PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 September Our September seemed to be a really stacked month - I think one or two of our home matches were postponed due to waterlogged pitches, which really didn't help us. We started the month off reasonably well tbf, with a 0-0 draw against St Ives and then an utter demolition of Billericay at their place. I'm really not sure what happened in Billericay - for 90 minutes we were a completely different side. It was the same team I've watched defend reasonably well but create absolutely nothing, but this time they were bossing it and creating something almost every time they went forward. Since then we've been woeful though, we lost 2 on the bounce against Bury Town and Hadleigh, but I thought surely we'd beat Arlesey at home as they were bottom of the table with no points at the time. They absolutely battered us, the only reason we didn't lose was because our goalkeeper, Macauley Kaye, saved not one, but two penalties, fair play to him he pulled out all the stops in that one. But since Arlesey we've lost every game. We haven't won in 6 games, we haven't scored in 5. It's woeful stuff. I'm "Very Insecure" at the moment and tbh I thought I was gone after the Needham Market game. The thing is we're actually not bad defensively at all really, in a lot of the games we'll be drawing 0-0 and then get sucker punched by a winner in the 65th minute or so in the second half. It is frustrating but I've been hesitant to change tactics too much as we've been good defensively and I was hoping if our strikers started scoring we'd be alright, but this doesn't look like happening. I'm gonna have to make drastic changes next month as I feel if I lose 1 or 2 more then I'm gone. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 Saves two penalties in a game and is now publicly backing me. What a gent. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 I thought anything less than a win against fellow relegation battlers, Gorleston, would mean I'd be sacked, so I went all out and tried to take advantage of our good defence whilst getting more out of our midfield and attack. We held strong throughout the game and we did actually create a fair amount of chances. I play on extended highlights and most of the 0-0's I've played this season have had virtually no highlights at all, so for there to be highlights shows progress I think. It was still a very tight game and we actually only won due to an out of this world left-footed free-kick from Ed Carroll in the 79th minute. Gorleston put a lot of pressure on us to get an equaliser, but our side fought like beavers to hang on to a much needed 3 points. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted January 13, 2017 Share Posted January 13, 2017 That's tough on Hythe, losing to local rivals Folkestone like that. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 October A real promising win against Barking in the FA Trophy, with Ollie Philips late strike gifting us a rare win. Not so great in the league. I changed things before the Gorleston match, which saw us win 2 on the bounce including the Barking match. Since then we've lost twice, even if we have looked like a far better team with the new formation/tactics. We're still bottom though and to be honest, I'm amazed I haven't been sacked yet. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 The board aren't happs. They want 11 points from the next 5 games or I'm gone. All this really does is extend my shelf-life at the club, hopefully long enough for another club to come in and poach me, although perhaps understandably, I currently have no clubs interested in me Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrdanbartlett Posted January 13, 2017 Share Posted January 13, 2017 Ouch, a little adrift in the league now! What a shame! Do you ever use other peoples tactics? I know some people frown on it. I really would love to see you moving up the leagues rather than down Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 Well it's been coming. I am pleased to be out of that mess though. It was a disaster from start to finish. I wouldn't be surprised if Canvey got relegated from the County Leagues next season tbh Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 November We were pretty poor against Tower Hamlets despite taking the lead in the first half. We did actually deserve a point at East Thurrock, we were much the better side and East Thurrock's goals came from a first half corner and then a fairly late free-kick. I thought it was just a coincidence at first, but after double checking I clocked that the guy who got the corner assist for East Thurrock's first goal is actually the older brother of a girl I was friends with a few years back. FFS. The London Bari match was my last game in charge and it was possibly the most frustrating of my entire run at Canvey. We actually looked a good side and were 3-1 up at one point, so to ultimately blow it late on was infuriating - especially as it ended up costing me my job. Oh well. It says a lot about the absolute state of Arlesey to somehow still be a worse team than we were. