[FM23] Give the kids in Folkestone a chance at glory

[XaW]

Introduction

Well, this is my first ever thread in here, I think, so please bare with me if I screw up something or lack some context or whatever. Also feel free to ask if there are any questions or any screenshots you want to see.

As some of you might know, I'm an avid player of the youth challenge, and that has been my main way of playing for years. Sometimes I do well, other times I get fired the first season, so I don't know how long or how far this thread will last, but I thought it could be fun to document the save a bit better than a seasonal review as I usually do. So, what is this save going to do and not do? This is a youth only save, so I will ONLY rely on my youth intakes and the original squad I currently have. I will not be able to buy or loan in any player for any reason. As soon as a player is sold, he is no longer viable to be used, so no loan backs or resigning of a former player. I can loan OUT players, but that's about it. The aim of this thread/challenge is to win the Premier League and the Champions League. Of course that's a very distant future, if it's at all possible for me.

Other than that, I will post my tactics and some small discussions about that and screenshots of my players and newgens. I will also potentially discuss youth development and retraining with some screenshots of spreadsheets and all that stuff. So feel free to ask and comment on whatever I post in here. I'm more than open to discuss stuff as well as update on how the game rolls on.

The club

So why Folkestone, you might ask? Well, I have randomly had fun saves with them in past versions, there's not much more reason to it than that. I tried to use ChatGPT to make some puns about Folkestone and football to use here, but...

Yeah, I don't think ChatGPT is going to take over comedy any time soon.

Anywhere, here is the announcement of me taking over the club with the usual raising of eyebrows, since I am a very unknown, apparently random Norwegian.

Regarding the club, there is not much to say, as I have holidayed a year and they got promoted into the Vanarama South. I did try my best to recreate their kits though.

Now, the main issue is obviously the squad, as I took over it has 11 players exactly, and since I can't get any reinforcements until the youth intake in March/April, I might have some issues this first season, as I will try to avoid using grey players as much as possible.

As is evident of the above screenshot, I will be using a 4-3-3- DM Wide. It's based on a tactic I created for FM17 and have used a variant of ever since. Why? Well, because I'm not very good at creating tactics, and this seems to more or less do what I want every version of FM. I won't win the CL within 10 years, but I might slowly work my way upwards if the intakes are good. This tactic rarely blows away the opponent, but it also very rarely bombs.

So I guess this will do as a first post for this thread. I will aim at making a post every month in-game and also when important stuff happens, such as the youth intake and season end and the like.

Thanks for reading!  

[XaW]

Pre-season 2023/24

So as we head into the first season where we only have 11 players, I might as well show the off the team.

Goalkeeper:

We start with a pretty good goalkeeper for this level. Bailey is a former Brighton youngster that has floated around the Vanarama Regional leagues for the last few seasons before he joined us last season.

Right back:

Lewis is much more of an attacking midfielder than a full back, but he is also the only one at the club who can play there currently. His very poor tackling is a concern.

Central defenders:

Callum and Ian are two very good defenders and I'm very happy with them in the heart of our defense. Callum has experience from League One and Two, but has been with the club since 2016. Ian has also been floating around this level, and will compliment Callum quite well.

Left back:

Jack is quite a well rounded left back, and I do like an attacking wing back on the left, so he should fit in well. He just arrived back in England after some years playing in Gibraltar.

Andrew fits well into the DM role, and even brings in some speed there. He is a former Crystal Palace junior, and I hope we can help him get out his potential.

Central midfielders:

Kadell and Jack are two very different players, but I also think they will suit each other well. Kadell is not really a central midfielder yet, but he is working on it. Jack is more defensively minded and I think the roles should suit them both well.

Right winger:

Ibrahim can fit into all the 3 front roles, so he might rotate when we have other players later on. 

Left winger:

Scott has been here a while and while he is not comfortable on the left yet, I think his smartness will be nice to have there. Being so well rounded will also help out nicely.

Adeoye is most likely going to be our main source of goals. Very good physically, and with a nice touch and a good finish, I think he can score loads for us.

The pre-season went very well, and we had some very good results.

Beating Braintree away and Dover at home shows we have the skill to match teams at this level, but the draw away to Sutton Common is not something to be proud of. Now the real fun begins!

[XaW]

August 2023

Well, this was quite the start for us. 3 goals scored in every match, and most of them have been quite comfortable as well. The most impressive player has been Adeoye Yusuff who has scored 6 goals in the first 5 games.

