marktonge

2028 | Halifax Wanderers | Canada I think it's fair to say that my time in the USA wasn't very successful, but I hadn't damaged my reputation too much as there were plenty of suitors who were interested in me becoming their next manager. I ultimately chose to head north of the border and into Canada. Welcome to Halifax Wanderers. I chose them for two reasons. The first being that they were a good prospect team with players who could play the positions I wanted in my tactic, and the second being that the logo is one of my favourites ever. A good enough reason eh? It's time to bring you up to date with how the 2028 season went. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Squad Overview: Goalkeepers: Ofek Antman | GK | 32 Emil Gazdov | GK | 25 Orlen Narvaez | GK | 26 LOAN Defenders: Chris Lee | LB | 27 Ryan Spaulding | LB | 30 Kadin Chung | CB/RB | 30 NEW Andrew Dunbar-Cook | RB | 22 Georges Mukumbilwa | RB | 29 Daniel Nimick | CB | 28 Callum Montgomery | CB | 31 Zachary Fernandez | RB | 27 Midfielders: Victor Sanchez | DM/CM | 20 NEW Tommy Musto | DM/CM | 24 Markus Cimermancic | DM/CM | 24 NEW Lorenzo Callegari | DM/CM | 30 Attackers/Wingers: Massimo Ferrin | AMR/L | 29 Joel Maldonado | AMR/L | 24 Fidel Barajas | AMR/L | 22 Wesley Timoteo | AMR/L | 28 Callum Watson | AMC | 28 Strikers: Canada | ST | 24 Benjamin Sanchez | ST | 27 LOAN __________________________________________________________________________________________ League Campaign | Canadian Premier League Things started really well, as we flew off to a hot start in the league! 4 wins and a draw out of our first 5 games! That's not bad considering we were meant to finish around 5th in the league tables final standings. We beat league favourites Valour FC in a thrilling 2-1 close encounter. What was evident is that we are free scoring and the goals were being spread out amongst a lot of players. Exciting times were ahead. We then lost our next game to Forge FC before going on a mini revival and winning 5 of the next 6 games with that one loss being against Forge FC once again. They seem to have the better of us. June came around and we only went and had an unbeaten month with 5 of those 6 games returning maximum points. A huge win against Valour FC and a tight encounter with Forge that we ended up on the right side of for the first time showed us exactly where we were in the league! We're a bloody good team and it's showing! Our form started to get a little patchy as we entered the crunch stages of the league. 2 wins, 2 defeats and a draw in the next five, but we bounced back quickly and ended the season unbeaten over the last 4 games. At this point we were top of the league and sitting pretty. The top 5 teams qualified for the knockouts with the top team going straight to the Semi-Finals. A great season all around so far. Semi-Final: We easily saw league runners-up Pacific FC off in the Semi-Final thanks to a 4-2 victory and goals from Callum Watson, Wesley Timoteo & a brace from Benjamin Sanchez. We were excellent and were in control for the whole game. I never once doubted that we would get the result! Onto the final we go… Final: For some reason, Pacific FC managed to get through to the Final after winning a playoff after losing to us in the first semi-final. Weird little system but I'm not complaining. We were brilliant again and once again showed why we are the best team in the league. Not quite as in control but like the semi, I never doubted it. Wesley Timoteo put us ahead from the spot in the 23rd, before Massim Ferrin headed home a second. They did get one back but they never troubled us after that. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Canadian Championship One of the continental competitions in North America, is the Canadian Championship. It's only continental because the Canadian teams from the MLS take part along with the Canadian Premier League sides. It's been won by one of the MLS sides every year so I don't really think there is any chance of us stopping that from happening this year. We never even made it into the proper rounds of the competition after being knocked out by Vancouver FC. They were underperforming in the league campaign but showed they are a good team when they want to be. A thrilling second leg ended 4-4 and meant we lost 7-6 on aggregate. Not to be. An MLS team went on to win it. Shock. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Player Stats: Goals: 1. Wesley Timoteo (AMR/L) | 17 2. Callum Watson (AMC) | 9 3. Fidel Barajas (AMR/L) | 6 Assists: 1. Callum Watson (AMC) | 9 2. Fidel Barajas (AMR/L) | 9 3. Wesley Timoteo (AMR/L) | 8 Average Rating: 1. Wesley TImoteo (AMR/L) | 7.31 2. Callum Watson (AMC) | 7.31 3. Fidel Barajas (AMR/L) | 7.19 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Season Stats Canadian Premier League | 1st (Winners) Canadian Championship | 1st Qualifying Round GP | 32 GW | 20 GD | 7 GL | 5 GS | 80 GA | 49 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Next Update | End of Season Update 2029 (at a New Club)

I play quick when I'm enjoying a save! Loving this so far and makes it worthwhile when I get comments like this! Onto the next challenge...

Top of the league, into a domestic cup final and knocking out a premiership side in the other! I think it's fair to say things are going well mate. Just got to keep doing what you're doing.

Brilliant work to get that promotion under your belt! Going to be a big job to get that team to challenge in the league above, but the man for the job is at the helm! Any chance you can get me a 'De Jongh' shirt sent out? Big fan of him! Hopefully things will continue to go well next season!