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 29 minutes ago, mrdanbartlett said: Ouch, a little adrift in the league now! What a shame! Do you ever use other peoples tactics? I know some people frown on it. I really would love to see you moving up the leagues rather than down Nah I've never used other people's tactics and don't really plan to. I don't consider it cheating as each to their own etc, but would rather stick to my own tactics even if they're not as good. I hope to move up the leagues slowly and eventually, although obviously relegations and sackings don't help. All part of the fun though Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 Canvey is in a complete mess. I'm not sure what or who can save them now - I just know that it's not me. I wish them the best, but I really am worried for them, as I said previously, they could very easily go down again next season. Their finances are horrific and by the end only 69 people were turning up to the home games. Career History --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Season Club Division Position Achievements/Other --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2016/17 Ipswich Wanderers Eastern Counties Premier League 8th Eastern Counties League Cup winners 2017/18 Ipswich Wanderers Eastern Counties Premier League 11th Left in November --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2017/18 Coventry Sphinx Midland Football Premier League 13th N/A 2018/19 Coventry Sphinx Midland Football Premier League 10th Left in December --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2018/19 Carlton Town United Counties Premier League 8th United Counties League Cup runners-up. Sacked. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2019/20 Basildon United Essex Senior League 3rd Gordan Brasted Memorial Trophy winners 2020/21 Basildon United Essex Senior League 17th Left in November --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2020/21 Lincoln United Northern Counties East Premier League 11th N/A 2021/22 Lincoln United Northern Counties East Premier League 17th Left in December --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2021/22 Swindon Supermarine Southern League 1st Division S/W 13th N/A 2022/23 Swindon Supermarine Southern League 1st Division S/W 18th Left in January --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2022/23 Trafford FC Northern Premier League 1st Division N 7th N/A 2023/24 Trafford FC Northern Premier League 1st Division N 11th Sacked in November --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2023/24 Hythe Town Isthmian League 1st Division S 12th Joined in January 2024/25 Hythe Town Isthmian League 1st Division S 3rd Left in March --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2024/25 Canvey Island Isthmian League Premier Division 23rd Relegated 2025/26 Canvey Island Isthmian League 1st Division N 23rd Sacked in November --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Trophy Cabinet Eastern Counties League Cup x1 - 2016/17 (Ipswich Wanderers) Gordan Brasted Memorial Trophy x1 - 2019/20 (Basildon United) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 Updated Contract Table: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 I genuinely cracked up at this. Fair play mate Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 3 months on and it looks like I might finally be getting my career back on track... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 (edited) Oh. Well looks like they won't be hiring me after all. Never mind. Nothing to see here. As you were... Edited January 13, 2017 by PaulHartman71 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 I'm back in the game. It's "only" taken until the 19th January for a club to finally hire me. Farlsey Celtic are an 8th tier side currently in a mid-table position - this isn't enough for the board, who want them to make the Playoffs. I will do my best to make this happen. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceching You Out Posted January 13, 2017 Share Posted January 13, 2017 What happened with the pump fake? Did they finally remember to check your CV? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 (edited) 4 minutes ago, Ceching You Out said: What happened with the pump fake? Did they finally remember to check your CV? Haha probably. I never got offered a contract as they went with another guy instead. Fair enough I suppose, but I felt the interview went reasonably well and I assumed the media story meant I was in the clear. Bit of a shame as they were in a slightly better position in their 8th tier league table than Farsley, but I can't complain too much, could've been worse, could've been back down to the 9th tier I think there might be an in-game mechanic that stops clubs that are "beneath you" based on your last few jobs from offering you a job, as I haven't even been linked with any 9th tier jobs for ages now. Perhaps another relegation and sacking might do it. Edited January 13, 2017 by PaulHartman71 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherwinriga Posted January 14, 2017 Share Posted January 14, 2017 I think Canvey Island is worse than Trafford for Adam Hart, but you keep on moving to another team. Nice try for a fair play in Canvey Island , but it wouldn't. Who's the manager of Canvey Island? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 14, 2017 Share Posted January 14, 2017 Couldn't expect nothing less from those scummy islanders. You are better off out make no mistake. