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Playing Football Manager 2007, is starting with making some choices. What country do you wane start in and also what team do you want to manage. The easiest road is to choose a well known team and go for the big prices. Or start at very low level and see where it ends. Both can be fun but I still believe being successful with a lower level team is much harder. You have to struggle with financial issue, getting good players to the club is hard. The only advantage I see, is getting fired is a little harder.
So I am going to make history with a team playing in the English Conference South. The team I am starting is called Dorchester Town. Before I started this game, I never heard of this team. So you understand that all what you will read in this story is new for me and also fiction. I only hope to have fun in this game and I hope you all like my story. Please also keep in mind when reading, I am not off English origin. So the language sometimes can give me a hard time.
06-01-2007, 06:39 PM
Dorchester Town, A nightmare or a beautiful dream Post #3
The club was founded in 1880. The home matches they play at the Avenue Stadium in Dorchester. This stadium can host 5.009 people of which 697 have a seat. As it is a small club in England, they only have basic training facilities and minimal youth facilities. Dorchester Town is a semi-professional football club and so many players have also a job they have to attend. The estimated value is € 350.000.
The club does not have a history at all. So every price won as a manager is completely new to them. The team is not linked with any other team in England.
And here the story starts ………
06-01-2007, 08:03 PM
Dorchester Town, A nightmare or a beautiful dream Post #4
A total of 4 men had gathered around the table in the director’s room. The members of the board (Chris Pugsley, Keith Kellaway and Eddy Belt) and the virtually unknown Patrick van Dijk. The reason they had gathered was because the club needed a new manager and it looked like Patrick van Dijk was willing to take the job. Was this new manager going to bring a nightmare to Dorchester Town or was this the start of a beautiful dream. Only time would give an answer to this question.
All 4 people signed the piece of paper that seemed to be a contract. It was a contract for one year, ending at the end of Jun 2007. Patrick van Dijk received a copy of this contract and also a sealed envelope.
He was told the directions to his own office and then Patrick van Dijk left.
from this moment on, the story will continue from the view of Patrick van Dijk
After a little walk and asking directions twice, I finally received my own little office. In this office I saw a small table with some chairs and also a small desk with a computer and a telephone. So this was going to be my place for this year. I sat down at my desk with my contract and the closed envelope in front of me. Was this really what I wanted or had I made a mistake by accepting this job. Again I looked at the contract that I just had signed. Dorchester Town would arrange a room for me at the George Hotel including breakfast and dinner. Also a small car was arranged and a salary of € 160 per week. Sure I was not going to get rich but I could try and make the best of it. As I could make it at Dorchester Town, I sure could make it somewhere else in the future.
Then I saw the closed envelope and opened it. There were some pieces of paper with information about the club. This is what it said:
Dorchester Town
Current Balance: € 7.667
Current Wage: € 6.260
Wage Budget: € 7.230
Transfer Budget (Season): € 0
Transfer Budget (Remaining): € 0
80% of transfer revenue made available for transfer budget
Board’s expectation: Achieve a safe mid-table position within the Conference South.
Supporters’ expectation: Achieve a mid-table position within the Conference South.
If requested, we will discuss to be linked with another team in England.
The look at this paper made me start worrying. This sure was going to become a hard job as I only could get people to Dorchester Town that did not have a contract or were willing to come on a loan. So it might be a good thing, to get linked with another team. So I called Chris Pugsley to discuss the opportunity to affiliate Dorchester with another club. He promised me the board would look at my request at the next board meeting and provide me with a response within the next few weeks.
06-02-2007, 12:07 AM
Dorchester Town, A nightmare or a beautiful dream Post #5
Coaching Staff
Assistant Manager: Steve Johnson
Coaches: Kevin Hillier, Brian Benjafield, Trevor Senior
Other Staff
Physio: Geoff Dine
Scout: Philip Silk
For a little team like Dorchester Town, they had a decent staff gathered at the club. Only thing missing was a second scout. As I wanted to work with at least 2 scouts I started looking for one.
The Squad
Goalkeeper : Simon Evans, Richard Martin
Right Defender : Barry McConnell, Ryan Hill
Left Defender : Terry Parker
Central Defender : Alex Browne, Michael Taylor, Scott Morgan, Jack Cleverley
Defensive Midfielder : Guy Lopez, Mark Jermyn
Right Midfielder : Larbi Mekchicha, Mark Robinson
Left Midfielder : Justin Keeler
Central Midfielder : Sean Smith, James Rowe, Jamie Gleeson
Striker : Matt Groves, Steve Flack, David Town, Sonyo Da Mata
There was not one player that sounded familiar to me, so they all would get a chance to prove themselves. Also the advice of my assistant manager was going to be very important to me.
