retired_karamelkel

Oct 22-29

Monday morning started with an article in the paper about Yeovil’s slump. Apparently the press was of the mindset that the team wouldn’t be able to turn around. The first team was excited about finally being able to play a game. It wasn’t until Saturday, but the intensity had picked up in practice. On Wednesday the FA Cup replays were held and the First Round crystallized. On Friday we agreed to terms with Leo Fortune-West and signed him from Cardiff for 110G. West is a powerful target man. His signing makes Leaburn expendable. Leaburn was placed on the for sale list even before he’d played a game for us and naturally he was shocked by the move. It probably caught everyone by surprise, but he makes too much money, a fact I didn’t discover until the bean counters forgot to do their Emron accounting. So I slashed his value and selling him.

On Saturday we suited up for our afternoon game against Stevenage at home in the Deva Stadium. It was a breezy cool day so long balls wouldn’t work for this match. I trusted my players to realize that and adjust accordingly. I put all the new signings into the starting lineup plus replaced Guyett, who was serving his suspension. As it turned out, my players didn’t need my help. It was clearly Mickey Brown’s day as scored a brace of goals before the 15th minute was past. He added a third goal in the second half to complete his hat trick and we went away 3-0 winners. Rankine Odunsi and West all played extremely well, proving they were sound additions to the club.

The only downside to the match was that McIntyre was suspended for one game for getting sent off. As usual, the board was pleased with our win. Sunday went by with only scouting reports to attend to.

retired_karamelkel

Mon Oct 29-Nov 5

If two weeks ago was boring, then the beginning of this week was even worse. The only news was that Burnley had signed a player named Tim Cole from Dag and Red. Wednesday, in addition to being Halloween was also League Cup day. We would have our next match away at Doncaster in a week. That evening the Conference handed out the monthly awards. For the second month in a row, Beesley won the Young Player award. In the news it was revealed that Sheff. Ute’s manager Neil Warnock was sacked due to the fans. On Thursday, the big news was that Celtic had signed Dennis Rommerdahl for six million pounds. In Chester news we signed youth goalkeeper Whiting. We also released a passel of youth players who were holdovers from previous administration and who were bloating the roster.
The monthly review came in as well. The board was pleased with my job performance, but wasn’t thrilled with the financial side of things. Given that we had lost over 120,000 pounds in October, I couldn’t dispute the point too vigorously. I promised I would hold the line on spending and sell Leaburn to ease the wage bill. On Saturday we received word that our December 1st match against Scarborough had been switched to the morning to accommodate TV. That was fine with me; we’ll benefit from the exposure.

retired_karamelkel

Monday November 5-12

On Monday in the national morning news, Preston’s manager Craig Brown was linked to the vacant Hibs job. Tuesday was spent preparing for the game at Doncaster, but once again, the pitch was in fine fettle. McIntyre was suspended for this match, so Davies took over at LMC; the rest of the lineup stayed the same.

On Wednesday we traveled to Doncaster for an afternoon game against the Rovers. Conditions were less than ideal. It was a cool, some would say cold, day and it was raining. Thankfully, the pitch was in good shape. But the drizzle would surely affect play. I stuck with the lineup that had won us the last game. The rain affected the play which was sloppy, but we won 3-0. West hit two goals and sub Davies added a penalty late in the second half. Doncaster was simply unable to do anything on offense getting only one shot of all day. As twas to be expected the board was delighted with the win and we set about preparing for Saturday’s game at Yeovil. On Thursday our reserves beat their reserves 3-0 at the Deva Stadium. Leaburn was the MOM. With that showing he was professional, I decided to bring him back up to the first team and give him a chance to earn his hefty paycheck. I then placed the odd man out Brodie on the list and he drew immediate interest. In fact, on Saturday before our game with Yeovil, Wigan put in a bid for him, which I negotiated slightly upwards.

We played Yeovil at Hiush Park. It was an afternoon game and was cool and rainy. McIntyre was suspended for the match so Davies took over at LMC. Otherwise the lineup remained the same. As it turned out, the rain didn’t affect a fine offensive show. The fans in their umbrellas got a 4-2 match won by Chester. Beesley led the way with two goals and West and Brown each chipped in one apiece. As usual the board was pleased with the win. The congrats are getting old to be honest. On the national news that night, the highlight was Kenny Miller scoring 5 goals in the Wolves First Division win over Rotherham. That was a new record.

