retired_makaylalldredge

Holders - Austria Wien <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> | Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Salzburg | | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 14 | 4 | +10 | 21 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Rapid Wien | | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 13 | 12 | +1 | 15 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Austria Wien | | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 14 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Altach | | 10 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 20 | 19 | +1 | 13 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Pasching | | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 10 | -2 | 12 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | GAK | | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 11 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Mattersburg | | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 11 | 15 | -4 | 11 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Sturm Graz | | 10 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 10 | 11 | -1 | 10 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Ried | | 10 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 15 | -2 | 10 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Wacker Tirol | | 10 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 10 | 13 | -3 | 10 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3 points deducted from Sturm Graz | | | | | | | | | | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_makaylalldredge

October 2006

Great news at the start of the month saw Mr Kienast return to full training. Him and Mendy could forge quite a partnership if they were both fit at the same time! Having said that Rabihou has been superb for us thus far.

Wacker Tirol, Away, Bundesliga - 15.10.06
Leitgeb is out for a week so Sarac regains his place in the side and with the injury to Verlaat, I had to draft in Morec as our 4th choice CB. Kienast joined Mendy on the bench as I stuck with Rabihou and Nzuzi up front. This game was to be a dress rehearsal for our Hallen Cup tie with Wacker in two weeks. We began the game under a lot of pressure, but after soaking that up we began to look more dangerous. A great ball by Rabihou through to Filipovic nearly saw the breakthrough before the real turning point in the game occurred. Nzuzi burst through the centre of the pitch and was cynically brought down by Vardanyan and our small pocket of away fans were waving him goodbye. Minutes later, the increasingly prolific Rabihou netted his 6th goal of the season with a cleverly placed header. The second half opened badly for us and we had to rely on Gratzei to make a good save. But a few minutes later I was admiring the pace and dribbling ability of Polo Nzuzi as he slalomed his way past two defenders and in on goal. It looked set to be a wonderful goal, but Nzuzi's finish lacked accuracy and we were still searching for a 2nd goal. I looked to Mendy as I pulled off the inconsistent Nzuzi and hoped he'd have a similar impact as last week. Annoyingly we found ourselves at 1-1 after a slack piece of defending let them in and no matter how hard we tried we could not break them down for a winning goal. Final score 1-1.
MOM - Thomas Krammer

Christoph Lietgeb has returned from his facial injury and should slot back in on the left wing.

Austria Wien, Home, Bundesliga - 22.10.06
Big big game today at home. The holders of the division had had an ordinary set of results thus far and it looked as if we could cause them problems at home. As it turned out, Lietgeb was not fully fit and so the only change I made was to bring in Mendy for Nzuzi for his first start in 2 months. The first 45 minutes were commanded mainly by us and I was delighted to watch Rabihou bag another goal with a neat low finish past David Gonzalez. Our only concern was a chance for Vaclav Sverkos - but he was denied by Szamotulski. The second half had little in the way of chances for Austria Wien and it was pleasing to be able to semi-relax as the clock wound down. I brought on Kienast and Lietgeb to give them some needed playing time as our fans celebrated a welcome win over our rivals.
MOM - Adam Ledwon

Wacker Tirol, Away, Hallen Cup - 25.10.06
An unchanged side as we returned to Wacker Tirol looking for more than the draw we were held to last time. After 13 minutes, Sarac unfortunately had to come off with an injury - this wasn't a huge problem as it gave Lietgeb, our recent captain, a chance to return to the first 11. The rest of the half ambled along much in the way that most Austrian clashes did and we went in at half time scoreless. Right after half time I witnessed the sort of 'professional' defending I had only seen in Italy as I was growing up. The Wacker forward Jiri Masek was through on goal and whilst everything pointed to a goal, Lindschinger, my left back had other ideas. He superbly took out Masek and jogged straight down the tunnel. It was now our turn to play with ten men. Stern defending was the name of our game, and it all looked well and good until Morec fell over as he attempted to sprint after a ball. This left their forward Slepicka with plenty of time to adjust, swivel and smash in the first goal. With 15 minutes remaining I had to take a gamble - off came Krammer and in his place Kienast as we moved to a 3-4-2. However we never really found any rythym and subsequently no chances fell our way - the league campaign was the only worry for us from now on.
MOM - Harutyan Vardanyan (Wacker Tirol)

A couple of absences to worry about for next week. Lindchinger will miss 1 game for definite, even though I have lodged an ambitious appeal with the FA. Sarac broke his arm in the last game and will be out for up to a month. We are suddenly looking a little fragile on the left flank.