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 14, 2017 Author Share Posted January 14, 2017 11 hours ago, sherwinriga said: I think Canvey Island is worse than Trafford for Adam Hart, but you keep on moving to another team. Nice try for a fair play in Canvey Island , but it wouldn't. Who's the manager of Canvey Island? Canvey Island have replaced me with a newly generated manager called Ray Thomas. You know it's bad when the only way to get a manager to take your job is for the game to create a new manager to take it Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 14, 2017 Author Share Posted January 14, 2017 Possibly one of my furthest treks up the country so far. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 14, 2017 Author Share Posted January 14, 2017 Farsley are currently 10 points off the Playoff places with 16 games to go. It's a fairly big ask to get them up there, especially as there's fierce competition from a number of clubs, including my old stomping ground in Trafford. I'll have to do my best to get the Playoffs though as for some reason Farsley would only offer me a 5 month deal until the end of the season, which is weird, as usually when I'm hired at this time I get offered a deal until the following season. I suppose that's what you get for being relegated and getting sacked. I'm on slightly less than I was at Canvey, with Farsley offering me £100 less a week. Interestingly though, they've put a 50 percent Compensation Clause in my contract, which would mean if a club wanted me right now they'd have to put up £9,000! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 14, 2017 Author Share Posted January 14, 2017 Wow. An unbelievable start to my time at Farsley. This game really had everything. It was made all the more crazy by the fact it was Grant Bennett's first ever competitive appearance in football, having recently signed from League 2 Fleetwood who never gave him an appearance. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 14, 2017 Author Share Posted January 14, 2017 January Since I've joined, we've won 2 and lost 1. It is worth noting that Skelmersdale are top of the table though, so a loss to them is not too much of a concern. The main thing was that despite Chorley equalising against us, we took the lead again through Grant Bennett which shows character and gives me hope for the rest of the season. We've narrowed the gap on the Playoffs to just 6 points, although our goal difference isn't looking too pretty just yet, so it's more like 7 points. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted January 14, 2017 Share Posted January 14, 2017 So much for the glorious move to tier 7 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 14, 2017 Author Share Posted January 14, 2017 2 minutes ago, deltablue said: So much for the glorious move to tier 7 It (wasn't much) fun while it lasted Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 14, 2017 Author Share Posted January 14, 2017 February The month started off terribly with a 3-2 loss at Playoff rivals Guiseley. Since then though our fine form has returned, with 3 wins on the bounce against Warrington, Westella and Curzon Ashton, which saw Grant Bennett get 5 in 3. We took a late lead at home to Morpeth which I thought would make it 4 wins in a row, but unfortunately they got a late leveler. Despite our wins we're still only 11th, with 7 points (plus goal difference) between us and the Playoffs with 8 games to go. I've not written it off completely but I think it's unlikely that we make them. I really hope Farsley will let me stay though as I think there's a good foundation for success here next season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 14, 2017 Author Share Posted January 14, 2017 An interesting development which if it happens will at least wipe the club's debt clean. Also in Adam related news: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 14, 2017 Author Share Posted January 14, 2017 March A reasonably poor month, especially since we went in the month with the Playoffs still an outside hope. We won just 1 game out of 4 this month which means we have no chance now. We were awful away to Crook, but looked a hell of a lot better at Scarborough. I think the game with Trafford may well have been my first match against a team I've previously managed, we didn't play all that well and were quite lucky that Grant Bennett managed to get a late goal to steal a point. We got a point against Bacup too, possibly a game we should have won, but we had a player sent off in the 70th minute so did fairly well to hang on. 11 points off the Playoffs with 4 games means it's gone without question. It would be nice to move up the table a bit more though, with 8th or even 6th or 7th not out of sight just yet. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 15, 2017 Author Share Posted January 15, 2017 April A pretty feeble end to the season, with just 1 win and 1 point from our 4 matches, which included two 3-1 away losses. We end the season in 11th place - some way off the Playoff places that the board were after. It remains to be seen whether they will renew my deal or not. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 15, 2017 Author Share Posted January 15, 2017 Season 10: Farsley Celtic I joined in January with the club lingering in mid-table and tbf, we didn't really improve a whole lot under my management. I think there's a solid foundation within the team though and with a full season I reckon I could get them to the Playoffs. Squad pt 1 Grant Bennett was the best player during my time with 13 goals in 16 games, a fair amount of that game-time saw him shunted out at left wing too, so fair play to him. I think he was signed just days or weeks before I arrived in the January transfer market, I have no idea who signed him, but I wish I could've taken credit for it Career History --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Season Club Division Position Achievements/Other --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2016/17 Ipswich Wanderers Eastern Counties Premier League 8th Eastern Counties League Cup winners 2017/18 Ipswich Wanderers Eastern Counties Premier League 11th Left in November --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2017/18 Coventry Sphinx Midland Football Premier League 13th N/A 2018/19 Coventry Sphinx Midland Football Premier League 10th Left in December --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2018/19 Carlton Town United Counties Premier League 8th United Counties League Cup runners-up. Sacked. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2019/20 Basildon United Essex Senior League 3rd Gordan Brasted Memorial Trophy winners 2020/21 Basildon United Essex Senior League 17th Left in November --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2020/21 Lincoln United Northern Counties East Premier League 11th N/A 2021/22 Lincoln United Northern Counties East Premier League 17th Left in December --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2021/22 Swindon Supermarine Southern League 1st Division S/W 13th N/A 2022/23 Swindon Supermarine Southern League 1st Division S/W 18th Left in January --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2022/23 Trafford FC Northern Premier League 1st Division N 7th N/A 2023/24 Trafford FC Northern Premier League 1st Division N 11th Sacked in November --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2023/24 Hythe Town Isthmian League 1st Division S 12th Joined in January 2024/25 Hythe Town Isthmian League 1st Division S 3rd Left in March --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2024/25 Canvey Island Isthmian League Premier Division 23rd Relegated 2025/26 Canvey Island Isthmian League 1st Division N 23rd Sacked in November --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2025/26 Farsley Celtic Northern Premier League 1st Division N 11th Joined in January --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Trophy Cabinet Eastern Counties League Cup x1 - 2016/17 (Ipswich Wanderers) Gordan Brasted Memorial Trophy x1 - 2019/20 (Basildon United) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 15, 2017 Author Share Posted January 15, 2017 Oh I've just noticed my contract goes until the end of next summer now. Not sure how that happened as I'm sure it was a 5 month deal. Maybe there was an automatic 1 year extension or something in there. It puts me in a good position for the Playoffs and promotion though, as due to the 50 percent Club Compensation clause it would take more than usual for a club to pinch me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 15, 2017 Share Posted January 15, 2017 You seem to concede 3 goals away from home a lot. Is it because all your teams are full of mentally weak babies because I've been managing at Level 7/8 for the majority of my playing this year and they're such a ****-weak bunch. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 15, 2017 Author Share Posted January 15, 2017 (edited) 1 hour ago, Wavelberry said: You seem to concede 3 goals away from home a lot. Is it because all your teams are full of mentally weak babies because I've been managing at Level 7/8 for the majority of my playing this year and they're such a ****-weak bunch. In fairness to my defence at Farsley, they're just not very good. I do find at this level there's a lot of inconsistency from my sides though. There always seems to be a lingering chance of a 3-0 smashing from a similarly positioned side in almost every away game. Almost like every side has the mental strength of Arsenal, but without the valiant second half comeback. Edited January 15, 2017 by PaulHartman71 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 15, 2017 Share Posted January 15, 2017 The worst thing that happens to me is I tend to get clusters of games on this extended database so sometimes have four away games in a row. Mental poison. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 15, 2017 Author Share Posted January 15, 2017 16 minutes ago, Wavelberry said: The worst thing that happens to me is I tend to get clusters of games on this extended database so sometimes have four away games in a row. Mental poison. 4 away games in a row is brutal I think the only issues I've had are from games being postponed for waterlogged or frozen pitches which sometimes adds up to congested fixtures. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 15, 2017 Author Share Posted January 15, 2017 (edited) As promised I will now do a 10 year update on the state of affairs in my save game. I'll focus on major international competitions first: World Cup Argentina have been the best side at the World Cup's so far, with Messi finally claiming his World Cup medal in 2018, quite fittingly in a game against his arch-rival, Cristiano Ronaldo. He almost made it 2 World Cup medals in what was his last ever tournament, but Arsene Wenger's French side lifted the trophy in Canada after Qatar were stripped of the tournament. There seems to have been some really weird shenanigans going on at FIFA as I've just noticed that the 2026 World Cup will also be held in Canada, making it 2 tournaments in a row for them. This either means there's some extremely dodgy Canadian money being pumped into FIFA, or it means that in order to prevent any more scandals the world has decided to give all World Cups to the least corrupt/nicest country in the world. I'll update on this World Cup once it is complete. Euros Roberto Martinez added a European Championship to his CV, as the Belgium Golden Generation lived up to their potential to be crowned champions. 