Steve Johnson told me that he believed that Dorchester need to strengthen their squad to meet the expectations given. So the current squad was not strong enough to establish a safe mid-table position in the English Conference South.
Also he told me what his starting lineup with the current squad when using a 4-1-3-2 formation: (gk) R. Martin; (DR) B. McConnell; (DL) T. Parker; (DC) A. Browne; (DC) S. Morgan; (DMC) M. Jermyn; (MR) M. Robinson; (ML) J. Keeler; (MC) G. Lopez; (SC) M, Groves; (MC) D. Town.
I already had expected that I needed to bring in some new players to strengthen the team. Especially the left side was weak as there were only 2 players for 2 positions. So that was given priority. But I also would have a look for other players that were willing to come.
06-02-2007, 12:16 AM
Dorchester Town, A nightmare or a beautiful dream Post #6
Thursday 6th July 2006
I had found some players that were willing to come and play for Dorchester Town. The following players arrived on a free transfer: Chris Stowe (S C), Steve Lunt (S C), Andrew Burke (M L) and Dean Samuels (M R).
Friday 7th July 2006
The squad welcomed another 2 players today. It were Callum Flanagan (S C) and Matt Stowell (D LC) who we had also found on a free transfer. I believed the team was becoming stronger with the new players that joined lately.
Saturday 8th July 2006
For the first time, I was going to see the team in action in a real match as we played against Northwich Victioria. The team played a good match and at the end won it with a 4-3 score. Matt Groves scored an hat-trick and the other goal was scored by Steve Lunt.
Monday 10th July 2006
I had signed another player to strengthen our defense as we had found Simon Hughes on a free transfer. Other good news was that I finally had found a scout that was willing to join my staff. It was 37-year old Daniel Griffiths that signed a contract for a year. So my staff now was ready for the start of the season.
Thursday 13th July 2006
In our second match during pre season we had to face Grays Athletic. It was David Town scoring our only goal within a minute. After that it was Grays being to stronger team on the field and manage to find the back of the net 4 times. One of the goals of Grays was an own goal scored by Mark Jermyn after a miscommunication with the goalkeeper. Grays won this match by a 4-1 score.
Tuesday 18th July 2006
In our third match during pre season, we had to face a team playing English League Two. It was Hereford United coming to Avenue Stadium. Hereford did start very strong and within 15 minutes we had fallen 2 goals behind. Goals scored by Matt Groves and David Town leveled the score. We had made an excellent come back in the game. When I looked at the scoreboard at the end of the match, I saw it had ended in a surprising draw.
Friday 21st July 2006
Our first away match in pre season was against Tiverton Town. We did not play a good match and this was showed on the board. The match ended in a 2-1 defeat. Steve Lunt made our only goal this game. I was a bit worried about the goalkeepers. I wondered of Simon Evans was good enough to replace Richard Martin. As he made some terrible mistakes today.
Monday 24th July 2006
Home against Crawley Town and this was a strange match. In the first half, they completely overrun us and they took a 4-0 lead. All goals scored by Elliot Benyon. In the second half both teams made some replacements. This gave us a chance to get back in the game. We now were able to create some chances and this also resulted in goals. Matt Groves scored once and Callum Flanagan scored twice. We lost the match by a 4-3 score and again the team showed they never would give up.
Tuesday 25th July 2006
As I had stated, I was afraid that Simon Evans was not good enough to replace Richard Martin. So I looked around and finally made an offer to loan Michael Poke from Southampton. This would give Simon Evans to play regular in the reserves and hopefully he will improve.
Friday 28th July 2006
The last match in pre season was away against Connah’s Quay Nomads. I had hoped for a win but the match ended in a draw. Goals were scored in the second half. After we had fallen behind, it was Matt Groves scoring the equalizer. During the match, we lost Justin Keeler due to a damaged elbow. The physio expected him to be out of the game for about 3 weeks.
Sunday 30th July 2006
Bad news as we lost Richard Martin. During a training session Richard Martin had sustained a sprained ankle after he landed heavily. He would be treated by his own club and when recovered he was going to come back. This was going to take almost 2 months. So Michael Poke was going to be our first goalkeeper till he was back.