Ried, Away, Bundesliga - 28.10.06
This morning I found us in the uncomfortable position of being favourites for an away tie! This hadn't happened yet, and despite Ried being on the foot of the table, I still had my doubts as to the ease of this game. 2 changes saw Lietgeb and Suppan come in for the two unavailable left sided players. Despite the bookies certainty that we should win I chose to stick with our more defensive away formation. Half chances fell for Ried early on before we had to deal with an injury to Klaus Salmutter. I decided to have a look at Polo Nzuzi on the right wing, and see if his pace could conjure up anything. On the half hour mark, Ried caught the break they needed and Pavon pounced on a rebound to put us 1-0 down. We were not playing well. At half time I was forced to replace Martin Latka as he'd picked up a light injury. I hoped my players would find a 2nd gear sometime soon otherwise we'd be heading home empty handed. Rabihou nearly answered my calls after he latched onto a Mendy flick but failed to beat the keeper. Minutes later I was hauling off the uninspiring Alexandre Mendy for Kienast. I had to start giving serious thought to Kienasts return to the side next week. The change worked wonders as within a minute, Kienast nodded the ball into Rabihou's path, and he slotted neatly to equalise. As the game came to an end I had to thank Szamotulski for saving us not once but twice. I would have taken a point before the game, so I went back to Graz pleased but concerned about the potential injuries we'd suffered.
MOM - Mitja Morec

Thankfully the next morning my physio came to me explaining that all the 'injuries' weren't anything serious and the players would be fit for our next game against arch-rivals GAK. I went and watched our under 19s play Mattersburg's under 19s and found myself impressed by a young midfielder called Sandro Foda. It later transpired that this was in fact the son of my predecessor - Franco Foda. He was certainly someone to keep an eye on. So October produced an undefeated league run and a cup defeat. Whilst the defeat was disappointing, I was still resting my ambitions on the league campaign. I truly felt that with the inconsistency of everyone other than Salzburg, we had a good chance of creeping into a European spot. The next 8 games before the winter break began would be crucial.

retired_makaylalldredge

November 2006

The quality of journalism in Austria has never been good. For as long as I can remember I grew up loathing having to read match reports in the Wiener Zeitung. They were poorly written and somehow managed to create a feeling that the reporter definately wasn't at the game. My fears were confirmed as I sat in the dressing room with the lads. I was looking at our pre-match preview and noticed the reporter Franz Maier had said, and I quote, "Sturm Graz's home advantage gives them the edge". Now bare in mind us and GAK play in the same stadium! I seriously thought about offering to write match reports for the paper - they'd certainly be more accurate. So I was wound up before the stadium had even opened it's doors...

GAK, Home, Bundesliga - 4.11.06
3 changes saw Kienast replace Mendy, Lindschinger come back in for Suppan and Verlaat replace Morec. This game was important and I began my teamtalk by telling the players to listen to the fans outside - there were still 10 minutes til kickoff and you could here the chants being aimed at the GAK supporters. This was a true derby for the pride of Graz. Filipovic so nearly delighted the fans on the 20th minute with a thunderous free kick bouncing back off the crossbar. Just before half time I was enraged. A late tackle out on our left flank saw Leitgeb badly injured. He was stretchered off and we had serious left flank problems. If he was out for a while, it looked as if I'd have to pluck someone from our under19s. We reacted well to this injury and I was delighted to see Klaus Salmutter rise highest to meet Ledwon's cross and put us 1 up before half time. We were in a commanding position and from here I couldn't see GAK catching us. We defended stoutly and looked dangerous on the break. Verlaat had to be replaced as he was limping and his absence told. His replacement Morec was at fault with minutes to go and we were pegged back to 1-1. This is how it ended and quite frankly I was aghast at how we'd thrown away two points.
MOM - Frank Verlaat