So, with 5 wins of 5, we are unsurprisingly top of the league. I firmly expect this to change rather soon, but so far we've avoided injuries and suspensions, but all the players now have a high or very high injury risk according to my medical staff. Let's hope the good times continue!

[XaW]

September 2023

September followed as a very good month for us, even if it started with a 4-2 loss away to Hampton & Richmond. The rest was wins, and we had a big win over Ramsgate in the 2nd qualifying round of the FA Cup to go into the next round. There is a new name in the list, Tegan Eggleton is a grey who played a few games for us due to a red card for Jack Mann in the match against Welling United. So the grey Eggleton had to start, since I can't use 10 players in a match. Luckily Jack is back now, and I hope to avoid more suspensions in the near future.

We are still top of the league, but only a point ahead of a still unbeaten Hampton & Richmond. To be fair, I didn't quite expect this start, but I have a grim feeling we will get knocked back down to earth soon when the fatigue sets in, so I'll happily pick up a lot of points early on!

[deltablue]

That's really close to me!

[XaW]

2 minutes ago, deltablue said:

That's really close to me!

Any talented kids around you can guide in the general direction of the club?

[deltablue]

8 minutes ago, XaW said:

Any talented kids around you can guide in the general direction of the club?

I'll ask around Yep I'm about 12 miles north-ish of there.

[XaW]

October 2023

We got past Tonbridge Angels before we got knocked out of the FA Cup by Aldershot Town. Seeing as Aldershot are a professional team at the top of the Vanarama National I'm not overly concerned about the loss there. We didn't deserve to be beaten 3-0 either, as the xG was fairly close to 1.5 for both teams. In the league we are continuing our unbeaten run. All 3 matches were a bit tricky this time. Dover are a local rival, and both Bath City and Barnet are among the best teams in the league, so I'm very happy with the results. Still, the team is beginning to struggle with fitness and we are exhausted at the end of all matches. I expect the house of cards to fold soon, but I'll enjoy this as long as it continues. Can't do much other than hold on until the intake comes along.

We are building a small lead at the top, and I'm really elated on how we are doing. May it last!

[XaW]

November 2023

We continue to fight to keep the unbeaten streak alive, but we are getting very fatigued now. Goals are harder to come by, and the players are being over worked like mad now. The intake cannot come soon enough for us, even if the season is going amazingly well.

It looks really good for us, I must say. Never expected anything similar to this in a million years. Getting a nice gap up top as well now.

[XaW]

Youth intake preview 2023

Well, can't really complain about this one. If anything I'd liked to get in another DM and right winger, but at this point any warm body is welcome!

[XaW]

December 2023

The fatigue is really setting in, but we mostly hold on to pick up points. We did have one major blimp as we got thumped by Hendon, who are really trying to avoid dropping into the relegation zone. We did manage to stay in the FA Trophy as we beat Corinthian-Casuals and Hungerford Town. One big issue is that we now have a couple of injuries, so I am forced to play a few greys, something I dread. Bring on the first intake!

We are still on top, and have a nice lead, but Barnet can catch us when they play their games in hand.

[XaW]

January 2024

We lost once in the league this month as we had a poor outing against Oxford City. We also got knocked out of the FA Trophy by Eastleigh, who are from the Vanarama National. Other than that we had a strong month, even with the issues with fatigue.

Our lead holds, but only 4 points down to Bath City. Looks like this will be a nailbiter throughout. At least it's not long until the intake, and that might help us in the run in.

[XaW]

February 2024

Yeah, this is more in line with what I thought would happen, but it's mostly down to fatigue. We play quite well until the 60th minute and then everyone is absolutely knackered and we concede a few late goals. The small squad is really the issue at the moment, and I'm eagerly waiting for the youth intake.

Unsurprisingly, we lost the top spot to Bath City after the poor results this month. Not sure if we will be able to grab it back, but at least I hope we can finish inside the playoff spots and have an outside chance from there.

[XaW]

March 2024

A much better month than last, that started with two very impressive victories. Adeoye Yusuff has been imperative this month for us with his goals.

It's becoming really packed at the top now. Luckily, we should get our youth intake the next month, so the run in might be a bit easier for us, at least I hope so!

[kingjericho]

Regardless of winning the league or not, I'm impressed at how well you're doing with 11 players in a very schedule-heavy league such as the VNS.

[XaW]

Youth intake 2024

It finally arrived, and not a bad one either. Some really good personalities, as we are rewarded for getting in a Fairly Professioanal HoYD (the best I could find). Just as a quick note, use the format (<firstname> <lastname> <year><assistant ranking>) for all players. I do this by using and lnc-file, if anyone wants to know how, I can create a post detailing it.