06-02-2007, 09:15 AM
Dorchester Town, A nightmare or a beautiful dream Post #7
Good luck with Dorchester. Having started with Western Super Mare in that league I have a fond regard for players from that division.
Jermyn and Groves are for me your star players and I bought Jermyn one year later. Groves seems to find the back of the net regularly but was never interested in joining me despite decent offers.
Eliot Benyon is at Crawley Town? Is he on loan?
Fantastic goalscorer
:thup:
06-02-2007, 09:46 AM
Dorchester Town, A nightmare or a beautiful dream Post #8
Tuesday 1st August 2006
Pre season was over and the start of the English Conference South was nearing. I was able to have a look at the squad during several matches. And though the results were not that great, still I felt confidence. I thought that we were going to meet the expectations this season though I hoped to get close to a play off spot. If there was a problem to be expected this season then it probably was in the attack. Matt Groves had scored 6 times and also had 2 assist. I wondered of we had someone to replace him, when he was injured.
Tuesday 8th August 2006
It took a while but finally the board asked me for my help by choosing the team to get linked with. After I had looked at the opportunities, I gave them my choice. I told them that if it was up to me, Southampton was to be to team. They accepted this and told me they would come back soon with a verdict.
They came back the same day with the verdict. And both Southampton and Dorchester Town were delighted to announce the new link between the clubs. I hoped Southampton would send me one or two players to strengthen the team. And getting € 20.000 every year was a good thing for the club.
Thursday 10th August 2006
Southampton did send 1 player to out team. But before we were able to use this player we had to wait about 3 months as he was undergoing treatment for strained ankle ligaments. But when he was ready to make his comeback on the pitch, we sure had a decent player to use.
Saturday 12th August 2006
The first match in the English Conference South was at home against Weston-super Mare and I hoped to start with a victory. It was Matt Groves scoring on the break and giving us a lead in the match. The first half seemed to end in a 1-0 lead when suddenly Alex Browne played the ball towards our goalkeeper. The ball did not reach Michael Poke as an opponent intercepted the ball. He did not give our goalkeeper a chance to make a save and scored the equalizer. As in the second half no goals were scored, the match ended in a 1-1 draw. Alex Browne had given away our victory with a pass he never should have made.
Wednesday 16th August 2006
Our second match this season was away against away against Histon. At the start this team was seen as favorite’s to win this match. Within 3 minutes we had fallen behind and needed to find the equalizer. It was Guy Lopez with an excellent taken freekick to level the score. As both teams did not score another goal, the match ended in a 1-1 draw. Looking at the match, I think the result at the end was correct as both teams did not deserve to lose.
Saturday 19th August 2006 Newport County came to visit Avenue Stadium. Both teams wanted to win this match. It was a very close match though especially the second half was boring for the fans. In the first half is was Matt Groves bringing the ball forward. As he did not see any help, he decided to keep rushing towards the goal. He beat the goalkeeper and gave us a 1-0 lead. An excellent break by this player. Newport tried very hard but were not able to endanger our goalkeeper. The match ended in a 1-0 victory. Our first win of the season.
After the match, our physio told me that Barry McConnell had suffered a pulled hamstring and was out for about a month. A journalist asked me how I felt about losing that player. I sure admitted it was a blow for the team but that I though I had one or 2 players in the team to replace him.
Tuesday 22nd August 2006
The away match against Eastbourne Borough ended in a boring 0-0 draw. And though they played more then 45 minutes with 10 players, we were lucky to get away with a draw. This just was a game to forget and hope will not happen too much.
Saturday 26th August 2006
Another match and no victory for Dorchester Town. We faced Eastleigh in a home match. And though we were the better team on the field, we did very bad in front of the goal. Not a shot was on target and that way, you will not score a goal. It was Eastleigh scoring on a break and taking home 3 points. After the match I felt a little disappointed in the teams performance today.
Monday 28th August 2006
At Cressing Road Stadium we faced home team Braintree Town. As they lost 3 games in a row, I expected a win today. And for the first time this season, the team showed their potential. In an exciting match we were victorious. At the end of the match the scoreboard showed a 2-4 score. It was Matt Groves scoring a hat-trick today and Steve Lunt also found the back of the net just before the end of the time. Still there were moments in the game, I believed we were going to give away our lead. Braintree managed to score twice and both times they came back to only 1 goal difference. Our defense was not at his strongest during today’s match.
After the match Chris Pugsley joined us in the dressing room. He praised to team for the way they played today. And he hoped this was victory was a platform to build on for the team.