As I'd feared, Leitgeb would miss the run up to the winter break with fractured ribs. I drafted in Leonard Kaufmann to train with the first team squad. He'd had a good season so far for the under 19s and despite being just 17 I felt he could do a job for us until Sarac returned. I also got off the phone today with a number of Austrian lower league sides. I'd scheduled 4 friendlies for the winter break in which to get ready for the return to action in February. It was a strangely long break, not seen anywhere else in Europe but it would give me a good chance to reassess our squad and hopefully let players shake off injuries.

Rapid Wien, Home, Bundesliga - 7.11.06
Leonard Kaufmann received the number 29 shirt as he made his debut in this huge game. Rapid Wien were lying in second and realistically still had no chance of catching Salzburg (unless they completely blew up). So I saw this as a good opportunity to catch up with the sides above us. A win would put us 1 point behind 2nd, however that win looked less likely after our start. We had Szamotulski to thank after he produced two great saves! But we were still under pressure and needed to find a way to combat this. Set pieces seemed our best bet as Verlaat went close twice. But it was to be a set piece that was our undoing as their centre back Martin Hiden bent a free kick into the top corner from 20 yards. 1-0 down at half time. No matter what I tried in the second half, nothing paid off. We were second to almost every ball and in truth were beaten by a better side. Rapid Wien had inflicted our first home defeat of the season. Painful to take but we had to get up for the Mattersburg game in a few days.
MOM - Gernot Plassenegger (Rapid Wien)

Mattersburg, Away, Bundesliga - 11.11.06
Results had gone against us last week and we found ourselves back in 8th position. It was one of the tightest league tables I'd seen in a while. I kept an unchanged team and it nearly bore fruit early on with a Rabihou chance. He was denied at point blank range though and for the rest of the half we were under pressure. Lately I'd noticed that our forwards were really underperforming and it was time to have a go in the dressing room. I was looking to make a double change up top if there was no improvement by the 60th minute. There was some improvement as Rabihou was once again denied, but I still wasn't seeing the same Kienast as we'd seen prior to his injury. Mendy came on to replace him. The clock wound down and it was a backs-to-the-wall job as we struggled to contain Mattersburg. Just as it appeared we'd come away with a point though, we went on our first decent attack in a while and Klaus Salmutter rose to beautifully plant a header into the side netting. 1-0 with minutes to go and the shellshocked Mattersburg side ended with nothing. A great result and a welcome 3 points.
MOM - Klaus Salmutter

The only fall out from this game was a one match ban for Filipovic after he collected his 5th yellow card. On the plus side Velazquez - the forgotten man, had returned to full training. He wasn't going to be involved this week but he was an experienced face to have back.

Salzburg, Away, Bundesliga - 18.11.06
Without doubt the trickiest match in the calender. They were flying high, almost champions elect on their current form. We were still the only team to inflict defeat upon them and I was hoping we would get a fair slice of luck away from home. Young Gerrard Saumel came in to replace the suspended Filipovic. From the very first minute we really were under intense pressure - quite simply, Salzburg were a class above everyone in the division. Vratislav Lokvenc confirmed this after 10 minutes to make it 1-0 and left me slightly concerned about just how big the scoreline could get...However we did create our own chances and Rabihou was actually very unlucky not to pull us level from one of three chances! Timo Ochs was a rock in goal for them but we were still in with a chance come the 2nd half. As the next 45 minutes developed we were incredibly unfortunate not to take anything from the game. Salmutter had a great free kick tipped onto the bar and I really did feel we deserved a point at least. But the difference in class tends to dictate that even when the best team doesn't perform, they can still win. That I've been told is the making of champions.
MOM - Vratislav Lokvenc

Sarac has returned to full training so I may tell Leonard Kaufmann he can continue his development in the youth team. He played well in the three games I used him with an average rating of 7.