2027 | LA Galaxy | USA It wan't long from the moment I left the training ground at Deportes Iquique that I found myself back in management. I'd say I had around 4 months out of the game when I had a spell of three interviews back to back. I had interviews at: - CF Montreal (USA) - LA Galaxy (USA) - Cienciano (Peru) The frontrunner was always LA Galaxy and when they offered me the role of the manager, I accepted without hesitating! In hindsight, it was probably the worst move of the 3 at this stage. The salary cap confused me and I had messed that situation up in no time at all. I had to release a player because I signed one and it all went tits up. Anyway, I won't beat around the bush too much, so let's get straight into the update. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Squad Overview: The squad is in a dismal state. Absolutely no balance, too many players on big wages that aren't performing. Only 2 central midfielders in the squad and only 1 full back. Absolutely abysmal squad building from the previous manager. No wonder the team is in a dire position… Goalkeepers: Alex Martinez | GK | 19 Kenneth Mendez | GK | 25 Defenders: Ian Harkes | DR/DM | 32 Justin Martinez | CB | 25 Tanner Beason | CB | 30 Erik Knowles | CB | 22 Pablo Holloway | CB | 21 Amet Korca | CB | 27 Facundo Mallo | CB | 32 Midfielders: Michael Ramirez | DM/CM | 24 Tommy McCabe | DM/CM | 29 Attackers/Wingers: Moussa Djitte | AMR/L | 27 Lian Jiajun | AMC | 20 Carlos Abarca | AML | 24 Dylan Borrero | AMR/L/C | 25 Diego Fagundez | AMR/L/C | 32 Lucas Rodriguez | AML/C | 30 Johan Gomez | AMR/C | 26 Riqui Puig | AMC | 28 Strikers: Joseph Sanchez | ST | 25 Chris Donovan | ST | 27 Cristian Arango | ST | 32 __________________________________________________________________________________________ League Campaign | MLS I had employed the same 4-2-3-1 Gegenpress tactic that I was using so successful at Deportes Iquique, but this time it wasn't quite as effective. To be honest, it may be because I lacked the players to play it in the middle of the park. That one may be on me, but I'll never admit that to the whole world. Things didn't start well for me in the MLS as we lost 4 of the first 7 games I took charge in. Our only win was an absolute battering of Cincinatti. It was a result that was totally out of the blue. The defeats were mostly close games but we didn't really deserve to win any of them. We weren't good. Our next win came against St Louis CITY but we were brought right back down to Earth quickly as we lost to them in the very next game. Crazy world football eh? We did go on a mini kind of resurgence as we got 7 points form the next 5 games which was our best run of the season. It was then that the board turned on me… I had not one, not two, not three, not four, not five, not six, not seven, not even eight, but NINE! NINE meetings with the board about my performance. I pushed them back each and every time and they bought my excuses but they then tried to make me get 12 points from the next 15 available. I told them where to go and resigned from my position. That is an unreachable amount I'm afraid and I wasn't having that. I'd rather not be sacked. We are that far down in the table in the Supporters Shield that I couldn't get the top 3 places in this screenshot! We were 27th when I resigned from my position and not on a good run of form. Nothing to be worried about, but it was time to leave… __________________________________________________________________________________________ Leagues Cup They have a competition in North America where teams from the United States & Mexico take part. It's called the Leagues Cup and we actually did something in it! We managed to win both Group games including a 4-1 victory over Sporting Kansas City, and a penalty shootout win over Toluca from Mexico. This set up a ¼ final tie against MLS side DC United. It wasn't to be, as we went down to a 1-0 defeat. We actually played well and probably should've won this one. Nevermind, as success probably wasn't on the cards in this one. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Player Stats: Goals: 1. Cristian Arango (ST) | 15 2. Moussa Djitte (AMR/L) | 8 3. Amet Korca (CB) | 7 Assists: 1. Johan Gomez (AMR/C) | 6 2. Dylan Borrero (AMR/L/C) | 6 3. Tanner Beason (CB) | 6 Average Rating: 1. Amet Korca. (CB) | 7.11 2. Diego Fagundez (AMR/L/C) | 7.01 3. Johan Gomez (AMR/C) | 6.98 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Season Stats MLS Western Conference | 13th MLS Supporters Shield | 27th Leagues Cup | ¼ Final GP | 23 GW | 5 GD | 6 GL | 12 GS | 38 GA | 46 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Next Update | End of Season Update 2028 (at a New Club)

Thanks @DavidBeckham! Appreciate you taking the time to read! Alexis is so so good at that level! Every game he did something to effect the result in a positive way!

