retired_amyslack

My rule of thumb would be no more than 1 big post per day. You can get away with several posts if they are smallish but judging by your excellent start that won't be the case in this story. Us FMSers have a notoriously short attention span

retired_confal2

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Us FMSers have a notoriously short attention span <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Too right! I blame the weed...

Quality beats quantity every time, though people like Faramir and BobBev seem to manage both. Looks like you have the time and the ability to do so as well, so all the best, whatever you decide...

Ahhh the joys of bhang, the syncopated banter of duelling tablas, the demented grin of the Monkey God... [sigh]

Bomberman

Ravinder Matharu is a good young choice.

Bomberman

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by OMDave:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Us FMSers have a notoriously short attention span <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Too right! I blame the weed...

Quality beats quantity every time, though people like Faramir and BobBev seem to manage both. Looks like you have the time and the ability to do so as well, so all the best, whatever you decide...

Ahhh the joys of _bhang_, the syncopated banter of duelling _tablas_, the demented grin of the Monkey God... [sigh]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

'Bhang?'

Bomberman

More info on Harpal Singh here

retired_mekeesha

Bhang, tablas, Hanumanji - you been followin' me around India? :p

Thanks for the Harpal link Karanfett - I read his stuff - seems a bit of an airhead to me but I wish him every success.

Regarding the story - I only uploaded a big chunk of the beginning to get readers involved with the 'world' - I won't be posting so much regularly. I'll give you the rest of the intro/pre-season tonight and put about a fortnight's worth of game time every day - sounds like that should be a decent balance.

BTW my game's status tells me that I've played over 6 days' game time - and I'm only into October of the second season! Am I the slowest CMer ever??? Mind you I speed up as I go along.

retired_mekeesha

Let’s have a closer look at the squad of 32 then:

GKPeter Reiter is definitely the number one, with either Roberto or Jamie Speare on the bench. Jon Kennedy is superfluous to requirements.

DCMy new tactic is to employ three centre-backs, thus dispensing with regular fullbacks or wingbacks. Pre-season form suggests I can perm any three from six – Steve Halford, Jonathan Smith and Paul Howarth brought us up to the Conference and can hopefully still do a job this season; new boys Coulson and Clarke might be in contention although maybe not at the beginning. I’m undecided as to whether to sell Peter Cavanagh or keep him as back-up, but Robbie Williams and Steve Hollis won’t get in the first team unless we have a crisis, and neither will Sedgley who needs to stick to coaching these days – he’s announced his retirement from playing a year too late in my view.

DMCThis is the novelty – two DMCs, just like Beckham and Guti at Real. Brannan, solid as a rock, capable of delivering a killer pass and our only dead-ball specialist, is inked in, but who to put alongside him? Gordon Armstrong might be the most capable but at 36 how long can he last? John Durnin is even older. It might be a little early for Steve Flitcroft but he’ll have to be a contender.

AMLNew boy Michael Houghton has made an immediate impression – he has the berth for now. Behind him are Rory Prendergast and the aged Paul Cook. Andy Proctor I fear will not get a look in. Perhaps I should try to sell him.

AMCNew boys Campbell and Langley are both contenders. Campbell tends to surge forward, suiting my style but perhaps Langley and also Andy Gouck might be better employed away from home against strong opposition.

AMLThis is Mama’s berth when he’s sufficiently settled at the club. Otherwise Dean Calcutt and Lee Clitheroe can perform.

SCBaichung Bhutia has to start; he’s the target man, the central striker. Alongside him in a deeper supportive role on the right could be Lutel James or Gary Williams, and Paul Mullin will press for contention. Lee Madin has some work to do in the reserves and Steve McDonald is listed.

Captain:The star man is Mr. Charisma himself and so hungry to prove himself – step forward Capt. Bollywood Bhutia.
Age distribution:In the end I wasn’t able to invest in youth; Mama is 18 and Coulson 19, otherwise all my new buys are in their early 20s, which is the age of the majority of the squad.
Nationalities:Apart from the two Indians and an Austrian, Lutel James is the only non-Englishman in the squad.
Internationals:Bhutia has 50 caps for India (scoring 29 goals), Mama has also appeared.
Wages:Brannan is on £130K per year; Bhutia is on £80K. Five more are on £20K+, and 20 are on £8K or less.
Value:Mama is rated the most valuable member at £18K. Three others are worth over £10K.


Pre-season
The pre-season period was very stressful – I mentioned how I was rushing around the country trying to sign players, but at the same time I was doing my best to bring the squad and new players together, get the boys fit through training regimes and suss them out in a series of friendlies. I couldn’t leave anything important to Jimmy the Ass Man but there was just too much for one person. It became easier as new coaches began reporting in and developing a good rapport with the lads; Darren Beckford immediately demonstrated enough all-round quality to effectively leave him in charge on the training ground in my absence and as the new season got underway he was offered and accepted a new position as Assistant Manager. I was sure he was the right man when we had a useful discussion about training – he tactfully suggested that I was overloading the lads with my demands and that this might lead to injuries and problems with morale. Trouble is I have so many new ideas to try out and I’m impatient. It’s all a learning curve and I’ll start with my ideas but scale back if he turns out to be right. I soon discovered that his being a local lad, a Lancastrian through and through, softened the blow, as the fans were quick to accept him.

I arranged a game a week into my new career, on 20th July against Bamber Bridge. The lads got off to a great start with a 3-0 win. The first 45 minutes were dull beyond belief as everyone was so sluggish but we picked up the pace much more than the opposition in the second half. Our new goalie Reiter had an excellent game, as did Coulson in defence. The man of the match was a third new acquisition, Michael Houghton who laid on two of the goals after being granted so much time and space to charge down the left wing. Bhutia scored the first goal, Andy Gouck got the second from the AMC position from a neat pass from Paul Mullin who also scored the third. He’d replaced a very lazy Lutel James to give me something to think about.