Pasching, Home, Bundesliga - 25.11.06
As it worked out - Kaufmann was needed for one last game, as Sarac wasn't fully fit yet. We had Pasching at home, an average side currently propping up the table. I expected a win. Our opening goal came courtesy of Lundschinger the left back. A ricochet landed to him in the box and he rifled it home for his first senior goal. Minutes later Chiquinho stole in at the back post to take advantage of some very slack marking. Right before half time though, Rabihou found himself through on goal and smashed the ball through the keepers legs to ensure we were a happy dressing room at half time. The revived Rabihou came out all guns blazing and save for the linesmans flag would have given us a tasty 3-1 lead following his powerful header. However there was still work to be done, and we were so fortunate to not concede again as the width of the post prevented the Pasching captain Kabat. In the dying minutes only the crossbar foiled Polo Nzuzi's rasping drive from 20 yards out as we pressed for the 3rd nail in the Pasching coffin. Ultimately the two goals were good enough and we claimed another 3 points, and reached the halfway stage of our season.
MOM - Lindschinger

So November saw a mixed bag of results - 2 wins, 2 defeats and a draw. We had been inconsistent and I was disappointed at not taking points from Rapid Wien. We were sitting dead centre of the division and whilst it was tight, I definitely felt we had moved to a level away from getting relegated. Rapid Wien and Salzburg were steaming ahead at the top, so I saw the league as a race for 3rd place. I was confident we could secure a UEFA Cup spot for next year.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> | Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Salzburg | | 17 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 22 | 6 | +16 | 38 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Rapid Wien | | 17 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 29 | 19 | +10 | 33 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Altach | | 18 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 30 | 29 | +1 | 24 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Austria Wien | | 17 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 17 | 17 | 0 | 23 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Sturm Graz | | 18 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 17 | 17 | 0 | 22 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Wacker Tirol | | 17 | 4 | 8 | 5 | 22 | 23 | -1 | 20 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | GAK | | 18 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 20 | 21 | -1 | 20 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Ried | | 18 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 25 | 28 | -3 | 19 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Mattersburg | | 18 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 25 | 32 | -7 | 18 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Pasching | | 18 | 3 | 4 | 11 | 12 | 27 | -15 | 13 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3 points deducted from Sturm Graz | | | | | | | | | | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_lda1st

Looks like things are looking a little brighter for the team now. KUTGW mate

good luck

retired_bbcarr

re-opened by request. good luck with it, iacovone

retired_makaylalldredge

December 2006

Absolutely shocking news was received right at the start of the month. Dragan Sarac was proclaimed to be suffering from a serious viral infection and will be out of action for as long as 9 months! I went to visit Dragan and see how he was getting along.

"Hey boss how are you? I take it you heard?"

"Well I don't do home visits Dragan so it had to be something special for me to break that duck!" I tried to lift his spirits by cracking a joke.

"Well I appreciate you checking up on me, and don't worry it's not contagious."

"Thats ok, I could do with a plague of my own!" Another failed joke, I needed to shut up and turn back to the serious man he was used to.

"So what have the doctors diagnosed you with?"

"It's called Guillain-Barre syndrome. If you remember Markus Babbel caught it when he was at Liverpool? It basically causes me to feel very weak in the legs and just generally tired. It's an absolute nightmare if I'm honest. I'm really going to have to consider my future in the game as it may never fully go away."

"I understand Dragan, and let me tell you, losing you is a huge blow, we've suffered badly everytime you've been injured and I'm sure the lads will miss you out there on the training ground. But I don't want to hear any of this retirement talk, it's all about being positive from here ok? I want you to aim to be back for the start of next season."