@mannojunior - Thank you so much for commenting! Definitely can't complain with the goals being scored! We seem to score a lot goals so I don't care where they come from. I would say that most of my wingers can play up top as well so they natural finishers! __________________________________________________________________________________________ 2026 | Deportes Iquique | Chile Life is good for ‘Tongey’ in Chile, having cemented himself/myself as part of the furniture at Deportes Iquique. It's been a remarkable first 3 ½ years in charge of the ‘Blue Dragons’ and I've managed to revamp the team from an ageing club for players remembering the good times, into a youthful exciting side for many years to come! I believe I've laid the foundations for a very long successful future for the club. In terms of my Manager Profile, I've completed a few more coaching qualifications and now occupy the Continental B License and I'm in the process of securing the Continental A License. My stock will continue to grow as these qualifications continue. It's a good time to be me at the moment. Anyway, the 2026 season has flown by and included us making our/my debut in the Copa Libertadores as well as playing in the Campeonato Betsson & Copa Chile Easy. Could a famous treble be on the cards? Probably not as the Chilean sides don't tend to fare that well in the Copa Libertadores but we'll always try our hardest. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Squad Overview: Goalkeepers: Leandro Caneto | GK | 31 Christian Fuentes | GK | 27 Defenders: Kevin Egana | LB | 30 Rodrigo Astorga | CB | 22 Alan Moreno | RB | 31 Juan Musacchio | LB | 24 NEW Alejandro Henriquez | LB | 25 Ivan Contreras | CB | 25 NEW Cristian Diaz | CB | 26 NEW Guillermo Zuleta | CB | 25 NEW Abel Hidalgo | CB | 28 Juan Pablo Reyes | RB | 21 Midfielders: Carlos Montano | CM |24 Felipe Gonzalez | DM/CM | 21 Bastian Arias | DM/CM | 21 Juan David Bacca | DM/CM/AMC | 22 Santiago Marcel | DM | 24 Martin Fernandez | DM/CM | 24 Attackers/Wingers: Sebastian Pareda | AMR/L | 26 Alexis Villarroel | AML/C | 26 Martin Araya | AMR | 22 Santiago Diaz | AMR/ST | 23 Fransisco Arancibia | AMR/L | 30 Strikers: Diego Machado | ST | 24 Francisco Sagardia | ST | 24 __________________________________________________________________________________________ League Campaign | Campeonato Betsson We pushed and pushed last season to try and steal the league title away from Colo Colo, but couldn't quite keep our effort going for the whole season and had a rough patch where we couldn't find a win for love nor money! We ended up finishing in 3rd position which was an amazing feat for our first season in the top division. The aim this season was to settle for nothing less than the title itself! Could we? What a start to the league we had. We didn't lose for the first 6 games. Infact, we only dropped points the once in those first 6. Those points were dropped when we played last years Champions Colo Colo, so not a totally bad result altogether. We weren't blowing teams away but we were getting the job done which was the main thing. Our first defeat came at the hands of Cobresal in a 2-1 defeat. They deserved it so nothing to complain about. It did spark a little fall in form, but we bounced back pretty well and had a winning month of April including a god win against Everton. We didn't quite get our form together for a few games after the half way stage but I knew we were onto something when we smashed current holders Colo Colo 5-1! It was a hell of a performance and probably my best result to date. Unfortunately, after that big result we went on a slump and failed to win in 5 games! In that period we only picked up 3 points out of 15, which were 3 1-1 draws against Universidad Espanola, Coquimbo & Cobresal. We dropped from 1st - 3rd in that time so I was getting worried. I needn't be worried though, as we didn't lose from that point onwards til the end of the season! We only conceded 5 goals in 7 games to end it so we definitely did something right! Big win against fellow title challengers Everton and a draw on the final day against University de Chile. An amazing end to the season, but was it enough? OF COURSE IT WAS! CAMPEONATO BETSSON CHAMPIONS 2026! I never expected to say that as quickly as the 2026 season! 3 1\2 seasons it took to get from bottom to the top! That's a hell of a quick rise and I think the main part f it was making the squad a younger more athletic team! You can't win anything with kids eh? __________________________________________________________________________________________ Copa Chile Easy The domestic cup journey is always a fun distraction! It's especially important to the fans who placed a huge amount of prestige on these competitions! The previous couple of attempts, I've been knocked out in the Fourth Round! This time, we managed to make it all the way to the Final! A 2-0 win in the 1st Round against La Calera saw us get into the 2nd Round, where we had another 2-0 victory, this time against La Serena. 2 comfortable results that were never in doubt. The 3rd Round though was a different story, and in all honesty, we should've been eliminated! We were 1-0 down before Sebastian Parada netted an 80th minute equaliser before we managed to beat them in a penalty shootout. In the Fourth Round, we smashed Deportes Copiapo 7-1 in a game where everything just went right! It was simply brilliant! This meant we had a Semi-Final match up against fellow title challengers Everton. It wasn't a tough game in all honesty, and we came through in sublime fashion! A 4-1 victory with braces from Francisco Arancibiia & Santiago Diaz! Into our first cup final we go… An incredibly nervous and tight affair was the order of the day! The fans were excited but you could tell that they were nervous as well. We went behind early to a back post volley into the bottom corner! We then took control and the confidence started flowing. The nerves eased and Araya cut inside and drilled an effort into the bottom corner to level it up! We had more chances, but couldn't convert any of them, which meant it went straight to penalties for some reason! Magallanes | Missed, Scored, Scored, Scored, Scored Deportes Iquique | Scored, Scored, Scored, Scored, Scored __________________________________________________________________________________________ Copa Libertadores Our debut season in the Copa Libertadores meant a qualifying round trip to Sao Paolo where we'd face one of the most famous teams in South America and the World. Could we do the unthinkable and knock them out? They've won this competition 3 times! A huge upset happened in the 1st leg! We went to Brazil and came away with a 5-4 victory! Insane that we scored 5 goals against this giant of a team! It did take a last second header from Santiago Diaz to do that, but I'll take any win if they happen. I actually felt quite confident going into the home leg, but they turned it on and put us to the sword. They didn't take kindly to the 1st leg defeat and definitely weren't going to go down without a fight. We ended up losing the tie 9-7 on aggregate. A valiant performance from the ‘Blue Dragons’! __________________________________________________________________________________________ Player Stats: Goals: 1. Alexis Villarroel (AML/C/ST) | 19 2. Santiago Diaz (AMR/ST) | 17 3. Francisco Arancibia (AMR/L) | 14 Assists: 1. Alexis Villarroel (AML/C/ST) | 12 2. Francisco Arancibia (AMR/L) | 9 3. Bastian Arias (DM/CM) | 8 Average Rating: 1. Alexis Villarroel (AML/C/ST) | 7.42 2. Francisco Arancibia (AMR/L) | 7.19 3. Martin Araya (AMR) | 7.13 Player of the Year - Alexis Villarroel Manager of the Year - Tongey (3rd time in a row) __________________________________________________________________________________________ Season Stats Campeonato Betsson | 1st (CHAMPIONS) Copa Chile | Winners Copa Libertadores | 1st Qualifying Round GP | 38 GW | 24 GD | 8 GL | 6 GS | 84 GA | 46 __________________________________________________________________________________________ BONUS CONTENT! Supercopa Chile As we were the winners of the Campeonato Betsson & Copa Chile we were drawn to play in the Supercopa Chile. As we won both competitions, it went to the runners-up in the league who were Everton! A showpiece event awaited us at the start of the 2027 season… __________________________________________________________________________________________ Next Post | End of Season (at a new club)

A fantastic start to this save! Always enjoy a Pentagon and there is no better place to start than in South Africa! The question is, can you squeeze them across the line in this tight finish?!

