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In search of greatness (although mediocrity will do)
Took the reigns at Norwegian Second Division Group 4 side Steigen SK, a club from a remote region deep inside the Arctic Circle. The side only had twelve senior professionals, the most talented of which was out on a pre-agreed loan deal at a first division side yet we were still footing his wages. The club’s debt stood at a tickle over £400k and the wage budget was a meagre £1300 per week.
2006 Season
Predictions from fans, board and media all prophesised impending doom, but we had a modestly successful first season. All youth players were released to free up room in the wage structure for new arrivals. More than twenty players had pre-season trials, three of whom were awarded contracts. Eight further players were brought in for a total of £0, supplemented by two talented loan arrivals from Lyn Oslo.
Form throughout the season was patchy and we lost most games where we were missing more than one first-teamer through injury or suspension. Having only two centre-halves in the squad was particularly costly. However, we finished a comfortable 16 points away from the relegation zone and just 8 points adrift of the one promotion slot.
The most notable performer during the season was a 36 year-old attacking midfielder signed from non-league football who governed the team and chipped in with nine goals.
Final Position: 8th
2007 Season
The squad was augmented during pre-season with the addition of four new recruits, but only one was a defender and again we were short in this position during the course of the season. The two youngsters from Lyn, who had performed well last season, agreed to return for another year on loan.
Four weeks before the beginning of the season the chairman delightedly announced a partnership with Rosenborg, who promptly offered me three young chaps on loan who had the stats of heavenly angels. If they had come then promotion would have been odds on, but I remain a little uncomfortable with the feeder club feature, even with foreign clubs, so I politely declined their offer.
We had a good season and were six points clear with five games remaining, However, we imploded and had to travel to Alta on the final weekend of the season one point behind them and needing a victory to be promoted. We led one nil with six minutes remaining but managed to concede two goals before the full time whistle which condemned us to another year in the bottom tier.
On a positive note, the two loan players from Lyn performed exceptionally well, one helping control the midfield with our aging attacking midfielder and the other proving a pacey threat up front, scoring fifteen goals.
Final Position: 3rd
2008 Season
An industrious pre-season saw the arrival of seven new faces to give the squad some much needed depth. Most significant was the capture on permanent deals of the two players who had been on loan from Lyn for the previous two seasons. Rosenborg’s offer of just one loan player with a modest track record proved far easier to rebuff than last year’s offerings.
The squad had developed well over the course of the last two seasons and some of the young players that were signed in 2006 were now establishing themselves as first team regulars. Thanks to a more solid defence and the form of a 17 year old forward who bagged a club-record twenty league goals, we secured the championship with three games to spare and finished eleven points clear of our closest challengers Ull-Kisa. To top it all, Alta got relegated straight back down.
Survival is the only objective for next season, but with four relegation slots in the sixteen-team Adecco division, this might prove difficult. I have only managed to clear £60k of the clubs debt during the last three seasons and our wage budget has been shattered due to the entire squad receiving a pay increase as a reward for promotion. Consequently, the board are cancelling all new signings. Next season could well be a toughie.
Final Position: 1st
01-12-2007, 01:13 AM
In search of greatness (although mediocrity will do) Post #2
Quick question for any Llmas who may be knowledgable with regards to Nordic football. In my first season I was knocked out of the national cup in the first round and in the second season I exited in the second round. However, in my third season I was not entered in to the competition, not even in the preliminary round that comprises non-league teams.
Is this due to my poor record in cup competitions from the previous seasons or is it a glitch in my game?
01-12-2007, 09:00 PM
In search of greatness (although mediocrity will do) Post #7
As Slatta in Sweden, I got dumped out in the first round in my 1st season. I'm in my 3rd season now and that was the one and only time I've been in the Swedish Cup. Could be a bug, I've posted about it in the bug forums anyway.
01-13-2007, 08:07 PM
In search of greatness (although mediocrity will do) Post #8
Every interested party predicted a grim season for Steigen SK. The media forecasted a rock-bottom finish and the chairman and fans were equally pessimistic.
It was therefore a surprise that we won six of our first eight games and went into the summer break topping the table. We still struggled whenever key personnel picked up injuries, but we fumbled our way to the last game of the season needing just a point to secure the second promotion spot behind SK Brann. We lived up to our reputation of choking on the big occasion and lost 0-1 to Haugesund, but third placed Bodo/Glimt got mullered at home against Brann, ensuring top flight football for what I’m guessing is the first time in Steigen’s history.
Some of our players performed admirably during the season. Our 5ft 5 striker who had signed permanently from Lyn Oslo top-scored with 16 goals, a left winger signed from non-league football who had spent most of last season injured was an absolute revelation and a utility player poached from Ull-Kisa proved to be an effective left back. Most pleasing was the fact that our inspirational attacking midfielder will retire two days before his 40th birthday having guided the club into the Tippeligaen.
2009 was also our best season financially, with a good cup run helping to clear the club’s debts.
Final Position: 2nd Norwegian Cup: Quarter Finals
01-16-2007, 09:10 AM
In search of greatness (although mediocrity will do) Post #10
In search of greatness (although mediocrity will do) 
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