The two best players are

Gregor Borg 24a has most of what I want a defender to have, except pace and strength. While he will not be a first choice next season, he will very likely be rotated in whenever we need it.

Kerthney Millbank 24b looks to be a promising goalkeeper for us. Slow as a snail, but I just need my goalkeepers to keep the ball out of the net, so don't mind it much. A tiny bit on the short side for my likening though, but he is 15 so room to grow a bit.

Nationality spread

A bit of map porn

Now, over to some spreadsheets. A long time ago, I created a spreadsheet to show how well any player fits into a selection of roles I commonly use. Here is an example:

Now, I use this to see if there are any clear candidates for retraining positionally. The setup is rather easy, I export all attributes and then have each role pick out the corresponding attributes and average it out and multiply by 5 (to get a score of 100). Seeing as the intake is rather rubbish there are not that many standouts, but interestingly, a players Such as Jens Ewald 24m could be a candidate for a BWM-S.

Looking closer at his stats, I can see why that would be suitable (at this level mind), with his good mental attributes and good defensive stats. His strength would be an issue, but this is an example of why I use it, especially in youth challenges as there are often issues with some positions not generating good players at all.

[XaW]

27 minutes ago, kingjericho said:

Regardless of winning the league or not, I'm impressed at how well you're doing with 11 players in a very schedule-heavy league such as the VNS.

Thanks, it's gone over all expectations so far, and now that the intake has come along, I hope it helps. At least I can avoid greys!

[XaW]

After constantly pestering the board the whole season, they finally relented and approved something!

[XaW]

April 2024

A nice month, but with a major blimp against Chippenham Town. It was a strange game where I think a draw would be the fair result, but they just scored on every shot and we missed like crazy. It also doesn't help that my goalkeeper got a 5.4... A nice thing is that Frannie Stratton 24f scored in his two first matches for us. I didn't even plan on him playing much, but injuries gave him a chance and he took it.

So we have a very outside chance at winning the league, but it's not looking likely. We do have secured a playoff spot, so we will have more than one more match to play at least.

[XaW]

May 2024

A strong effort, but it wasn't to be. Dorking beat us on pens in the playoff final. So we go into another season here in the Vanarama South. Perhaps we can do one further next season?

A 3rd place is a very good season for us, all things considering.

[XaW]

Season summary 2023/24

    

Season 2023/24 (Season 1) - Vanarama National League South

Squad | Transfers | Finances

So, back in England with Folkestone again, and this was a very fun season. The main problem for us this season was that we started with only 11 players at the club, so any injury or suspension made me use greys, and we all know how poor they are! Even so, we had a great season and were part of the top of the league for the whole season. Things went very well until February where we had a horrific month with 4 losses. We did bounce back after that, but we had lost the top spot to Barnet and were firmly in the big pack chasing them. Eventually we finished 3rd and headed into the playoffs. There we beat Hemel Hempstead Town in extra time before we had a penalty loss against Dorking Wanderers in the final. So lose, but no cigar. On to next season, at least now we will have a full bench every match!

I also managed to get one improvement accepted.

And the board also want to build a new stadium, but it's a long term project.

FA Cup: We beat Ramsgate and Tonbridge Angels before we lost to Aldershot Town in the 4th qualifying round.
FA Trophy: We beat Corinthian-Casuals and Hungerford Town before we lost to Eastleigh in the 4th round.

U18s

They finished 8th in the National U18 League South East this season.

FA Youth Cup: They beat Bowesr & Pitsea before they lost to Whitehawk in the 2nd qualifying round.

Youth intake:

Trophy cabinet

None

Player statistics:

Most apps for the clubs

Name			Nation		2nd Nation	Apps
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Frannie Stratton 24f	England		<N/A>		7
Baden Ardley 24g	England		<N/A>		7
Jens Ewald 24m		Germany		England		7
Gregor Borg 24a		England		<N/A>		6
Tyler Mendes 24c	Montserrat	England		1

Most goals for the club

Name			Nation		2nd Nation	Goals
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Frannie Stratton 24f	England		<N/A>		2

Most assists for the club

Name			Nation		2nd Nation	Assists
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Frannie Stratton 24f	England		<N/A>		1

Supporters:

Summary:

[XaW]

Pre-season 2024

Pre-season went well, we beat a few lower tier sides, and even got a sort of revenge on Dorking after the playoff loss. Two narrow losses at the end is not the best, but the players at least have found fitness. Now onto the new season.