Like others have said, that badge is an absolute stunner and a massive upgrade from what they have! All the best with this, I'll be following for sure!

GREEEEEENNN ARRRRRMYYY!! Sorry, couldn't resist! Looks to be a great idea for a save! Mid-table at the moment isn't so bad! What's your aim for this season?

Great idea for a save! I like hearing about teams I'm not too clued up on and Charleroi definitely fits that bill! I think I love Belgium because of their hobby of eating fries and mayo whenever and wherever they can! The Home kit is a beaut! Fantastic start to the season, long may that continue!

2025 | Deportes Iquique | Chile I'm back again with another update for you all. I'm loving this save at the moment, and long may that continue. Last time I updated you, we had just won the Campeonato Acsenso Betsson, and were on our way to play in the Campeonato Betsson here in Chile. It's the first time I've played in the top league here and I had no idea what to expect. I set about with the same tactic that had served me well in the previous season. The 4-2-3-1 Gegenpress which utilises an IW & an IF on the flanks. It seems to work well, so why change it? New signings were sought after, and were only signed if they fit a position on the tactic. They also had to be young so I didn't fall foul of that stupid U21 rule once again. In club news, we had a takeover this season which seems to have cleared our debts! They didn't particularly throw money at the club, but we've been making money ever since (probably because of the increased gates in this higher league. It's been a bit of a blessing in disguise. I've also been able to complete a few coaching qualifications over the season, and now have the Continental C License. I'm also working towards the B license now but it's not complete yet. Time to introduce you to the squad I had this season. I'll put NEW next to their name if they were transferred into the squad at some point in the season. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Squad Overview: Goalkeepers: Raul Olivares | GK | 37 Leandro Canete | GK | 30 NEW Christian Fuentes | GK | 26 NEW Defenders: Kevin Egana | WBL | 29 NEW Alan Moreno | WBR | 30 NEW LOAN Juan Musacchio | LB | 23 Alejandro Henriquez | LB | 24 NEW Luciano Meza | CB | 23 Abel Hidalgo | CB | 27 Luciano Meneses | CB | 29 Juan Pablo Reyes | RB | 20 LOAN Midfielders: Felipe Gonzalez | DM/CM | 20 NEW Bastian Arias | DM/CM | 20 NEW Juan David Bacca | DM/CM/AMC | 21 Santiago Marcel | DM/CM | 22 Martin Fernandez | DM/CM | 24 NEW Attackers/Wingers: Sebastian Parada | AMR/L | 25 NEW Alexis Villaroel | AML/C | 25 Martin Araya | AMR | 20 LOAN Santiago Diaz | AMR/ST | 22 NEW Francisco Arancibia | AMR/L | 29 Jose Delgado | AMC | 24 Rodrigo Cisterna | AMC | 23 Johan Castillo | AMR/L | 26 Strikers: Diego Machado | ST | 23 Francisco Sagardia | ST | 23 __________________________________________________________________________________________ League Campaign | Campeonato Betsson Our first season in the Campeonato Betsson was meant to be a consoldation season, where we tried to hang on and avoid relegation by any means necessary. I can tell you that it was anything but that. The new lads seemed to gel straight away and we performed well above everyones expectations, including my own! Does anyone else feel that when you get promoted, things just seem to go better than expected? Or, it may just be my absolute managerial genius! Ha! I seriously doubt that, but I'll take what happened this season, every year if I can. Continued improvement year upon year. The form at the start of the season, once again get us a foundation to really kick on without to much danger of relegation. I didn't know what to expect early on, but we had impressive wins against O'Higgins & Huachipato, and also a massive 7-2 victory over La Serena. We had the expected loss to Colo Colo (Last years Champions) in there but a pleasing start that's for sure. We were picking up points pretty easily, but we did it in pockets of results. 3 good wins in a row, followed by a few defeats. We couldn't keep our good form going for a long period, until the second half of the season that was. As the second half of the season started, we went on a run of 7 wins out of 9 games. That's title winning form if I do say so myself, and at one point in that run, we were sitting at the top of the tree. I couldn't quite believe my eyes, but I wasn't going to second guess it. I did get excited and a little carried away, but it wasn't to last. In that run, we beat Colo Colo 2-1, and beat Audax convincingly. With the title in our grasp, we just needed a good end to the season, but form dropped. We needed to keep winning over the last 5 games, but 3 defeats in a row to Universidad Catolica, Universidad Espanola & Everton. (maybe I just don't like Education), left us with no chance. We dropped when it mattered the most, but I can't be too harsh on the lads. We've been excellent. We ended the season on a high, and secured our continental football for next season, as we're playing in the Copa Libertadores for the first time. I'm so excited, but I'll definitely need more depth moving forward to manage the increase in games! In my first season in the top flight, we managed to finish in 3rd position! That's incredible considering we were meant to be cannon fodder, and teams were meant to put goal after goal past us! In the end, we finished 3 points off the title, so plenty to take a positive for next season! Colo Colo just have that know-how and experiece. We'll come back after them for revenge that's for sure! Audax go straight back down which is sad to see. I'd have liked to have seen them stay up, so that we could continue our rivalry next season. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Copa Chile Easy Oh my! I thought we had it in us this year! We were excellent over the first three rounds! Up first was a tie against local rivals SM de Arica who we sent packing after a 5-1 victory! Easy as you like in that one. We then face Union Companias and saw them off thanks to a 5-0 drubbing! Sebastian Diaz making the most of his starts in the cups, making me question my choice up top. We then managed to just fight off Coquimbo in the 3rd round thanks to a penalty from Alexis Villarroel. In the Fourth Round, a last second goal saw Antofagasta send us out of the competition. If we'd have won that we would have had a favourable matchup in the Semi-FInal. Not to be though, but I can see us winning this very soon. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Player Stats: Goals: 1. Alexis Villarroel (AML/C) | 22 2. Santiago Diaz (AMR/ST) | 19 3. Martin Araya (AMR) | 13 Assists: 1. Martin Araya (AMR) | 11 2. Alexis Villarroel (AML/C) | 8 3. Santiago Diaz (AMR/ST) | 7 Average Rating: 1. Alexis Villarroel (AML/C) | 7.45 2. Martin Araya (AMR) | 7.31 3. Juan David Bacca (DM/CM) | 7.27 Manager of the Year - Tongey Young Player of the Year - Martin Araya (AMR) __________________________________________________________________________________________ Season Stats Campeonato Betsson | 3rd Copa Chile | 4th Round GP | 34 GW | 20 GD | 4 GL | 9 GS | 94 GA | 56 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Next Post | End of 2026 Season Round Up