4 years later it was Gio van Bronckhorst's Holland side that won the tournament, as they beat Rafa Benitez's Spain in the final. Copa America Argentina have been in fine form in South America, with two wins out of two so far in the Copa America. African Cup of Nations Africa has seen a fairly varied and competitive set of tournaments, with DR Congo having a brief spell of dominance when they won 2 tournaments in a row. Asian Nations Australia retained their title in 2019, but the most recent tournament saw surprise package Uzbekistan shock Asia and pull of a win. Gold Cup The Gold Cup has seen America reach all 5 finals, but they've actually only won it in the most recent one. Costa Rica and Mexico have both won it twice. Oceania Nations Cup Meanwhile, in Oceania, New Zealand have won all 3 tournaments without too much of a problem. Edited January 15, 2017 by PaulHartman71 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 15, 2017 Author Share Posted January 15, 2017 In Europe: The Champions League has seen a fairly diverse list of winners. Arsene Wenger may well have won a World Cup before he retired, but he never won the elusive Champions League, despite Arsenal reaching two more finals. They lost to both Juventus and Manchester City. Arsenal fans would've been left even more gutted by the fact that in the space of 3 years, Man United, Man City and arch-rivals Tottenham all won it. PSG managed to make 5 finals in a row - their first two were both with Atletico Madrid, with the two sides trading wins. They then had 3 finals in a row against Man United, which saw PSG win the first and then United win the next two. United also won the most recent one against Barcelona, which meant they became the first team in 50 years to win 3 Champions Leagues in a row - something their manager, still Jose Mourinho, would surely be very pleased about. Europa League The Europa League has seen a whole host of winners, including Spurs twice, Schalke, Valencia, Lyon, Man City, AC Milan, Juventus, Bayer Leverkusen and Manchester United. The various leagues in Europe aren't loaded so the results aren't as interesting, but I'll post the past winners for a few of them anyway: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 16, 2017 Author Share Posted January 16, 2017 Scotland Scotland has seen a pretty rampant Celtic, with only Aberdeen managing to topple them in any season so far. England Arsene Wenger and Arsenal started the save off in sensational form, with 4 Premier League title wins in the first 5 seasons. Man City won 1 in the 2nd season and then won 3 on the bounce after Arsenal's dominant spell. It seems it is now United's turn for dominance, as along with their Champions League wins, they've also won 2 Premier League titles in a row. The real stories in the FA Cup have been wins from the likes of Spurs, Watford and two in a row from West Ham. Arsenal have won 3 since the game started, with Liverpol, United and City picking one up each. Stoke have finished runners-up on two occasions now, with Wolves, Fulham, Southampton and Hull also getting a big day out at a Wembley Cup final. The League Cup has, for the most part, seen the bigger sides all pick it up, but in 2019/20 it was won by Bournemouth, which will surely never be forgotten in those parts. Newcastle have reached two League Cup finals, but to their fans' dismay they lost both times. Other interesting stories up and down the leagues: Everton have dropped off quite a bit in the 10 years of this save so far, but even they never could have imagined that in the 2021/22 season they would suffer the embarrassment of relegation. They came straight back up as champions, but Liverpool fans will never let them forget. Liverpool haven't had too much to shout about themselves though, as the highest they've finished is 4th place, with the Merseyside club massively underperforming in the last 2 years, as they've come 12th two years in a row. Nottingham Forest made their long awaited return to the top flight in 2022/23, but unfortunately they finished rock bottom and haven't been back just yet. Brentford have made something of an impact in the last few years. They were a middling Championship club for much of the save, before they got relegated to League 1. You'd think that was all doom and gloom, but they turned a negative into a positive, when they hired Lee McCulloch and he turned them around by winning League 1 and then guiding them straight up to the Premier League via the Playoffs. McCulloch ditched Brentford before their Premier League campaign began, as he used his boosted reputation to get a job at a more established Premier League side in Crystal Palace. In his place, Brentford hired Rio Ferdinand, who in the previous season had won League 1 with Bolton. Rio and Brentford were both out of their depth in the Premier League and they got merked, picking up just 2 wins and 12 points all season, as they went straight back down. Swansea are an example of a side who have