[FMT 16 Create-a-Club] Killarney Town FC: Up the Abbots!

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Hello, everybody.

I hadn't planned to buy FM 16 so soon. In the past (which isn't a very long past) I've waited to buy the game until it had been out for a few months, and I was prepared to do so again this year. The buzz surrounding the game drew me in, and I found myself getting on board on Opening Day.

The Create-a-Club option intrigued me. I knew I could have done something like that in the editor, but this seemed quick, easy, and fairly foolproof. After experimenting with Create-a-Club for a while, I've decided to use it as the basis of a career I'll be writing about here.

I'm using FM Touch, because it's becoming increasingly clear to me that I very rarely have the time to play the full game and enjoy it as much as I'd like.

I've loaded up the Irish, English, and Scottish leagues, and I've decided to base my created club in the Irish First Division. By the luck of the draw, Finn Harps will yield their spot to my creation, with my most sincere apologies to any Harps supporters who may be reading.

At any rate, let's give a warm welcome to the newest club in Irish football: Killarney Town FC.

I chose Killarney as the home of my club because it was the first stop on the tour of Ireland and the UK I took with my family in the summer of '13. I can visualize the setting where my story takes place, which already seems to be adding to my immersion factor.

The club colors--purple and blue--are taken from the seal of the town of Killarney. The club is nicknamed The Abbots, in a nod to the town's history. The first important historical settlement in the area was Innisfallen Abbey, a monastery built by St. Finian the Leper in the 600s A.D. The Franciscans built Muckross Abbey in 1448, and the ruins of that site are still visible today. I thought for a moment about "The Lepers" as a nickname, but couldn't quite bring myself to stoop that low.

St. Finian Park, where the Abbots play, is named for the good abbot of Innisfallen himself. It seems little better than a ruin itself.

This rather intense looking lad is Chris Keohane, our managerial protagonist. I accidentally made him English with an Irish second nationality, rather than the other way around, because I originally created him for an English save. I envision Chris as the husband of a lovely, intelligent, charming Mrs. Keohane, with whom he will have a son who should make an appearance in our tale at some point.

Create-a-Club mode allowed me to conjure up two footballers of my own design, around whom I could construct the Killarney Town squad. I took the names and basic information the computer gave me, customizing only their position.

Kevin O'Donnell, an 18-year-old central midfielder, emerged with an aggressive temperament and a russet mohawk to match. He has a capacity for leadership, however, and will work hard for the team.

Can you see the determination etched upon the face of our 20-year-old center half, David McLaughlin? He also has decent physical attributes, and could make a fair footballer for us.

I could have picked the rest of my squad, subject to a player value limit. I decided to have the game select teammates for Kevin and David instead. I got a squad of 30 players, many of whom had been with Finn Harps. I could have retained Harps' back room staff, too, but instead I chose to hire them myself. My first action as manager was to place adverts for a Director of Football, an Assistant Manager, a Head of Youth Development, a Chief Scout, and a Head Physio.

So far, the tale of a fictional manager, bossing a fictional club which contains two imaginary players, seems like it could be a lot of fun. I hope some of you will think it's fun to read about, too. At any rate, it's something new and different.

Hope to see you out at St. Finian Park!

[Greyfriars Bobby]

reserved for Chris Keohane's career history

[Greyfriars Bobby]

15 February 2015

It took about three weeks for me to assemble a working back room team at St. Finian Park. The process involved looking over the credentials of each of the applicants for each job--usually eight or so--and making an offer to the one who seemed like the best fit. I'm glad it didn't take any longer than it did, because pre-season tasks are a pain in the neck without an Assistant Manager or a Chief Scout to help you.

My first hire was Ian Dolan, 48, who came on board as our Head of Youth Development. I was pleased to find someone as talented as Ian is at this level. He rates highly in Adaptability, Determination, and Working with Youngsters, and he's a decent coach and judge of talent. I'm not sure how many of his attributes come into play directly in FM Touch, but they certainly can't hurt.

Kevin Collins, half Dolan's age at 24, is our Head Physio. I would have loved to see double-digit prowess in Physiotherapy here, but nobody that talented would work for us. Kevin got the job offer because his Motivating and Working with Youngsters stood out from the crowd. Our squad is young, and I figure a physio who's a motivator might get players to apply themselves to their recovery programs.