2023/2024 | Deportes Iquique | Chile Welcome back to 'Tongey Travels', the stupid challenge I attempt every year and never get near to completing! This year I've started in the Americas, and in particular South America. My first club is Deportes Iquique, known as the ‘Sky Blue Dragons'. I've been here for a season and a half now after taking control midway through the 2023 season after they sacked their manager. In terms of my personal manager news, I've completed 2 coaching qualifications in the past season and now sit happily with the ‘National B License’ to my name. The board have been stingy with me and won't let me attempt to get my ‘National A License’ just yet as they don't want me to use the club as a stepping stone (which is ultimately what I want to do). I'll get them to cave in anyway. Here's the Round-Up of the 2024 Season with Deportes Iquique in the Campeonato Acsenso Bettson. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Squad Overview: I underwent a massive transformation of the squad in the off-season, letting no less than 14 first-teamers leave the club as their contracts expired. I was caught out last season when I was docked 6 points at the end of the season for failing to follow league rules regarding U21 playing time. I was putting that right this year. We ad a very old squad last year and the focus of my recruitment was youngsters who could still do a job. It was no mean feat, but I think I did a good enough job. I've also noted if the player is a transfer/loan so that it should make it easier to see the players brought in. Here's the squad that I employed this season. As always just click on the player's name and it'll take you to their profile. (I'd recommend right clicking and opening in a new tab to save time) Goalkeepers: Jorge Deschamps | GK | 40 Raul Olivares | GK | 36 NEW Patricio Pachecho | GK | 17 NEWGEN Defenders: Miguel Arreola | LB | 26 NEW Hans Salinas | LB | 34 Matias Blazquez | CB | 33 Juan Musacchio | LB | 22 NEW Mario Pardo | CB | 36 Luciano Meza | CB | 21 NEW Abel Hidalgo | CB | 26 Luciano Meneses | CB | 28 NEW Juan Pablo Reyes | RB | 19 NEW Midfielders: David Nunez | CM | 23 - NEW Juan David Bacca | DM | 19 Santiago Marcel | DM/CM | 22 NEW Martin Fernandez | CM | 23 NEW Attacking Midfielders/Wingers: Alexis Villarroel | AML/C | 24 Martin Araya | AMR | 19 NEW Jose Delgado |AMC | 23 Carlos Montano | AMC | 22 Rodrigo Cisterna | AMC | 22 NEW Johan Castillo | AMR | 25 Strikers: Steffan Pino | ST | 30 Francisco Sagardia | ST | 22 NEW Diego Machado | ST | 21 __________________________________________________________________________________________ League Campaign | Campeonato Ascenso Betsson After a tricky opening last season when I took charge, and a dodgy tactic I tried to implement, things took a turn for the better when I put inn the classic 4-2-31 formation and the good old fashion ‘Gegenpress’. We ended the season on a high winning a good portion of our final ¼ of games and finished a singular point outside of the Promotion Playoffs. The aim this season was to challenge for the title, which the board said was their objective too. The first half of the season laid the foundations for our second-half assault on the title. We were picking up points relatively frequently all season long, and even had some fantastic wins along the way, against; Audax (A), Santiago Morning (H), & Barnechea (H). The first ¼ of the season went by pretty fast and we were consistently in the top 5 of the league. Our form dipped slightly as we went through to the halfway stage, only picking up 12 points from a possible 27 on offer throughout that period. I was concerned that the tactic was starting to fail and teams were starting to figure out how to play against us. A 4-1 defeat to Deportes Iberia was a bitter pill to swallow as I gave it the big guns before this game. I had to eat my words and admit they were the better team. After the halfway stage we were impeccable and saw us only drop 4 points in total. A rare defeat to Universidad de Concepcion, and a draw on the final day of the season against Puerto Montt. We had a winning run of 9 games in the crucial stage of the season which put us right amongst it at the top. Fantastic wins against title challengers Audax, Cobreloa & D Antofagasta showed them we weren't here to mess around. We wanted that title and we would fight tooth and nail for it. How did this mean we got on in the final standings though? We only went and won the league in our first full season! We'll be playing Campeonato Betsson football next season, and be back amongst the big boys of Chilean football. It's where we belong! It all came down to the final game of the season where both ourselves & Audax had a chance to win the league title. They played first and could't get a win therefore handing us the title without us having to play! Zero pressure on the last game saw us draw it and celebrate the title in front of our travelling contingent. We ended up finishing on top of the pile with 63 total points and a gap of 3 points back to Audax who finished in 2nd. They ultimately went on to win the Promotion Playoffs and will join us in the top flight next season. Only losing 5 games all season is pretty good and I'm just glad we did what the board wanted us to do! __________________________________________________________________________________________ Copa Chile Easy The Copa Chile is the domestic cup here in Chile. It's the only domestic cup where all teams are entered so it's a bit like the FA Cup here in England. I used a bit of rotation in the first round which saw us run out 3-0 winners against low league side Quintero Unido. We then beat fellow league side Cobresol 2-0 in the 2nd Round. In the 3rd round we had a tricky tie agianst Deportes Copiapo which saw us a very late goal (last kick of the game) win us the tie and see us into the 4th Round. Sagardia the hero in that one. A good win. In the 4th Round which is the furthest I've been in this competition, we faced off against top league side La Calera. It was a fantastic game full of action and goals. Unfortunately we couldn't come back for a 3rd time and draw ourselves level, but we did ourselves proud and exited from the cup after a 4-3 loss. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Player Stats: Goals: 1. Franisco Sagardia (ST) | 24 2. Rodrigo Cisterna (AMC) | 11 3. Hans Salinas (LB) | 11 Assists: 1. Hans Salinas (LB) | 8 2. Juan David Bacca (DM) | 7 3. Juan Pablo Reyes (RB) | 6 Average Rating: 1. Franisco Sagardia (ST)| 7.19 2. Rodrigo Cisterna (AMC) | 7.13 3. Martin Fernandez (CM) | 7.11 Manager of the Year - Tongey Top League Goalscorer - Fransisco Sagardia (21) __________________________________________________________________________________________ Season Stats (Career) Campeonato Acsenso Betsson | 1st (Champions) Copa Chile | 4th Round GP | 34 GW | 22 GD | 6 GL | 6 GS | 82 GA | 49 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Next Post | End of 2025 Season Round Up