Also on Saturday evening we received word from the FA that a couple of our matches had been rearranged. First our December 8th game against Farnborough had been shifted to the morning for TV. That meat we would be on TV for back to back matches. Secondly, our Conference match with Barnet had been moved to January 9th to accommodate Barnet’s Vans Trophy match. The change gave us the week off until next Saturday when we would face St. Albans in the FA Cup. Capping off a busy news-filled Saturday was the news that Walsall’s Colin Lee was sacked because the supporters were unhappy with his performance. On Sunday we were entered into the draw for the FA Trophy. We started the competition in the second round. We were drawn Leigh RMI at home in the Deva Sodium. That evening was full of soccer staff news. Brantford’s manager Wally Downes had been sacked because of fan unrest. Yeovil’s Gary Johnson had been fired as well. In his case the caning was due to his general incompetence than anything else. On a more positive note, Sheff Utd had hired Peter Reid as their new boss. It was a fitting way to close out the media week.

retired_karamelkel

Nov 12-19

Monday morning Wigan got back to us to tell us they’d accepted our revised price for Brodie. On Tuesday Hull put in a bid for Brodie. I immediately told them to raise their bid. They said they’d get back to me. Later that day Spencer Field arrived in my office with a videotape. It was a Welsh Premier match and the focus of attention was on one Danny Barton. As I watched him transfixed, I found my hands were shaking. This guy was a perfect fit for my AMC…world-class dribbler, good passer, good speed, his only weakness was in long shots, but I figured that wasn’t important. I called Carmarthen Town with the 65K they were asking for him. I discovered to my dismay that the board would only allow me to spend up to 90,000 pounds on transfers. I hoped it would be enough.

On Thursday Hull faxed us back saying they’d pay the 220000 I’d asked for Brodie. On Thursday afternoon I received a terse message from Caemarfon Town rejecting my bid. They view Barton as an “indispensable” member of their team. I wired back that I would pay 80K for him. On Friday the big news came from outside the UK. Hyypia had won the Finnish Player of the Year award. In addition to the laudatory news there was a bit darker item. Figo had been placed on the transfer list by Real Madrid after a contract dispute wasn’t getting anywhere.

On Saturday afternoon we played St. Alban’s in St. Albans. Conditions were ideal and we’d drawn a lenient referee. I wasn’t anticipating any trouble with this match. I decided to start Leaburn and give Beesley the day off. We won 2-0, but Albans were scrappy and played tough. Only goals from West and Leaburn gave us the win. It was nice to see the two top wage earners on Chester to do well. They earned their game paycheck at any rate. On Saturday evening Wimbledon announced that they were sacking their manager Stuart Murdoch to placate the fans. On Sunday afternoon we were drawn in the FA Cup Second Round. We would play either Barnsley or Boston Utd and be the visiting team. In the last news item for the week, Walsall announced that they had hired Walter Smith to be their new manager.

retired_confal2

Enjoying this. Always nice to clear a debt and build a better team, all at once, too... :thup:

retired_karamelkel

Cheers Dave. Nice to know someone's reading this story. I couldn't figure out why the team brought in so many overpaid players to begin with. I wonder how they did in real life with the roster they had in the game before I took over.

Nov 19-26

On Monday Yeovil announced Brian Kerr was their new boss. On Tuesday evening, Brodie agreed to terms with Hull and left Chester for 220000 pounds. The move should help the coffers a bit. On the late news, it was reported that Brentford had appointed Gerry Francis to be their new skipper. It was a long week of training as we didn’t have a match at mid-week. Our next match would come on Saturday and was the FA Trophy match with Leigh. On Wednesday Caemarfon accepted our bid for Barton. However, when we contacted Barton’s agent to discuss terms we hit a wall. Having told the agent that Baton would be a first team regular, the agent told us that Barton would expect 275,000 pounds per year. Our board had budgeted 35,000 pound per year. We offered the 35, plus a generous signing bonus and a clause that allowed him his free transfer if we weren’t promoted. The agent was non-committal and said he’d relay our contract to Barton. I knew it was going to be a tough sell, but we had to try.

On Saturday we played our FA Trophy game at home against Leigh. It had rained all night and morning, but it had quit by game time. Nonetheless, the pitch was soaked and generally wet and very cool. We did get a break by being assigned a lenient referee, so it wasn’t all bad to start the game. I stuck with the same lineup as last game, saving Beesley for the Conference matches. The game was no contest. 244 dedicated souls saw us take Leigh to the woodshed whupping them 7-2. Brown led the way with four goals and Williams, Wood and Leaburn contributed. To be fair, the Leigh starting keeper Andy Ross was having a brilliant game and then left injured on 35. Leigh didn’t have a backup keeper on the bench so they put in their starting forward with predictable results. Still, we hit 13-19 so the win can’t be entirely due to the emergency goalie’s abysmal play.