"Thanks for the support boss, I'll try and get down to as many games as I can, you keep doing the good job you're doing." With that I left Dragan with his words still ringing in my head. I had been doing a good job. We were expected to be seriously struggling but only last week I was planning an assault on the UEFA Cup next year. It had been a tough intro to management, but I was loving the ride.


With the winter break fast approaching, I had to ensure we remained focussed for the next 3 games. We had Altach away followed by Wacker Tirol at home and ending with Austria Wien on TV away from home. Realistically I hoped for 6 out of 9 points. This would set us up nicely for our February return to action. However the two away games looked tricky and we would have to be at our best to achieve what I wanted.


Altach, Away, Bundesliga - 2.12.2006
After the recent viral infection Sarac picked up, it meant I had no choice but to keep the faith with the young Leonhard Kaufmann - who to be fair had played solidly in his 4 games. The rest of the lineup remained unchanged from the Pasching game and I sent the boys onto the Schnabelholz pitch. We traded chances in the first 20 minutes, Rabihou going close with a header before Szamotulski produced a smart save to deny Altach. With half time approaching, the stats showed we were controlling the game, but a well taken near post finish from the Altach forward Unverdorben undid our hard work and sent us in to the break 1 down. It was a bitter pill to swallow but I had full faith in the players to go back out there and fight for the points. We had 45 minutes to turn possession into goals and I hoped for the best as they returned to the pitch. We started sluggishly and were it not for Szamotulski in goal we could have found ourselves 2 down. Fortunately we rode our luck and went down the other end and equalised on 58 minutes. A lovely ball from Lindschinger into the feet of Kienast was unselfishly cut across the box for the arriving Rabihou to slot home. It was a nicely worked goal and no less than we deserved. The impetus was now on the home side to make something of this game and sadly they went about it with purpose. Unverdorben received a low pass on the edge of our box, rolled Verlaat with ease and slotted the ball high into the net - we were 2-1 down. I made a triple substitution in a desparate attempt to alleviate our fortunes...but to no avail. We had no answer to Altach and to make matters worse, Alexandre Mendy was taken off injured in the closing minutes.
MOM - Unverdorben (Altach)



Bad news today as I was informed that Mendy would be out of action for about 2 months with a broken toe. He hadn't been in great form but it was still a blow to lose him. In other news, interestingly the GAK manager Lars Sondergaard became the first managerial casualty of the Austrian Bundesliga season. GAK were sitting 7th. I couldn't help but smile and think part of his fate was down to me.



Wacker Tirol, Home, Bundesliga- 9.12.2006
Unchanged starting 11 for this clash at home. I expected 3 points and I think the players were just as disappointed at last weeks performance as I was. Lindschinger however had come to me earlier that morning to tell me he was feeling the pressure of public expectation. This was not what I wanted to hear, I had very little time for people that were 'mentally weak'. I prided myself on being able to handle the many challenges thrown my way and I expected the same from my players. Lindschinger may have expected some sympathy but I had none for him. "Deal with it" were the words I chose. So he started and I looked forward to his response. We started brightly and had a couple of half chances that Rabihou narrowly missed. Then came the chance for Kienast to shine - finally we saw the pre-injured player the fans had been so taken aback by! His first goal was a delightfully taken strike from just inside the box. The second from a similar position was thundered into the roof of the net and I found us 2-0 up. Half time was an easy affair - I told them to keep up their energy levels and felt it could be a comfortable second 45 minutes. We were quite clearly a superior side to Wacker Tirol and I think the fans felt this too as we emerged from the tunnel to a great reception. Overall the second half went by comfortably with Szamotulski showing safe hands at the back. Kienast was unfortunate not to complete his hattrick but I was delighted with his performance and it was with great pleasure that I handed him the Man of the Match bottle of champagne. For 90 minutes I think we saw the real Roman Kienast.
MOM - Kienast



Glancing at the table this week, I noticed the "champions elect" Salzburg (as I called them) had been seriously pegged back by Rapid Wien. They stood just 2 points clear of Rapid and the championship began to look like it would be a much tighter affair than I had predicted. Meanwhile Roman Kienast faces a race against time for the final match before Christmas with a stubbed toe.