2023/2024 | Deportes Iquique | Chile Welcome to Chile, and welcome to ‘Tongey Travels’, an adventure around the FM world trying to tick off every trophy available on the game, which is how I like to play. It's a crazy challenge that won't be completed, but I'll have fun along the way. Anyway, I'll be doing season updates as anything more and I lose actual interest in the save. If this changes, it'll be half-season at most. In each update I'll bring you: - Competition Round Ups - Transfers - Squad Overview - Players of the Season - Season Stats - Aim for Next Season My first team are the famous ‘Deportes Iquique’ who play in the Chilean football pyramid and have one of the coolest badges I've ever seen. That dragon is magnificent and strikes fear into many an opponent I'm sure! They were the only team that offered me an interview and therefore the only team who offered me the role of First Team Manager. They play in the ‘Campeonato Accenso Bettson’ which is the second tier of Chilean football. When I took over, the club was dwindling down to 12th position in the league table and had just around half of the games left to play (hence them sacking their manager and giving me a shot). Things weren't looking rosy and it was up to me to change that over the remaining games. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Squad Overview: The squad is actually fairly decent. The club was relegated from the top tier last season so had some good players in there. It's a fairly old squad but definitely one that should be performing better than they were. I'll introduce you to the squad below: (Just click the player's name and it'll bring up the player's profile) Goalkeepers Luis Sotomayer | GK | 26 Daniel Castillo | GK | 32 Francisco Levinao | GK | 23 Defenders Vicente Duran | LB/CB | 24 Miguel Binimelis | LB| 23 Mario Pardo | CB/LB | 35 Sebastian Padilla | CB | 22 Abel Hildago | CB | 25 Joaquin Aros | RB | 27 Matias Blasquez | RB | 32 Hans Salinas | LWB | 33 Paulo Magalhaes | RWB | 33 Midfielders Juan David Bacca | DM/CM | 18 Jordy Contreras | DM/CM | 22 Joaquin Moya | CM/DM/AMC | 29 Jaimie Carreno | CM | 26 Diego Orellana | DM/CM | 30 Leandro Navarro | DM/CM | 31 WINGERS/ATTACKERS Alvaro Delgado | AMR/L | 28 Edson Puch | AMR/L/C | 37 Alexis Villaroel | AMC | 23 Cesar Gonzalez | AMR/C | 26 Jose Delgado | AMC | 22 Carlos Montano | AMC | 21 Johan Castillo | AML/R | 24 STRIKERS Steffan Pino | ST | 29 Ronaldo Henriquez | ST | 19 Mathias Pinto | ST | 25 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Transfers: Since I didn't really know what the team was like and not really know the league that well, I steered clear of transfers for a long time. I only made one all year in fact, and that one player was the spark to our turnaround. Jorge Deschamps | GK | 39 | £600 | Magallanes Welcome to the squad, 39-year-old youthful goalkeeper Jorge Deschamps. He brings in a lot of experience and great attributes across the board. The only thing he doesn't have is flair. Who needs flair in a goalkeeper anyway? League Campaign (Campeonato Acenso Bettson): As I mentioned above, I took over when the club was performing well below the standards and expectations set before the season started. The previous manager was out, and I was in. I had 15 games in which to try and turn the fortunes around and finish as high up the league table as possible. The aim was to reach the ‘Promotion Playoffs' which meant securing a top 8 finish. How did we get on with that? I set out with a 3-4-2-1 formation trying to utilise the 3 solid CBs as the base of the team, but it never really worked out for us! In my first 7 games in charge, we only picked up 6 points out of a possible 21. The only win in that period was a solid 2-1 victory against Rangers. It just wasn't working and players were starting to get annoyed with the results. I switched things up and changed our tactic to the classic 4-2-3-1 which suited us a lot more and things started to blossom for us. If only I had adopted this tactic when I started, but NO, I had to try something different didn't I? In the final 8 games of the season, we only lost the once in a 3-2 defeat to Deportes Antofagasta. It was a last-minute goal which was a killer for us. It didn't matter really though, as we had started to score goals for fun and we had started to win games and pick up points consistently. The best result was probably the 3-2 victory over Santiago Morning who were flying high in the league at that time. Was our end-of-season form enough to secure a top 8 finish though and qualify for the Promotion Playoffs? Not quite! We fell short by a singular point so I only had myself to blame really. If I had got the tactic right from the start then we would have easily qualified in my eyes. There is absolutely plenty of positives to take forward into next season and who knows what this club can do. Do we charge for the title or do we just try and secure Playoff football? A 9th-placed finish for me in my first season in charge, and finished on 41 points. The only positive goal difference in the bottom 9 teams. Go us. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Copa Chile: My first outing in the Copa Chile was a fantastic 4-2 victory over Municipal Salamanca which saw us run out 4-2 victors. We were expected to win but by that margin was a good performance. Off into the 3rd Round. The next round was against fellow league side San Felipe. They were below us at that stage so I expected a win, but a tough game. This was in the time when I played the stupid useless formation. I wish it was in the later months and we would've won this one. A disappointing 1-0 defeat saw us exit the competition in the 3rd Round. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Player Stats: Goals: 1. Mathis Pinto (ST) | 9 2. Cesar Gonzalez (AMR/L) | 8 3. Edson Puch (AMR/L/C) | 7 Assists: 1. Leandro Navarro (DM/CM) | 9 2. Cesar Gonzalez (AMR/L), Diego Orellana (DM/CM), Edson Puch (AMR/L) | 3 3. Jose Delgado (AMC), Hans Salinas (WBL), Paulo Magalhaes (WBR) | 2 Average Rating: 1. Alvaro Delgado (AMR/L) | 7.05 2. Leandro Navarro (DM/CM) | 6.96 3. Cesar Gonazalez (AMR/L/C) | 6.90 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Season Stats (Career) Campeonato Acenso Bettson | 9th Copa Chile | 3rd Round GP | 17 | GW | 8 GD | 4 GL | 5 GS | 34 GA | 25 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Next Post | End of 2024 Season Round Up