dropped off a fair bit since the start of the save. They obviously started as a relatively established but in danger Premier League, they went down in the first season and have been in the Championship ever since, despite coming close to promotion on numerous occasions. Doncaster Rovers started the save as a League 2 side, so they've done well to end up in the Championship in the most recent season, with Pablo Zabaleta of all people responsible for their League 1 Playoff success. They've sadly been relegated and he's since been sacked and replaced by Tony Pulis, who will be disappointed that he's spent the latter part of his career yo-yo-ing between League 1 and the Championship. Wigan have suffered a slow decline in stature, as they've been up and down from the Championship and League 1, this has culminated in them going down from the Championship last season and then going down again this season, which means they'll be as low as League 2 next year. Barrow looked like they were a club on the rise for a short while as they shot up the leagues from the Conference to League 1 in quick succession. They couldn't make the grade in League 1 and have since transitioned into a lower mid-table League 2 side. The newly formed Hereford side have shot back up to where you'd expect them to be. They narrowly avoided relegation from League 2 last season and finished a more respectable 8th place this time. Grimsby Town have quietly gone about their business with gradual improvement. They've gone down to the Conference once, but turned themselves around to get promoted straight back up to League 2 and just this season, they finished 3rd to finally reach the promise land of League 1. Maldon & Tiptree caught the eye early on, as they managed to get all the way from the 8th tier to League 2 in 5 seasons. Despite a Tycoon takeover they only managed to become a relegation battling League 2 and sadly, this season, they were finally relegated. Hartlepool were relegated from the Football League in the 2019/20 season and sadly - Jeff Stelling's favorite side have since remained in the non-league. Belper Town have been one of the non-league's biggest success stories outside of Maldon & Tiptree, with the side moving up from the 8th tier all the way to League 2 in recent years. They were relegated from League 2 in their first season, but they finished in a decent mid-table position in the Conference this season, perhaps they will be able to make it back up to the Football League in the coming years. Cheltenham Town have been on a real downward spiral. They got relegated from League 2 in the first season and have been gradually getting worse and worse each year - with their lowest finish coming last season when they finished 14th in the Conference North. They finished 2nd this year though and will go back up to the Conference, perhaps this is the start of a surge back up to League 2. Goole started off in the 8th tier, so for such a small local side they've done very well to move up 2 tiers to the Conference North. They haven't finished below 8th in their 3 years in the Conference North, even finishing 6th in their first and most recent season. Small and steady wins the race and maybe Goole will be a side who gradually move up as the game goes on. Radcliffe Boro are another side who started off in the 8th tier, they too have done well to rise up 2 tiers to the Conference North. This was their 2nd attempt at it and they did a better job this time, staying up and finishing as high as 10th. Metropolitan Police were a 7th tier side for much of the save, before getting relegated to the 8th tier. Like many sides, this actually helped them out in the long run, as since then they've been on a huge upward resurgence, which this season even saw them finish in 2nd place in the Conference South. This still wasn't enough for them to get promoted to the Conference, but you'd think if they keep knocking on the door, it won't be long before they barge through it. If anyone has any specific requests for English clubs I'm happy to post them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 16, 2017 Author Share Posted January 16, 2017 Players World Player of the Year: 2016 - Messi 2017 - Messi 2018 - Neymar 2019 - Messi 2020 - Messi 2021 - Messi 2022 - Messi 2023 - Messi 2024 - Hazard 2025 - Neymar Messi extremely dominant in the WPOTY, with Ronaldo not winning a single one. Since Messi has retired it has been won once by Hazard and once by Neymar. English FOTY 2016/17 - Mesut Ozil 2017/18 - Mesut Ozil 2018/19 - Mesut Ozil 2019/20 - Juan Mata 2020/21 - Paulo Dybala 2021/22 - Paul Pogba 2022/23 - Paul Pogba 2023/24 - Kevin De Bruyne 2024/25 - Paul Pogba 2025/26 - Paulo Dybala Mesut Ozil and Paul Pogba have been the stars of the Premier League this decade, with Paulo Dybala, Kevin De Bruyne and Juan Mata also impressing. The biggest transfers have been regens leaving Real Madrid for PSG, which is interesting as it applies that PSG have more money than Madrid and that Real may be somewhat of a selling club if their best players want to leave for PSG. Arsenal paid huge money for Dybala in the 2nd summer, but it paid off big time for Wenger who won all those league titles for them. Man City have of course been in on the spending, with their signing of Griezmann a particular highlight. Man United paid huge money for Gonzalo Higuain in 2017, which didn't really pay off for them, as he scored just 57 goals in just shy of 200 appearances