retired_nelson

I beieve you are right Adax, and there is a confirmed fix in the upcoming patch

retired_mallory08

Decent little story thread.

KUTGW mate

retired_sroch3032

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Aljarov:
Decent little story thread.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

They are called update threads

KUTGW reddbaron :thup:

retired_livelife

Good Luck reddbaron!! Must say, I've started with the saint's and they gave me nothing for the wage budget. It's good to see that you don't get the same scenario each time you start with a certain team... x

retired_nelson

Actually, my 1st year with the Saints, they offered me no transfer budget either. The vast majority of my acquisitions that year were free transfers and one or two that I was able to purchase using the meager proceeds of a few sales that I made. Good luck to you with your Saints squad. Bring glory to Clarence Park!

retired_nelson

07/08 Season

Our first season in the national conference proved to be the most challenging yet. It became apparent very early on in the process that our little squad was outmatched and outgunned by the opposition. No wins in the first 10 matches left us firmly at the bottom of the table. Players who had been stalwarts in the conference south suddenly were mere speed bumps to be run over and around by speedy midfielders and crafty wingers.

Our keeper who singlehandedly led us to promotion lost his touch, and shortly thereafter his starting position. It was tough to sit a 950 quid weekly salary on the bench, but the team performed better without him. His wage was an albatross about my neck, i could find no way to give him away, and he refused all efforts to persuade him into a mutual termination. I happened upon a potential diamond in the rough striker and a 18 year old midfielder who seems to do the job well despite the constant barrage of press stories saying he is too young to be inhabiting the 1st team.

Made it through 1st round of the FA cup and lost in my 1st match in the Trophy. Not much of a cup run, but at least we got 100K TV money to offfset the lack of cup revenue.

The board continues to be a bunch of cheap gits when it comes to wages. They have far less ambition than I do. They were satisfied when we inhabited the bottom of the table, and seemed more than happy with the prospect of relegation. A late season run allowed me to seize the chance at remaining at this level. With 2 games to go, I was lodged in 20th, 1 point out of the drop zone with a Home match against bottom feeder Forest Green, and a finjal match away to 2nd place Halifax. We won our home match 2-0 to vault ahead of the Green into 19th. Final match, 2 points ahead of the Green, needing just a tie. Halifax scores early in the 2nd half on a penalty that also results in my captain's second yellow. A glance at the scoreboard reveals Forest Gren leading their match. With 10 men we go into a desparation attack with 15 minutes left. Amazingly, we score an equalizer 3 minutes into extra time to secure a draw. That goal, assured a tie with Forest Green, who ended up in the drop zone due to goal differential.

A frantic end of the season leaves Saints' fans restless at the prospect of another year as a relegation favorite.

I think I may have taken this squad as far as I can, and if offered a job, I will jump at it. However, I have not had one scintilla of interest from any other club, and I am debating the notion of applying for something. We shall see what the 08/09 season holds in store for me. :cool:

retired_nelson

08/09 Season

A drastic change in managerial philosophy meant that this would be a season to remember for the Saints. During the summer close season, I decided to re-sign all of the up and coming stars on our squad who I had slowly groomed the previous few years. This decision, along with the judicious purchase of a new left wing and centerback, resulted in a wage bill that was nearly twice what ownership authorized. The windfall from our cup run 3 years before was to be spent in a dramatic attempt to pursue promotion.

Our form had definitely improved as we were solidly mid-table at Christmas. A 2nd round exit in the FA cup meant that we would not be replenishing the rapidly dwindling coffers with a cup run. However we continued our FA trophy run, and ultimately won the first piece of silver for the owners by defeating Halifax in the final at Wembley.

Inconsistency proved to be too great a burden to overcome and we never could crack into the top 6 of the conference, finishing in 9th for the year. Now that we had completely depleted all financial reserves, the purges began. A total of 8 players were transferred, and the 450K brought in not only covered the debt but provided me with sufficient sums to bring in a new crop on fresh young faces to replace our depleted ranks.

Just as the ink was drying on the last of these contracts, the phone rang. It was John Deehan, director of football at Northampton, seeking to fill its vacancy after barely avoiding the drop in league one the previous season. It seemed that the Cobblers were impressed with the progress I made with virtually no financial support from the Saints' board, and I felt that the time was right to make the jump to league football.

So its goodbye St. Albans, and hello Northampton in the coming year!

retired_google

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by reddbaron:
A drastic change in managerial philosophy meant that this would be a season to remember for the Saints. During the summer close season, I decided to re-sign all of the up and coming stars on our squad who I had slowly groomed the previous few years. This decision, along with the judicious purchase of a new left wing and centerback, resulted in a wage bill that was nearly twice what ownership authorized. The windfall from our cup run 3 years before was to be spent in a dramatic attempt to pursue promotion.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I believe this is the Conference version of "doing a Leeds."

Have not got my copy of FM yet (assume it should be here this week, :fingerscrosssed: ) but have finally given the demo a serious go (as opposed to just screwing around with it, seeing how the fans reacts when you start at a defending Premiership champion, testing the contracts stuph, etc.). Started with Saints and had many of the same experiences you did (i.e. leaking goals at an alarming rate early, even being asked by the press about it), but got it turned around. (hint: my profile calls my style of play "adventerous" )

Anywhores, KUTGW!

retired_nelson

Jason, hope you continue playing LLM once you get your copy, it is truly the most enjoyable way to play the game. Let me know if you continue your St. Albans game, it is always fun to compare notes.

retired_pmetzger1

That's it reddbaron, keep encouraging the n00bs \0/.