Austria Wien, Away, Bundesliga - 17.12.2006
The final competitive match of 2006 sees us in 5th take on the 4th placed side Austria Wien. This was a vital match which would see us sent 7 points behind 4th if we were to lose. Roman Kienast failed his fitness test on the morning of the game sadly for us but we'd have to wait and see if his absence was felt by the end of the 90 minutes. Polo Nzuzi stepped in place of Kienast, and I gave the U19's best performer Jakob Jantscher a place on the bench. Both teams started positively with half chances exchanged at either end. On the 34th minute though, Filipovic missed his interception and we were punished by Lafata. From here on, the team infuriated me. Uncharacteristically weak defending led to two further goals before half time putting the result beyond us. It was devastating to go in at half time with so much to do and despite my confidence in my ability as a manager, I really did feel there was little to nothing I could do! So I left them to try and sort out the situation they'd got us in. By the 60th minute little had changed - Nzuzi had missed two one on ones and I felt it was time to introduce some fringe players. Jakob Jantscher was given his chance up front and I took the opportunity to rest Klaus Salmutter. Ultimately it was a better second half performance but Lafata took his only chance of the 45 to make it 4-0 and complete his hattrick. Our worst result of the season and an embarrassing day for all associated with Sturm Graz.
MOM - Lafata (Austria Wien)



We now had a month off until the four friendlies began. It was time to enjoy the Christmas break and spend time with our families. I had some thinking to do and possibly some tinkering. We hadn't achieved the 6 points I'd aimed for and I was determined to have a better 2nd half to the year.


p.s. It's good to be back FMSers!

retired_makaylalldredge

January 2007


The new year begun nicely with news that Christoph Lietgeb had returned to full fitness from his fractured ribs. I gave the squad a weeks rest for Christmas and New Year and then informed them that they were due back on the 3rd January for fitness training. They seemed relatively pleased with the rest but obviously not with the impending running. It was necessary in my opinion if we were to up our results from the first half of the season. As New Year arrived I was summoned to the chairmans office. Hans Rinner passed me a list of players that would require new contracts, should I require their services. It read:

Frank Verlaat
Grzegorz Szamotulski
Dragan Sarac
Bojan Filipovic
Mitja Morec
Adam Ledwon
Jose Velasquez
Herbert Rauter
Markus Prettenthaler
Gernot Suppan


Whilst in the Mr Rinners office I subtley enquired as to whether the board would provide any funds. "No" was the not so subtle answer. Apparently my position as manager on a 1 year contract meant I stood no chance of any future financial backing. This was a bit of a blow as I had my eye on a couple of potential signings. Despite this, I reasoned with myself that I had plenty of time to secure 1 or 2 loan signings.


As January continued I begun to settle on my contract decisions. Frank Verlaat was old. He had to first let me know whether or not he was going to prolong his career before I could decide if he deserved a new deal. Grzegorz Szamotulski, Dragan Sarac and Bojan Filipovic were in no danger, they had performed to a good standard and despite all three aged 30 or 31 I felt we could still get a few more seasons out of them. Morec needed to show me a bit more, as did Gernot Suppan. Velasquez I had decided would not receive a new contract, and neither would Prettenthaler or Rauter. Ledwon would receive an extension, he had been solid all season as the defensive midfielder.

I had my two scouts working overtime in the new year, not necessarily for a specific position, but more to thicken the squad. Ambitiously I sent them to Real Madrid's 'B' and 'C' team matches and to the equivalent at Barcelona. There were a couple of interesting prospects that could be enticed on loan that I wanted looking into. Meanwhile Sarac signed a new deal to 2008 as did Filipovic. A few days later Szamotulski signed on the dotted line until 2010. The players I was intent on keeping had agreed to stay, providing an ideal new years present for me.