[XaW]

August 2024

A very good start to the season, even if we had a blimp in the first match against Chippenham. The legend that is Adeoye Yusuff are the key for us though, with 8 goals in 6 matches so far.

A good start to the season and we are up there as we were last season. Hope it lasts.

[XaW]

September 2024

A pretty good month for us. A close loss away to Torquay and a strong draw away to a very good Maidstone team is understandable dropped points. The poorest match was the home win over Hendon where we had two late goals by youngsters to clinch it. We are also through in the FA Cup, so things are looking good for us.

As above, dropping points to Torquay and Mainstone is not what I want, but it is understandable. We are still in the mix for the top spots, so we just keep going.

[XaW]

October 2024

Another strong month for us, the really poor showing against Chelmsford aside. We had to do a replay to beat Metropolitan Police, but at least we are through to the FA Cup proper. Adeoye Yusuff is a god among men.

Still in the mix along the top teams. We are keeping decent pace with the rest, and the win against Hampton & Richmond was imperative for it to continue.

[XaW]

November 2024

Unsurprisingly, we lost away to Wrexham to get knocked out of the FA Cup, but we are through in the FA Trophy at least. In the league it was a mixed bag. Away to Worthing is a tough match, but the home loss to Dulwich Hamlet was quite poor.

We are maintaining a nice place in the league even with some poor results. So we still have everything to play for.

[XaW]

Youth intake preview 2024

Another strong preview, and I hope that the intake will be good this time around.

[XaW]

December 2024

December was a very good month for us as we are undefeated. We are through in the FA Trophy as well.

Torquay is running away with things, as they have won 6 of their last 7 games. We have to hope they hit bad form if we want to challenge for the title.

[XaW]

January 2025

The new year started quite bad, and we had two big away losses. Then we slowly picked ourselves up again before getting knocked out of the FA Trophy by Eastleigh....again! At least we finished the month strong with a good win over our local rivals.

Torquay is still ahead of the pack, but we are at least in the mix there.

[XaW]

February 2025

A very good month for us, even if we should have beating Hendon in the final game. We even beat Torquay!

We are still in the mix, but now all of us are closer to Torquay than before. So everything seems to be possible still.

[XaW]

The board accepted some improvements. They probably got tired of me constantly badgering them about it.

[XaW]

March 2025

A poor start with a loss to Chelmsford, but other than that a really good month, including a very strong win against Bath.

It's now turning into a 3 horse race for first with Torquay inching a lead. We are also secured a playoff spot.

[XaW]

Youth intake 2025

This seasons intake is much better than the first one. There are three players I'm really excited for, and a few other promising talents as well.

Best prospects

Craig Martin 25b is a very promising attacking midfielder. Very nice attribute spread, and that passing is amazing.

My tactic requires a good left back, and I think I've found our new golden boy in Lorne Strevett 25c. His pace is the only issue I have with him, and I'll set him to work on it at once.

I really like him as a hard working midfielder, but I need to get his tackling up a bit if should fit into my tactic. Other than that, a very promising player.

Nationality spread

Maps

Positional spreadsheet

[XaW]

April 2025

We are unbeaten, that's something at least. Way too many draws though. Adeoye Yusuff had a rather poor month, for him at least.

Well now, can't get much tighter than that. One match left and we are just about identical with Bath, but we also have Torquay lurking behind.  Our final match are against Gosport Borough, so we _should_ win, while Bath has a hard away match against Worthing. So we have a great chance to take the trophy.

[XaW]

May 2025

We won our final match in good fashion.

And it was enough as Bath only managed a draw away to Worthing. So we won it and are going up! Season summary coming up soon.

[XaW]

Season summary 2024/25

Season 2024/25 (Season 2) - Vanarama National League South

Squad | Transfers | Finances

Well this was a fun season! In a very close season it went down to the wire. Torquay, Bath, and us were within a few points before the final game. We had the easier match where we beat Gosport Borought while Bath lost to Worthing to clinch the title. So we are going up into the national league for the first time! I had a blast this season, and when it ended in success, and a very good youth intake, I can't complain!

I also managed to get a few more improvements accepted. No news on the new stadium though.

FA Cup: We beat Tiverton, Basingstoke Town, and Metropolitan Police before we lost to Wrexham in the 1st round.
FA Trophy: We beat Hampton & Richmond and Farnborough before we lost to Eastleigh in the 4th round.