for them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 16, 2017 Author Share Posted January 16, 2017 Managers I'll now present interesting stories/positions of note of the managers in the game: Pep Guardiola Pep has spent the vast majority of the save in Manchester, he was only sacked as recently as last summer. During his time at City he delivered them their first ever Champions League, as well as 4 Premier Leagues, 1 Europa League, 3 League Cups, 1 Club World Cup and a European Super Cup. He's since been unemployed. Jurgen Klopp Klopp was fairly unsuccessful at Liverpool and ended up sacked in November of 2017. He was hired by Bayer Leverkusen in 2018 and has been there ever since. Diego Simeone Simeone has spent the entire save at Atletico. He's won 1 Champions League and 2 Spanish Cups. Rafa Benitez After his Newcastle side won promotion as Champions in 2017, he took Newcastle to 2 League Cup finals, with a 7th place finish his best effort in the league. In 2020, in a surprise appointment, he was given the German National team job, but he was sacked after they only got to the 2nd Round in 2022. In the aftermath he was picked up by his native Spain, where he finished runners-up in the most recent Euros. Jose Mourinho Jose has cemented his legacy as one of the best coaches in the game, as in his 10 year spell at Manchester United he has won 4 Champions Leagues, 2 Premier Leagues, 1 FA Cup, 1 Europa League, 2 League Cups and 2 World Club Cups. Arsene Wenger As I've mentioned a few times, Wenger enjoyed a fine end to his long career. He led Arsenal to 3 Premier Leagues, 2 FA Cups, 1 League Cup and 2 Champions League finals. He also won the World Cup with his native France before retiring. Gio van Bronckhorst Gio spent 7 years as Feyenoord manager, before he got given the Holland National team job after the 2022 World Cup. His first international tournament saw major success as his side lifted the 2024 Euros. He'll be hoping to deliver Holland their elusive World Cup win this summer. Tomas Rosicky Tomas Rosicky has enjoyed an interesting managerial career in England so far. He started off at Championship side Ipswich in 2012, he wasn't very successful though as they sacked him before the end of his first season in charge. He was given another chance at fellow Championship side Crystal Palace not long after, where he brought in friend and coach, Cesc Fabregas, to help bring success to the London side. He finished 8th in his first season, before guiding Palace to the Playoffs in his 2nd year, where they lost in the final to Boro. He left in January of the next season when Premier League side Southampton hired him. They finished 13th in his first season and then 9th in his 2nd. He was sacked in November of his 3rd season, but since then he has been hired by another Premier League club in Stoke City. He's done quite well with them this season, as they finished in 11th and reached the final of the FA Cup. Arturo Vidal A lot of big name foreign ex-players turned managers are accused of taking all the big jobs, but this can't be said of Vidal, who after ending his career at Man City decided to take up management in England. He started off at League 1 side Bradford City of all places, where he managed them to an 8th place finish before getting pipped by Championship side Sheffield Wednesday. In his year and a half in Sheffield he got Wednesday to a 14th place finished, before February of 2025 where he got hired by struggling Premier League side Hull. He couldn't save them from relegation, but he did stay with them in the Championship and he got them promoted at the first ask, winning the Championship Manager of the Year in the process. Rio Ferdinand Rio started his career off at struggling Championship side Preston North End. In his first season they came 20th, he couldn't help them progress in the following season and so he was sacked in November. He was hired by League 1 side Bolton and he did well there, guiding them to a League 1 winners medal and he personally won Manager of the Year. He left Bolton in the summer for Premier League new boys, Brentford, but as previously mentioned, he led them to a worst ever Premier League points total as they went down straight away - he's still there though. John Terry John Terry has so far spent his career at a variety of Championship sides. He started off at Birmingham with Scott Parker as his Assistant Manager, they came 15th, then 9th, before under-performing in the next season where he was fired in February. He joined Premier League side Burnley at the start of May 2023, who had just sacked their manager in a desperate last gasp attempt to stay up, John couldn't keep them up and they went down. He took them to the Playoffs in their first Championship season, but they lost in the Semi Final and he was sacked in December 2024 when it didn't look like they'd make the Playoffs again. He got hired by Sheffield Wednesday in February of 2025, where with Scott Parker again by his side, he took them to an 8th place finish, however in November of the following season he bit the bullet again for under-performing. He was hired by Huddersfield in November of this season, they finished 19th in the Championship this year, he'll surely be hoping to build upon that next year. James Milner James Milner began his managerial career in January of 2025, following his retirement in December of 2024, after he had spent 3 years at MLS side Sporting Kansas