Four days later we had a match against Bacup Borough. Reiter only had one shot to deal with the entire match and let in a very sloppy goal to worry me. We won 3-1 however, with Mama putting in an impressive debut performance. It was the two DMCs who controlled the game though, with Armstrong pipping Brannan to the man of the match award. For the first goal Armstrong fed Campbell who came charging in deep from midfield and slammed the ball away. The second was a superb free kick from Brannan – he should get a few winners with a sweet dead-ball skill like that. For the third goal Brannan fed Houghton who put a lovely volley past the ‘keeper.

If the first two friendlies produced encouraging results the third was sensational. I’d arranged a game against league opposition, with Macclesfield visiting the Crown Ground on 29th July. In terms of shots, passes, tackles and possession the game was even, but the difference was our finishing – and the result: 4-0. It gave the lads a real boost. this time Reiter was kept occupied and dealt with everything thrown at him. Armstrong had another impressive performance and Campbell took the man of the match award. This was the game where the enigmatic Williams had just turned up and scored. When he was replaced by James, Lutel responded to the pressure on him by outshining his strike partner Mullin. For the first goal a long pass from Campbell had Williams chasing half the length of the pitch, leaving his marker in his wake before powering his shot past the ‘keeper. The second goal resulted from another surging run down the left by Houghton - he dribbled through a pack of defenders before firing a deadly ball across the six-yard box where it was turned in by a hapless defender. Then Clitheroe put an excellent cross in from the right for Campbell to convert a free header, and finally Smith lumped up a long high free kick into the box, which James somehow managed to get a toe to in the midst of an inert goalie and sleeping defence.

Our last friendly was four days later on 3rd August at home to another Third Division side, Boston United. We maintained our 100% record with a 2-0 score-line; the difference between the two sides was evident for all to see – India. Whilst Gary Williams endorsed my concerns about his attitude by having an unfeasibly dreadful first 45 minutes before I kept him out, Bhutia crowned an excellent performance with both goals and Mama confounded my expectation that he’d need time to settle with an unbelievable display that will get him noticed by a wide audience if he duplicates it in competitive matches. The hacks that reported on the game were unanimous in awarding him a 10 out of 10 rating. He bedazzled down the right wing throughout the game and both goals came from his ownership of that strip of the pitch. For the first he skipped his way through opponents, got to the by-line and laid on an easy tap-in for Bhutia. For the second it was more of the same to lay on a gift for Lutel James. He fluffed his chance but the ‘keeper palmed the shot up and it fell between Bhutia and his marker. Bhutia used his strength and finesse to get a toe to the ball and redirect it into the net.


So how do I rate our chances of staying up? The bookies are giving 40/1 for the title, which is tantamount to predicting the drop, but I really don’t think this is likely. Our pre-season preparations have given us the confidence to think about competing at the right end of the table although our chances are heavily dependent on one or two areas. My good friend Baichung oozes class and could almost get us up into the league on his own – pity he won’t be around to enjoy the fruits should we succeed, but if he sustains a serious injury we don’t have quality reliable cover. And I don’t yet know when and for how long the captain of the national team will be called away by his international obligations – I can only hope India fall at the first hurdle as they always do! I believe that the triangular triumvirate of Bhutia, Mama and Houghton could thrive in higher company right now and in the Conference opponents will be torn apart down our wings, but again we have no cover for Mama and Houghton. In defensive midfield if Brannan is injured or Armstrong begins to feel his age we’ll have a problem. I think that the central defenders who got us up will cope at this level and I brought in a couple of worthy back-ups, and we have no problem with goalkeepers providing Reiter doesn’t compare Saddleworth Moor to the Austrian Alps or Roberto with the Massif Central. But beyond the first two lines of defence whilst with our first eleven I could be confident of taking on anyone in this league, injuries and suspensions will leave me worryingly short of options. There is one other concern – the board’s pressure on me to get the wages under control. I could see Whalley’s argument - they had allocated me £250 grand for salaries for the year and suddenly they were faced with a bill of over half a million. This could be solved at a stroke – simply send Bhutia back to Bengal and offer Brannan to any takers for free (although would anyone be prepared to match his demands like we have?), but such an option would be a disaster for me. They’ll both be leaving us at the end of the season but so long as I feel there’s a chance of them getting us back into the glorious English Football League I’ll be resisting such pressure to sacrifice our two most important players as far as I can.

Okay, let the games commence!

retired_karamelkel

Great writing Andy! I'm suprised your board let you sign Bhutia. Hope he and Bramman justify thier salaries.

Bomberman

Nice update. Its obvious that India will make the diferende in your promotion bid. btw, are you watching the India Japan game in spetember?

retired_mekeesha

Hey guys,

Well Educated, I know the answer to that but you'll have to follow the saga! The specific answer regarding Brannan turns out to be very interesting .....

Karanfett - I was originally due to be at the game in Calcutta. I made good friends with SI's head researcher in India (he lives in Calcutta) and he's mates with the Indian coach (who is actually an Englishman, Stephen Constantine) so I was due to be rubbing shoulders with all the right people. Damn that crazy woman! Mind you, having been stuffed 1-5 by Oman in the last game there isn't much optimism around now.

My next update (below) only covers one match and about three days of gametime as it was so significant. I guess my posts will vary in terms of gametime - my main rule will be to keep the length reasonable. Enjoy!