After our first friendly--a 3-2 victory away to Sligo Rovers--I hired Assistant Manager John Logue, age 31. Except for working with goalkeepers and training for fitness, John ticks every box, and he's also very good at Working with Youngsters. I've put John in charge of the training, at least for now.

And, as of three days ago, we finally have a Chief Scout. He's Kieran Ireland, 36. He suffers from low Determination, as did all the scouts who answered my advert. He was joint best among those lads at judging talent, both current and potential. Kieran can oversee two scouting assignments, so I have him looking for talent in Ireland and the UK and checking out our next opposition.new

All the new staff members rate two stars for their jobs. Not bad for the Irish First Division.

Nobody answered our advert for a Director of Football, so that position remains open.

The winter transfer window closes this week, and so far, we haven't added any new players. Again, it's a lot easier to scout players when you have a scout on your staff. We've quickly tried to get a look at a few men we might bring in, so it's still possible we'll shore up the squad. I could use a little more depth at center back, and a player who's suited to the role of Deep-Lying Forward would be nice, too.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

6 March 2015

The Irish First Division consists of eight clubs. We will play each of the other teams four times, twice at St. Finian Park and twice away. The top team automatically promotes to the Irish Premier Division, and the second and third placed clubs qualify for a Playoff that decides another promotion place. The Killarney Town board expects a top half finish from me, and the pundits pick us for fourth. I'm hoping for a good run at a Playoff spot.

I ended up doing something I don't think I've ever done in Football Manager: fail to sign a single player in my first transfer window. So, let's meet the Abbots, 2015 edition.

Goalkeepers

Our staff has doubts about Murphy's professionalism, but I hope they're wrong. He's a fine shot-stopper with good reflexes. Trimble struggles with his distribution, but otherwise he is a solid backup 'keeper.

Defenders

Some of these players also feature as midfielders. I'll introduce them where they're expected to play the more important role.

O'Reilly, who came up through Fulham's youth program, is a precocious left back who can push forward and contribute to the attack. Hard-working Raftery mans the right side. He's come up from Salthill Devon in the lower Irish leagues. Former Aston Villa trainee Devine is a rock-solid presence at center back. He'll pair with "created player" McLaughlin, who might one day wear the captain's arm band, or with Fadden, who is better against big, strong strikers.

Youngsters Nelis and McDermott have promise. They will play in cup matches and feature regularly in the reserves.

Midfielders

I created a good ol' 4-4-2, a simple tactic that served me fairly well with lower league sides in FM14 and FM15. We'll see if it holds up with this year's edition.

Former Drogheda man Matondo is a smooth, two-footed presence on the left wing. He can also play in the center of the park. On the other side will be pacey Shanahan, who has changed clubs four times in four years, but has played well at each stop. McDaid, a flashy, entertaining youngster, can deputize on either wing. Fortunately, my wide men can also play AM(L) or AM®, so I have a decent amount of tactical flexibility.

White, the club captain, and Hyland, who might be the team's best player, make a good pair in the central midfield. Neither one is especially well-suited for a holding role, but neither is hopelessly lost in his own end of the pitch, either. Lonergan can come into the match when I want a more defensively-minded central midfielder, and there's also O'Donnell, our other "created player." Coombes provides a more dangerous offensive threat in reserve.

Attackers

Keating is the team's best front man. Formerly with Sligo Rovers of the Premiership, he could one day return there--either with our club, or with another. I can pair Ruairi with Coughlan, who can drop deeper and play as a shadow striker, or with pocket-sized Black. Shanahan isn't really a forward, but could play there in a pinch. If I needed a fourth striker, I'd call up one of the lads from the B squad.

[Maw74]

I will be following this, Good luck.

Will be using the Create-a-Club feature at some point myself but have put that on hold for now, my current thinking is to start in the Championship in England as I know the perfect club to replace and my new club could be inspired by the recent Rugby World Cup.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

I will be following this, Good luck.

Will be using the Create-a-Club feature at some point myself but have put that on hold for now, my current thinking is to start in the Championship in England as I know the perfect club to replace and my new club could be inspired by the recent Rugby World Cup.

Thanks! I'm having fun with it. I don't want to sound too much like a fanboy, but I really like FM16. The Prozone analysis is a very good addition, for one thing. I know some people have had issues adjusting to the new tactics page, but the graphical layout makes sense to me. It helps me avoid cluttering up my tactics with team instructions that aren't necessary for the style I want my team to play.