Fabrizio Zambrella - AMRLC, Swiss, 20 y/o
This is the first of a couple of loan signings I hope to make. He is a very versatile attacking midfielder with good energy and a desire to work for the team. Fabrizio is technically sound and has featured for the Swiss U21's on a couple of occasions. At 18 he played 14 times for Brescia in Serie A, a notable feat, but he appears to have gone off the radar and I'm delighted to be able to offer him first team football in Graz.


Friendlies

PSV Team, Away - 13.1.2007
Final Score 3-1 to us. We fielded a strong side and saw Kienast continue his good form by bagging a brace. Our third goal was attributed to Martin Frantsich as an Own Goal. Lessnig got the solitary PSV Team goal. Just thought I'd point out that this is PSV Team from Vienna, not the world famous PSV Eindhoven! Overall it was a very pleasing result and a nice way to ease back into football.
MOM - Kienast


Voitsberg, Away - 18.1.2007
Today we played Voitsberg - a semi-pro Austrian outfit and came away with a 1-0 win. I'm pleased to say Roman Kienast bagged another goal, this time in the 2nd minute. We played a similar side to the PSV Team game and did ok. It was a typical pre-season performance, steady with nothing to shout about.


Pasching manager Dietmar Constantini became the second managerial casualty of the season. They were sitting rock bottom and it was no real suprise to the Austrian league.


Eberau, Away - 26.1.2007
A confident performance saw us take a 3-0 lead in at the half time break. Kienast bagged another two and I was happy to see Klaus Salmutter pop up with his first goal in a while. I played Zambrella on the right wing and experimented with Salmutter up front. The switch worked I'm pleased to say and it now looks as if Salmutter could potentially form a decent partnership up top if Rabihou or Kienast were absent. His creativity as a number 10 could prove to be very useful and it was certainly an option I wanted to keep up my sleeve for the remainder of the season. The game ended 3-0 as we saw out the second 45 minutes calmly. No injuries to report.


The Austrian league awoke on Monday 29th January with the news that big spending Salzburg had splashed out close to £4million on Spartak Moscow's Mozart! Every newspaper had covered the story and it was undoubtedly the signing of the season. This Brazilian midfielder had a pedigree about him most of the leagues players aspired to. It was incredibly frustrating seeing a rival spend so much money, knowing that there was no way we could compete yet. As deadline day approached I took one last look at the transfer market but with no real talents taking my eye I decided to stick with the squad I have for the remainder of the season.

retired_krick28

Well done mate. The story is well written, and very nicely laid out. I like how you've broken the monotony of match reports with little interviews and such. I can’t wait to see Sturm Graz returned to the top of the Austrian Bundesliga. Top class stuff here mate.

retired_makaylalldredge

Authors Note - after a computer crash, two months work had not been saved. Therefore I've gone back and replayed the matches with different results to what you may remember. Enjoy.


February 2007

Friendlies cont.

WSK, Away - 4.2.2007
Pleasingly we continued our run of successive friendly wins. We came away injury free from Wien and with a 4-1 victory. Jurgen Saumel scored the first goal and despite an immediate reply from WSK - a nicely taken penalty by Andreas Lipa - we overpowered WSK and ended up runaway winners. Roman Kienast, Alexandre Mendy and Herbert Rauter sealed the win in front of a large crowd of 8649 people.

Oberwart, Away - 14.2.2007
With this being our final friendly I ensured my players knew that staying fit was the key here. I didn't want any injuries to carry into the Ried game and told them to avoid 50-50 tackles. It simply wasn't worth it. A pleasing 90 minutes ensued and thanks to Mendy, Saumel (again) and Tsimba (suprisingly) we took home a 3-1 victory. Our form was good and we were all set for the Ried encounter.