TEAMS MANAGED (Country Flag // Team Logo // Team Name // Country // Dates In Charge // Reason Left) | Deportes Iquique | Chile | 07.06.23 - 10.01.2027 | Resigned. | LA Galaxy | USA | 09.05.2027 - 26.09.2027 | Resigned. | Halifax Wanderers | Canada | 09.11.2027 - 25.10.2028 | Resigned. | CF Atlante | Mexico | 13.12.2028 - 29.05.2030 | Resigned. | St Louis City SC | USA | 14.06.2030 - 05.12.2032 | Resigned. | CF Monterrey | Mexico | 16.02.2033 - 25.08.2034 | Resigned. | Sarmiento (Junin) | Argentina | 08.12.2034 - Present | N/A COMPETITIONS WON (Country Flag // Team Logo // Competition Name // Team Won With // Season of Win) | Campeonato Acsenso Betsson | Deportes Iquique | 2024 | Copa Chile Easy | Deportes Iquique | 2026 | Campeonato Betsson| Deportes Iquique | 2026 | Supercopa Chile | Deportes Iquique | 2027 | Canadian Premier League | 2028 | Liga BBVA Expansion MX | CF Atlante | 2029/2030 | El Champions Trophy | CF Atlante | 2029/2030 | Campeones Cup | St Louis City SC | 2030, 2032 | MLS Supporters Shield | St Louis City SC | 2031, 2032 | MLS All Star Game | MLS All Stars | 2031 | MLS Cup | St Louis City SC | 2031, 2032 | US Cup | St Louis City SC | 2032 | CONCACAF Scotiabank Champions League | CF Monterrey | 2032/2033 | Liga BBVA MX | CF Monterrey | 2033/2034 | Campeon de Campeones | CF Monterrey | 2033/2034 Leagues Cup | CF Monterrey | 2034/2035 | Primera Nacional | Sarmiento (Junin) | 2035 | Copa Argentina | Sarmineto (Junin) | 2036 COUNTRY COMPLETION North America Canada | 1/1 *COMPLETED* Mexico | 4/4 *COMPLETED* United States | 4/4 *COMPLETED* South America Argentina | 2/5 Chile | 4/4 *COMPLETED* Continental Competitions: North America | 3/4 South America | 0/3

Back to Africa | Destination Djibouti | AS Ali Sabieh | Tier Two It's been a couple of days since I wrapped up Tier One with a successful year in the Bahamas with Cavalier FC. We managed to win the Senior League and the FA Cup in the same year which meant it was time to resign and move on to pastures new. That new pasture is the wonderful country of Djibouti. I'm not going to lie, I don't really know much about Djibouti, but from a quick wikipedia search I can tell you 3 interesting facts... 1. Lake Assal is the lowest point in the whole of the African continent. It's also the 3rd lowest point in the World. 2. Djibouti is the third smallest country in Africa. It's behind. 3. The capital city: Djibouti City is built on a bed of coral reef. You should know a little bit more about Djibouti now, but if you want to know more, feel free to go and research and pop your favourite fact down below in the comments. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AS Ali Sabieh Djibouti Telecom Welcome to my new stomping grounds. It's a little bit of a mouthful, but I'll just refer to them as AS Ali Sabieh from now, as that's what they are in the game. It's far different surroundings to my usual Caribbean haunts, but it'll do for now. Hopefully I won't be here too long and I can get back to my sandy beaches and tropical cocktails. Club Overview: Name: AS Ali Sabieh Djibouti Telecom Nickname: N/A Founded: 1991 League: Djiboutian Premier League Kit: Yellow (Home) & Blue (Away) Facilities: Stadium: Stade Hassan Gouled Capacity: 10,000 Training Facilities: Poor Youth Facilities: Poor Youth Recruitment: Basic Youth Coaching: Basic Honours: Djiboutian Premier League (7) | 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Djiboutian Cup (3) | 2006, 2016, 2018 Djiboutian Super Cup (3) | 2013, 2014, 2016 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Squad: I've only got a small squad available to me, but that isn't a huge surprise to me. I'll be looking at adding to the squad of course, but only for the right pieces. I definitely need a couple of central midfielders as on first look, I have zero at the club which is a worry to me. That's where I'm headed first of all, before getting a couple of depth pieces in. I'd like another good striker to partner Mahdi Hossein Mahabeh up top. The best players are: Moussa Robleh | GK Hamze Hassan | CB Ahmed Mohamed | CB Ahmed Hassan Djama | ML Mahdi Hossein Mahabeh | ST --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks for reading this latest episode of the Jacobs Ladder Challenge. We're now in Tier Two, and about to head into an unknown journey in Djibouti. Make sure you check back soon to see how we get on. I'll be back at mid-season to update you all. Tongey!