City. He started off at Championship side Ipswich, where he fairly averagely as he got them to a 16th place Championship finish. It soon became apparent he wasn't in Kansas anymore in the next season, where he was sacked for under-performing. He was given a go at another Championship side in Rotherham in December of 2025, but they sacked him after they came 22nd and got relegated. He's since been hired by Lincoln City, who have just been relegated from League 1 to League 2. Frank Lampard Lampard started his managerial career in March of 2021, where he took charge at League 1 side Colchester United. They came 13th in year one, but then sacked him in October of the following season for not doing well enough. He got a job at League 2 Fleetwood not long after, but he performed quite badly as they finished in 22nd place, just 1 spot away from going out of the football league completely. He escaped to Scotland in December of 2022 when he was hired by SPL side St Johnstone, unfortunately for him he was sacked when he got them relegated after they finished rock bottom. Since then he's been sacked by Carlisle for almost getting them relegated from League 1, after that he went back to Fleetwood Town, where he did slightly better in his first season when they finished 15th in League 2. He got sacked in December of 2025 for under-performing again though and has since taken over at fellow League 2 side Bristol Rovers. Not the most promising of careers in management so far for Franky Lampard. Jimmy Bullard Jimmy Bullard has spent the entire save at non-league side Leatherhead. Under Jimmy they've gradually progressed up the pyramid, starting off in in the 7th tier they've since established themselves as a Conference South side. Joe Hart Hart ended up finishing his career at Manchester City in 2022 and spent 2 years unable to be hired as a manager by anyone at all. It seems he gave up all standards and this paid off for him, when in January of 2024 he was hired by Solihull Moors of the Conference North. They've floated around mid-table with Hart ever since. Elsewhere: Real Madrid: Zinedine Zidane Bayern: Luis Enrique AC Milan: Fernando Hierro Al-Hilal: Yaya Toure Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 16, 2017 Author Share Posted January 16, 2017 Back in Farlsey, the ongoing saga regarding the club's takeover has finally been completed... The club is finally out of the red, with a balance of £80K. Also, great news for the players we have on non-contracts too: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 16, 2017 Author Share Posted January 16, 2017 Italy won this year's World Cup, beating France on penalties in the final, a repeat of what happened 20 years ago, just without the Zidane headbutt. Brazil only managed to finish in 3rd place, which means at 34, Neymar will end his career without a World Cup win for his native side. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrdanbartlett Posted January 16, 2017 Share Posted January 16, 2017 Superb update!! Rooting for you this season, I REALLY hope you can sign some good players? I think the main issue at the moment is the fact you aren't doing either of the 2 things that are required to be successful A) Tactics, yours or someone elses, these need to be above average to succeed. B) Player dealing, i.e getting rid of poor players then scouting and bringing in better ones. If you have poor players can you offer them out at £0, then if that fails loan them out at 50-100% wages? Just to free up some money to grab in some free agents? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gizzy Posted January 16, 2017 Share Posted January 16, 2017 3 hours ago, PaulHartman71 said: Jose Mourinho Jose has cemented his legacy as one of the best coaches in the game, as in his 10 year spell at Manchester United he has won 4 Champions Leagues, 2 Premier Leagues, 1 FA Cup, 1 Europa League, 2 League Cups and 2 World Club Cups. Sounds about right Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fosse Posted January 16, 2017 Share Posted January 16, 2017 Frank Lampard's made a very poor manager Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted January 16, 2017 Author Share Posted January 16, 2017 5 hours ago, mrdanbartlett said: Superb update!! Rooting for you this season, I REALLY hope you can sign some good players? I think the main issue at the moment is the fact you aren't doing either of the 2 things that are required to be successful A) Tactics, yours or someone elses, these need to be above average to succeed. B) Player dealing, i.e getting rid of poor players then scouting and bringing in better ones. If you have poor players can you offer them out at £0, then if that fails loan them out at 50-100% wages? Just to free up some money to grab in some free agents? I think the Takeover means I should actually get to sign some players this summer, which is always good. Most of the dross are on non-contracts so I wouldn't benefit that much from getting rid of them, hopefully I get enough money to bring in 3 or 4 decent players though. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted January 16, 2017 Share Posted January 16, 2017 That's Farsley ****ed. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherwinriga Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 Nice takeover for Farsley! Farsley for the win, hopefully. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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