Tuesday 29th August 2006
The papers were very enthusiastic about the 4-2 victory over Braintree. Especially the performance of Matt Groves was praised. Some journalist commented that you could take a video of Groves’ performance and show it to any young kid and say “this is how to play”. At the moment Matt Groves scored 5 goals this season and had showed that he is important for our team.
06-02-2007, 12:39 PM
Dorchester Town, A nightmare or a beautiful dream Post #9
Monthly review: August
After 6 matches, Dorchester Town had reached 12th position at the league table. With 2 wins, 3 draws and 1 defeat. According the expectations, we had got us the safe mid-table position but I was not satisfied. Especially the lost match was a thorn in my eyes as I believed we should have won that match. Looking at the goals scored, it is a little bit of a shock that we depend on Matt Groves. We scored a total of 7 goals and 5 of them came from Matt Groves. What if this player would pick up an injury, how would the team deal with it. This really worried me as the other strikers did not show enough decent action in front of the goal.
The board still thought they had made the right choice when they offered me the job as manager. The supporters still were not convinced as they wondered what effect my management was having on the club’s fortunes.
Saturday 2nd September 2006
A real test for my team as Sutton United came to Avenue Stadium. Sutton was the team leading the English Conference South as they had won all matches. Everyone expected they also would win this match. And it looked everyone was right as within 8 minutes they had taken a 1-0 lead. As they forgot to score another goal, they gave us a chance to get back in the game. It was a shock for Sutton when Dean Samuels scored the equalizer just before half time. In the second half we were the team in control and this resulted in 2 goals. It was David Town giving us the lead in the match and finally Justin Keeler to secure the victory. An excellent win over a strong team that was believed to win promotion this season.
Saturday 9th September 2006
In the away match against Bishop’s Stortford the team made several mistakes. We conceded 2 goals and both were to blame on a player of Dorchester. The first goal was an own goal scored by Scott Morgan. The second goal was after bad clearance by our goalkeeper. Converting a penalty kick by Justin Keeler was not enough to win at least 1 point. Losing a match can happen but not when you lose it like today and that I told my team after the match.
Tuesday 12th September 2006
Everyone was wondering when Matt Groves was going to score his 100th goal for Dorchester United. Was it against Yeading in today’s match or did the fans have to wait for the next match. It was David Town to centre the ball and with a diving header it was Matt Groves scoring the goal. An excellent goal to celebrate number 100 for the club. In the second half it was again David Town finding Matt Groves and with his second goal this match, he gave us a 2-0 lead. The goal scored by Yeading came to late to steal our victory. A good 2-1 win against Yeading brought us another 3 points in the English Conference South.
Saturday 16th September 2006
The next match was away against Havant & Waterlooville. Though they wer having a bad season, they won last 3 matches played. So we were warned about their form. Still our defense gave them a chance to take an early lead in the game and we had to fight our way back in the game. It was David Town scoring the equalizer and so first half ended in a 1-1 draw. In the second half the home team was stronger but in the last minutes of the game we had some opportunities to score and steal all 3 points. The match ended in a 1-1 draw.
Monday 18th September 2006
Today the draws were made for the English FA Cup Second Qualifying round. As I wanted to see the drawing I watched it on television. The first team coming out of the cup was Dorchester Town. So within a few seconds I knew who our opponents were going to be. Second team that was drawn was Worthing. The match was scheduled for Saturday 30th September and we played at Avenue Stadium. Playing home should give us some advantage in the FA Cup.
Saturday 23rd September 2006
There were matches that we easily scored but to often we had trouble finding the goal. In the match against Cambridge City, this was again the problem. We dominated the entire match and easily should have won it. But as we did not score, the match ended in a 0-0 draw. Probably I had to look for a good striker to come and play for Dorchester City.
Saturday 30th September 2006
In the English FA Cup we played a home match against Worthing. This match was expected to be easily won but it ended in embarrassment. It started with Matt Groves missing a penalty kick in the first half. Still we took a 1-0 lead when Steve Lunt found the goal. But as we forget to play the game and not score another goal, Worthing believed in a possible surprise. In the second half they managed to beat our goalkeeper and level the score. As no goals were scored, the match ended in a 1-1 draw. We needed another match to force qualification, how sad. I really was angry with the team after today’s performance.
After the match, I was told that Callum Flanagan had suffered a pulled hamstring after chasing the ball and was out for about a month.
06-02-2007, 07:42 PM
Dorchester Town, A nightmare or a beautiful dream Post #10
Dorchester Town, A nightmare or a beautiful dream 
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