As training progressed I was impressed by the determination shown by the players. They looked willing to work for each other and I truly begun to believe that we could move up the table and claim a European spot. As I observed the session I could see a man being pushed over to me in a wheelchair. He was approaching from behind the goal and as he drew closer I could here the players remarks. Martin Latka announced that "the Dragan has returned!" It was indeed the forgotten man - Dragan Sarac. The keep ball drill ended abruptly with neither me or my assistant giving the order. But I let it happen, the players hadn't seen Dragan in months and it was a good chance for them to catch up. Big Grzegorz Szamotulski gave him a big pat on the back and his visit really raised spirits. It was pleasing to see. After the session, I had a conversation with Sarac and he informed me that although he was still feeling weak, his doctor had told him he could return from anywhere between 3 and 6 months. It was a matter of his determination, something I felt he had in abundance. As he left my office, I wished him the best of luck - something he wished in return to me and the team.



Ried, Home, Bundesliga - 24.2.2007
So, the second half of the Austrian season was set to begin and with Dragan Sarac's words of encouragement still ringing in my ears, I felt if we could hit the ground running, we would have a cracking chance of winning the Salzburg clash. But for now it was time to take on Ried. I'd posted my starting 11 on the wall of the dressing room for the past few days now. The instructions for attacking and defending set pieces had been laid out there too, hopefully the players had absorbed their roles. I left nothing to chance this time around, I had never been so determined to win a match. The starting 11 read like this:
GK: Szamotulski
DR: Krammer
DL: Lindschinger
DC: Verlaat
DC: Latka
MR: Zambrella
ML: Lietgeb
MC: Ledwon
MC: Filipovic
FC: Rabihou
FC: Kienast

Looking back at the team that began the season, I noticed the defence hadn't changed at all. They had their moments of stupidity but all in all, I felt they had served Sturm Graz reasonably well. Martin Latka was improving alongside the ageing Verlaat and I felt if I could acquire a second promising centre back, we could have a very strong spine next season. The midfield and forward line had changed a lot since September, and I decided to give the new loan signing Fabrizio Zambrella a start on the right wing. Salmutter had done nothing wrong, but I felt sometimes a change can breathe new life into a side. As the buzzer rang in our dressing room and the lads walked out to the pitch, I found myself feeling unusually confident about my team selection.

The game started evenly as Ried set their stall up to defend. They had packed the midfield in a 3-5-2 formation. It was a different kind of test for us - one that we very nearly found the answer to as Zambrella lept highest at the back post. His header, though, fell into the arms of the Ried keeper. The game continued to amble along until bad news struck in the 29th minute. Roman Kienast was felled outside the area and clutching his right knee I feared the worst! However after seeing him limp off I was slightly more relieved. It looked like he'd jarred or twisted it. I brought on Mendy for him in the wake of that injury. As half time approached we won a corner. I could see it unfolding in front of my eyes - Adam Ledwon had jinked forward but then peeled to the back post as Zambrella's corner was swung in. Arriving right on cue, Ledwon rose at the back unopposed to plant a header past Berger the Ried keeper. It was his first goal for the club and he looked delighted. The 46th minute approached and I began my walk to the tunnel (I never liked watching the last minute of the half). Just as I arrived at the tunnel though, I could sense the home crowd's anticipation, just as I turned around, I saw Filipovic arrive and beat the keeper to the high ball. 2-0! Fantastic. I punched the air, turned around and continued my walk to the dressing room.

The team talk was easy to give, I felt we had more or less killed off a largely ineffective Ried side with those two goals before half time. We came out in the second half flying, this time it was Rabihou's turn to add to his tally for the season. Played in by the substitute Alexandre Mendy, Rabihou calmly slotted under the keeper to give us a 3-0 lead. Rabihou had now picked up 11 goals in 21 games. It was a nice record for a striker and carrying a slight injury I took the opportunity to give young Jakub Jantscher another chance up front for the last 30 minutes. The game petered out from here and to the delight of the fans, players and myself, we had got off to a flyer in February.


Kiensat is expected to be out for up to 4 weeks with a twisted knee. Klaus Salmutter or Alexandre Mendy would take his place.

retired_krick28

Good win against Ried, Rabihou is looking to be a good player, and at such a young age, he should be player for the future. Hopefully he'll stay at Sturm Graz. Its a disapointment you lost your data though.