Aldershot Town FC and beyond

[s44yyr]

Follow my FM20 career starting at Aldershot Town. Last season (18/19) wasn't the best for the club who would now be playing in the Vanarama South had it not been for Gateshead FC's expulsion from the Vanarama National League for financial irregularities. Since re-reformation the club has spent much of their time in the National League but eventually won promotion to the football league in 2007/08 under Gary Waddock.

They were relegated from League Two in 2013 after finishing last in the league. The aim of FM20 career will be to take them back to the football league (League Two) and beyond.

As you can see from the history chart below this thread starts following me in season 3 of the game.

 

My first season as manager lead to promotion to the football league after winning the Vanarama National League. We had been expecting to achieve a solid mid-table finish in the first season so it was a pleasing result.

We made a number of signings prior the seasons. most of which became a key part of the promotion campaign.

We won the title after a 4-0 home win against main rivals Woking FC. We played a 4-2-4 throughout most of the season, with the following typical line-up.

Cup performances left a lot to be desired. Losing in the FA Cup to Vanarama South side Wealdstone, after a 1-1 draw away they visited The Recreation Ground, the Wealdstone Raider describing it as a "********". We lost 3-1 in the replay whilst fielding mainly reserve and youth team players as we focused heavily on promotion to the football league. We went without a win in October.

More disappointingly in the FA Trophy we exited the competition in the first round against Isthmian Premier side Lewes, again decided in a replay. We drew 2-2 at home in front of a crowd of 2,547. The fans not particularly impressed we once again fielded a young team but i fully expected them to win this game. On the replay we lost 1-0 again fielding a young, inexperienced team.

Promotion to the football league vindicated the decision to sacrifice the cup games, a policy i tend to take at this level.

[Nobby_McDonald]

The FA Cup (and a lesser extent the FA Trophy) can be a major source of income for non league teams if you get a bit of a run. It's risky to discard them, but at least you won promotion to justify your strategy.