPIONSHIP

Pre-season: In the summer, I had a clear out and sold a couple of youngsters including my young and talented centre-back Will Talbot for 500k. I say that I sold him, but in fact, the chairman stepped in and said the offer was too good to refuse.
The club is now in very severe debt exacerbated by the chairman's desire to move to a new stadium in two years time - the result is, no transfer fees and a wage limit of only 50k!
I'm seriously struggling to take the club forward and after selling another 12 players to try and bring some funds in, I can only bring in a few free transfers. I do, however, spend a little on a new target man called Ryan Taylor for £350k. I hope that he will link up with my pacey striker, Frazier Campbell and perform the role that John Dawson did so well in the lower leagues. Another notable signing is Ben Davies, an ex-Arsenal winger, on a free transfer. He's an England U19 international and I'm excited about him. The squad still looks too young and lacks composure and concentration. I hope that they will keep us up this season and develop into a solid unit.
Season review:
Another season gone, the major highlight being a league cup run to the semi-finals that broke the previous club record by about four rounds! The semis brought multi-millionaires Chelsea up against my penniless Saints side and we were well and truly outclassed. Still it was a good cup run!

There were few other positives from this season though, with the Championship as tough as it was last year. I will try and pick out a few more good points, just to keep this journal from descending into despondency too early.

My new target man signing Ryan Taylor, who replaced the legendary towering John Dawson (the 18k signing from Hitchin Town), bedded in really well and broke the club record for assists in a season, gaining the highest average rating.
Ben Davies, an ex-Arsenal youth signed on a free transfer, broke through to the first team squad at the age of 19 and played a blinder in the second half of the season.
My young Scottish right-back, Jim Pirie (now 20yrs), has improved incredibly and has undoubted Premiership potential.

Yet the league season ended just as the last one did, with a desperate limp over the finish line. A 21st place finish, admittedly achieved with a game to spare, yet with only 2 more points than last season.

There were one or two good runs of form during the season, which led me to believe that the team were capable of a mid-table finish. The main problem seems to be with the squad depth, of which there is absolutely none. So as soon as one or two first-teamers are out, especially the centre-backs or the wide players, I’m playing players out of position, or using players who are of doubtful league one ability!
My worst run of form came when I was missing two MLs, two CBs and my top scoring pacey striker for a large period in the second half of the season. With no backup on the left wing and with questionable backup for my central defenders, I struggled against everyone. It was difficult to pick up the form again even when they returned, with morale at an all time low.

What depressed me most was that Ipswich, who I was promoted from league one with two seasons ago, finished 2nd and made it to the top flight. QPR, the other team who came up with me, finished two or three places above me.

St Albans City offered me a new contract, yet with no transfer kitty and a wage limit that would look more realistic for a league two club! I have, of course, accepted the contract and at least another season of misery. My biggest worry is that about three first-team players in the squad are 34 or 35 and must go this season – yet, despite there lack of stamina (and ability in fact) they were vital backup for the first team squad. I am already short in almost every department and I am wondering where the next player is going to come from, especially seeing as I am hugely restricted in what I can offer players wage-wise.

John Dawson, who has been with us since it began and scored at every level, is also looking to pack his bags and move on, as his contract is due to run out. It’ll be a sad day for me, as he has served the club well and he even bagged a few goals in the league cup run this season (as my main target man was cup-tied). His contribution in the conference and league two was incredible, assists and goals, and he will be sorely missed if we can’t tie him down to a new contract as a backup player.

A few premiership clubs are circling like vultures over three of my star players, Rob Marshall, the aforementioned Scottish right-back Jim Pirie and an all-round creative midfielder called Paul Hill who has been at the club for a few years. If I could get £3 or £4m for one or two of them, then that would certainly go some way to solving the debt-problems and I might even get a little to spend. Yet, I would struggle to replace them and that’s my main worry.

I am really hoping that something can be done about the training facilities and the youth academy, because quite frankly they are absolute rubbish at the moment and I think are another thing that is holding me back.

I never realised how much money dominates the game at the higher levels. In the championship, there is a huge and visible gap between the rich and the poor – I only have to look at my end of season table to see that.

The poor form of the team over this season and last has led me to question my tactics set, which was so successful in my conference, league two and league one campaigns. However, I believe it is more lightly the poor quality of my first team that is causing the problem!

The new stadium arrives next summer, so I’m hoping that one more season of struggle will reap us the rewards of a packed stadium next season and therefore bring in the cash! I will be sad to leave Clarence Park however.