I thought about starting somewhere I'd never managed, and I also thought about starting in the Conference North/South. For some reason, I thought you could only use Create-a-Club at the lowest playable level in a nation. Very cool, if that's not the case.

Feel free to stop by and comment anytime. That goes for any of you who are reading.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

17 April 2015

I've decided to try writing quarterly updates this time. Since the Irish First Division plays a 28-game schedule, I'll be updating after each seventh game in the league programme.

I'm very happy with the way things are going now. I'd like to find a way to tighten up defensively, and I think the fact that none of our central midfielders are very good at that phase of the game might have something to do with our struggles in that area.

That's one of the more unusual runs of form I've ever seen! Two 1-0 wins in the league, with a slew of draws in between. We tossed away a two-goal advantage at home to Wexford Youths, but came from 3-0 behind to level with Shelbourne away. The Wexford Youths result hurt; if we hold that lead, we are top of the league right now.

The board don't care about our results in the League Cup, so I sent the kids out against Letterkenny. They fought hard, and probably deserved a better result than they got.

Ruairi Keating has been the most dangerous scorer in the First Division thus far, with seven goals in his first six matches. He left the Cabinteely match with a concussion, and is still awaiting permission to return to training. While Ruairi recuperates, I've switched to a 4-2-3-1 formation, which seemed to work well against Waterford United.

Not surprisingly, Keating has been our best player by Average Rating (7.57), with Gary Shanahan (7.31) and Paul Matondo (7.09) also performing well.

Conversely, captain Peter White (6.51), Daniel O'Reilly (6.56) and David McLaughlin (6.57) are still searching for their form. The supporters are down on O'Reilly, and I had to prop Daniel up in the press the other day.

When the transfer period begins again on 1 July, there will be two new men at St. Finian Park.

Barry Clancy, 29, was an attractive target because of his versatility. He can play all along the left side and in the center of the park. He's got good pace, and he can dribble and cross. Barry knows the First Division well, spending time with several clubs, and he should be able to provide cover at several positions.

In an effort to shore up our midfield defense, I'm bringing in another veteran, Mickey Funston. Also 29, Funston is a tenacious tackler and a team-first kind of player. Mickey starred with Finn Harps, so I'm happy to bring him in (since I replaced his club with Killarney Town, I guess I owe him).

Let's hope this is the first of many.

[abulezz]

I also have done a create a club, although I'm going Youth only. Following this!

[Greyfriars Bobby]

I also have done a create a club, although I'm going Youth only. Following this!

Thanks, abulezz. The Abbots can use all the supporters they can get!

[dllu]

Great start, KUTGW!

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Great start, KUTGW!

Thanks, dllu. The high-scoring draws pleased the fans--especially the neutrals--but I don't want to rely on having to score three goals in order to come away with a point. Usually, if you hit for seven goals in two matches, you're rewarded with six points, and we came away with only two.

On the other hand, it's not common to ship seven goals in two matches and secure two points, either.

Ruairi Keating has returned to the pitch, and that means I have a choice to make. Do I return to my 4-4-2, which we used through the Shelburne match, or stay with the 4-2-3-1. which seemed much more solid defensively against Cabinteely and Waterford?

Garbhan Coughlan is very comfortable at AM©, so I can play him in the hole behind Keating. It's worth a try.

Thanks for the comment. Stop by anytime.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

1 May 2015



We're still unbeaten in the league, with a run of nine games without defeat. Wexford Youth's 0-1 defeat at home to Cabinteely opened the door for us to move to the top of the table.

24 April 2015

Killarney Town 1-0 University College Dublin

Ruairi Keating (19)

Man of the Match: Garbhan Coughlan (7.9)

This was far from a beautiful display of the art of football. Coughlan's perfect pass to lay in Keating was its only high point, but a win is a win, and three points are three points. I used the 4-2-3-1, and I think I'll stick with it for now.

1 May 2015

Athlone Town 0-1 Killarney Town

Garbhan Coughlan (84)

Man of the Match: Daniel Devine (7.3)

Coughlan volleyed in substitute left back Luke Nelis's cross to enable us to steal three points from Athlone Town, on a night when we were generally outplayed. Lee Murphy kept another clean sheet with assistance from Devine, who was dominant in the air. Murph made a nifty double save on 87' to secure the victory. Coughlan was delighted to get a goal in a winning effort against his former club.

Gary Shanahan's strike against Waterford United on 17 April was chosen as the First Division Goal of the Month. And I won my second consecutive First Division Manager of the Month award.