After the game, the board expressed their approval of the match and noted that the match had set a couple of records. First, our six game winning streaks were the longest in Chester history. Secondly, the 7-2 was the largest win in club history. Thirdly, Brown’s four goals set a new club record for goals scored in a match. It was an exciting day all around. On Sunday the Third Round draw was held and it transpired that we would face Dag and Red or Northwich BVics at the Deva Stadium. That evening, Barton’s agent called to tell us that his client had indeed turned his nose up at our offer. This time we offered 170000 pounds per year and a signing bonus of a hundred grand and a free transfer clause should we be relegated? Big money yes, but this player was worth it. Also, the FA called to say they were pushing back our conference game with Kettering to January 23rd.

retired_karamelkel

Monday November 26-December 3

Wimbledon started the week off on Monday morning by announcing that they were hiring Roy Hodgeson as their new gaffer. On Tuesday, Barton accepted our generous terms and became a member of Chester City. To make room for him on the first team, Danny Collins was dropped to the resaves. Once again, we got the mid-week off as it was devoted to FA Cup Replays. Our next game was on Saturday morning at Scarborough and would be broadcast on TV as the Conference Game of the Week. After the replays, we found out that Boston Utd would be our opponents in the Second Round. Meanwhile, the League Cup was winding its way down to the quarters. Since the FA Cup was next Saturday on the 8th, our game with Farnborough was rescheduled for Wednesday January 2. On Thursday the reserves played for the first time in a while and lost 2-1 to the Scarborough boys. Mark Fox, the 15 yr old wonderer kid now has an average of 7.36 in 11 reserve contests with four goals and assists. Thankfully, there’s no need our four part to expose him to first team football so quickly. On Friday, the last day of the month, I won the Conference Manager of the Month award. In the national news Bradford was reported to be bankrupt and headed for the creditors.

On Saturday December 1, we played Scarborough on TV in the morning. It had rained all night and thus the grounds were wet and so was the pitch. In addition, it was cool, 10 degrees Celsius. I placed Brown on the bench and started Barton. I also gave West a game off and put Beesley in his stead. Leaburn was also named the captain. It didn’t take long for Barton to make his mark as he buried a goal on the third minute. Later in the half he set up Odunsi’s goal and was subsequently voted the MOM after the game as we won 2-0. Not a bad way to make a debut eh? As they are with any Conference win, the board was happy. It assuaged the monthly report that was handed to me later that night. They were happy with my performance but we’d lost over a hundred and thirty grand last month. We were still well into the black overall, but every businessman hates to lose money that has no tangible results. Fair enough. I was done signing players except for youth players.

On the national news it was reported that a pair of managers had received the boot earlier today. Billy Dearden had been sacked from Notts Co. due to supporter pressure. Andy King got the same treatment from the Swindon board for much the same reasons. Once again the firings made me glad that my job was safe. Peer pressure can be powerful indeed. As was proved on Sunday when Burry’s Preece bit the dust as a player and manager. Thankfully, that was the end of the bloodletting for the week.

retired_brinker317

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Educated Hick:
_Cheers Dave. Nice to know someone's reading this story. I couldn't figure out why the team brought in so many overpaid players to begin with. I wonder how they did in real life with the roster they had in the game before I took over._
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Nearly went bust, IIRC - American Chairman, Terry Smith, who was, to put it mildly, a bit of a fruitcake.

retired_brinker317

Bah, didn't notice that - Nice work Bry

retired_karamelkel

D_S- Cheers for the info. I'd say the chairman was a fruitcake with finances.

==================
Monday December 3-10

The first of the week was slow as the players took the weekend off and had to get back to training. On Wednesday we found out that we would play Dag and Red in the FA Trophy. In addition, the League Cup Quarters were played. Man City, Tottenham and WBA all advanced. On Thursday we signed Andrew Dobson, an 18 yr old defender on a free. On Saturday morning paper to the game we signed young goalie Lee Winters on a free as well.

On Saturday afternoon we went to Boston to play Utd in the FA Cup. It was an ugly cold, wet, rainy, windy day. At least the pitch was playable. I stuck with the same lineup I’d been using lately. It was a sloppy game, but we were winners by the score of 2-0. Hartswell and Odunsi scoring the goals. The board was happy with the “upset” victory. Not that it was much of one mind you. Boston Utd doesn’t have much superior talent to us. That night three more England managers got the sack. Tennent at Burnley, Exeter’s Cornforth and Wigan’s Jewell all found themselves looking for work. On Sunday we were drawn into the Third Round. We would play Hull at the Deva Stadium. Our Saturday match with Margate was rearranged for midweek so that we could play in the FA Cup. That evening, Notts Co. hired Craig Johnson as their new bosses.

Monday November 10-17

As usual, the week got off to a slow start. On Tuesday, Swindon and Bury announced their new managers, Flynn and Yoroath respectively. On Wednesday the League Cup semis were drawn when Liverpool beat Arsenal 2-0. Once again the Margate fixture was rearranged, this time to January 30. On Thursday our reserves bet Leigh at the Deva 2-1. On Friday we signed young defender Richard Bowyer on a free.

On Saturday we traveled to Bolton to play Leigh. It was a fine day except for the fact that the temperature was hovering just slightly above freezing. I played West instead of Leaburn for this one and made Mark Rankine the captain for the match. In an outstanding performance by several players, we pasted Leigh 7-0. Barton had a hat-trick and west had a brace. Several players had career days. Naturally the board was thrilled with the huge win. Of course, it was a club record and a nice way to finish the week. Three more managers bit the dust in the national news that night. At this rate the English Leagues will see total revamping by the end of the season.