U18s

They finished 6th in the National U18 League South East this season.

FA Youth Cup: They beat Corinthian-Casuals and Basingstoke Town before they lost to Yeovil Town in the 3rd qualifying round.

Youth intake:

Trophy cabinet

Vanarama National League South - 1 (2024/25)

Player statistics:

Most apps for the clubs

Name			Nation		2nd Nation	Apps
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gregor Borg 24a		England		<N/A>		56
Baden Ardley 24g	England		<N/A>		50
Frannie Stratton 24f	England		<N/A>		39
Jens Ewald 24m		Germany		England		38
Tyler Mendes 24c	Montserrat	England		16

Most goals for the club

Name			Nation		2nd Nation	Goals
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Frannie Stratton 24f	England		<N/A>		6
Baden Ardley 24g	England		<N/A>		3
Gregor Borg 24a		England		<N/A>		2
Tyler Mendes 24c	Montserrat	England		2
Jens Ewald 24m		Germany		England		1

Most assists for the club

Name			Nation		2nd Nation	Assists
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Frannie Stratton 24f	England		<N/A>		7
Gregor Borg 24a		England		<N/A>		4
Baden Ardley 24g	England		<N/A>		4
Craig Martin 25b	England		Ireland		2
Jaud Kasongo 25d	England		DR Congo	2

Supporters:

Summary:

[XaW]

Pre-season 2025

Pretty good, but we still fail to beat Dover in a friendly. Now onto the season itself!

[XaW]

August 2025

Quite a tough month, but we are not getting thumped yet at least.

At least we are not in the relegation zone. This will most likely be a tough season for us, but the goal is just to stay up.

[kingjericho]

Congrats on the deserved promotion. It's time to start taking advantage of the facilities and get those youth prospects into the first team before the current squad starts declining.

[XaW]

2 minutes ago, kingjericho said:

Congrats on the deserved promotion. It's time to start taking advantage of the facilities and get those youth prospects into the first team before the current squad starts declining.

Thanks! I'm trying to give the youngsters as much playing time as possible, but I also want to stay up, so it's a balancing act.

My main concern is central defenders. Not gotten much talent there (unless you count Gregor Borg 24a, but he is being used as a right back since I have no other youngsters with anything resembling talent there...), and both the first choices has turned 32 already. Also, I'd like a very talented striker, since Adeoye Yusuff has become 31 and I have no idea when he will start to decline.

[XaW]

September 2025

Yeah, life is a bit hard here. At least we got one win this month.

And there we are down in the relegation zone. We need to pick up some more points soon.

[XaW]

October 2025

Things are tough here in the National League, but we are at least picking up a few points. Adeoye Yusuff being the main reason for it. In the final match against Fylde we came back from 0-3 down to draw it with two injury time goals! We are also through in the FA Cup.

We have just about climbed out of the relegation zone now. The team that followed us up, Bath, are in all sorts of trouble, so it's clear the jump up from the regionals are quite tough. The other two teams, from the North region, is King's Lynn and Scarborough, so we are actually the highest placed newly promoted team. This won't be easy!

[XaW]

November 2025

We grinded out a few wins this month, including this very undeserved win away to Altrincham:

We are also through in the FA Cup, so a much better month for us.

We are hovering just over the relegation zone, but are far from safe. So we need to continue picking up points.

[XaW]

Youth intake preview 2025

Another promising preview. Hopefully we'll get in some great central defenders and a good striker this time!

[XaW]

December 2025

Shrewsbury knocked us out of the FA Cup, but we got through in the FA Trophy. The two close wins towards the end of the month really helped us a lot.

We've slowly crept a bit up the table and gotten a small gap down to the relegation zone. 

[XaW]

More improvements accepted by the board!

[kingjericho]

Just keep winning every now and then to stay clear of relegation

[XaW]

1 minute ago, kingjericho said:

Just keep winning every now and then to stay clear of relegation

Yeah, that's pretty much all we can do this season, I think. I really need some more talented youngsters in this season, since quite a few of the players I have to play are nowhere near the level we need.

[XaW]

January 2026

Some tough matches this month, but both the losses was close calls. The final match against a strong York side was amazing. We are also through in the FA Trophy.

We are still above the relegation zone, but the battle is still quite close with a lot of teams in the mix.

[XaW]

February 2026

This was an interesting month, I mean we lost a lot of matches, but all by a single goal. Quite irritating considering we have upped our game and are now mostly playing at a higher level than before.

7 points down to Bath is a nice gap to have as we go into the final part of the season.