Cavalier FC | The Bahamas | End of Season Update | 2025/2026 As Jimmy Buffet once said: "It's 5'oclock somewhere!" I'm certainly living my life by the rule, but only when things are going well on the pitch! When that happens, my life is easy and I just get to sit back, relax and watch good things happen. When it doesn't happen, I whip out the old alter-ego: Don Tongio. You don't want to meet him. If you do, you know you're in for a tough day. Anyway, enough about that. I'll update you all on the second half of the season now as that's what you're here for... --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- January 2026 Western Warriors | HOME | 5-1 | WIN We continue our dominant race towards the title with a 5-1 hammering of Western Warriors. One first half goal thanks to Peter Francois then 4 goals after the break set us up nicely! They did get a consolation goal midway through that second half but they never troubled us more than that. We were dominant. Easy as you like. Dynamoes (BAH) | HOME | 4-1 | WIN When you follow up a 5-1 win with a 4-1 win, you know you're doing something right! Peter Francois easily claimed the MOM award after his stunning hattrick! His first 2 goals were classy solo goals and then of course he had to take a penalty to give him that hattrick! Ethan Williamson then rose heighest at the back post to head home a corner. We're just on a roll. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- February 2026 Nassau (BAH) | FA Cup Quarter Final | AWAY | 1-3 | WIN FC Nassau are a team in the Bahamian Island Leagues so we were the overwhelming favourites in this one. We showed why with a fantastic attacking performance. Jackner Louis continued to show why he's so important to the team with 2 more goals. Peter Francois completed the job just before the half, and just like that we were in the Semi-Finals. Bears | HOME | 4-4 | DRAW What a game the neutrals had for them as we played out a 4-4 draw with Bears. It literally had everyting! We were actually 3-0 up at the break, and then the second half carnage started. They scored early before we regained our 3 goal lead. We then let our performance drop and we paid the ultimate price for that. They scored 3 times between the 70th and 85th minute! Not ideal, but a point gained I guess. Baha Jrs. | HOME | 4-1 | WIN Back to winning ways wit a bang. Jackner Louis with 2 goals before the break, to add on to 2 more goals from Peter Francois & Tre Bain. Being 4-0 up at the break meant we could relax slightly after the half and we did just that. Not so much that we let them back into the game, but enough to rest ourselves for the next couple of games. You've got to take those chances when you get them. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- March 2026 Renegades B | FA Cup Semi Final | HOME | 4-1 | WIN Our first semi-final in the Bahamas, and we came through it with flying colours. Without our main man Peter Francois we would be nowhere. He was magnificent today and continues to impress the Bahamian football world. He netted 4 times and earned us the win on his own. I don't think we'll find an easier Semi-Final in our journey. The final awaits... --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- April 2026 Western Warriors | AWAY | 0-2 | WIN Another game ticked off en route to us winning the league phase! We weren't at our best in this one, but we got the job done. Peter Francois got us ahead in the first half with a cheeky finish from inside the area. Jackner Louis completed the job with a solo run down the right before a one two led him to be free on goal. +3. Bears | FA Cup Final | NEUTRAL | 2-1 | WIN Well, well, well. Consider this another trophy ticked off and one that leaves us with just the league title to complete in order for us to climb to Tier Two. This was a fantastic game that was end to end. Bears are a good team, and ran us all the way. Jackner Louis fired us ahead in the first half, before we were pegged back in the middle of the second half. They put pressure on us until the end of the game but we held on to force extra time. New signing Ian Winder, at 30 years old, had all the composure in the world as he found himself free in the area and slotted it easily into the back of the net. SCENES. CHAOS. CELEBRATIONS! Bears | AWAY | 3-1 | LOSS Our first loss in the season and it comes against the team we just beat in the Final. I think they wanted revenge, but it's not to worry. We've already wrapped up the top spot in the league so I'm not to mad. Peter Francois put us ahead early doors, but after that we were terrible. Not good, but not disastrous. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- League Table As easy a group stage as you'll find. We were brilliant and fully deserved to top the group. Western Warriors ended up finishing just ahead of Bears meaning the only team that beat us weren't joining us in the Playoff competition. A cool 10 point gap between us and Western Warriors shows how good we are. Onto the Playoffs. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Champions Playoffs: Western Warriors | Champions Playoff Semi-Final | NEUTRAL | 3-0 | WIN We comfortably sail through to the Final of the Playoffs after beating our fellow Group B side Western Warriors. Our main goalscorer Peter Francois was in fine form netting a brace with Ryan Hudson getting the other one. We were never troubled and this was about as comfortable a Semi-Final we could get. I'm sure it'd be harder in the Final. Renegades FC | Champions Playoff Final | NEUTRAL | 4-1 | WIN BOOM. Another trophy in the bag. This was a tense game in regulation time. Ryan Hudson equalised for us on the stroke of half time with a firm header into the bottom corner. It stayed 1-1 until the end of the 90. Extra time. I had given the lads a rocket up their ass, and it must've worked as we flew out of the traps. Tre Bain scored 2 minutes in, before Ian Winder got the first of his two a minute later. He rounded it off in the 110th and that was that. The Bahamas ticked off! Tier One Ticked Off! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Player Stats: Goals: 1. Peter Francois | 20 (18apps) 2. Jackner Louis | 11 (17) 3. Ethan Williiamson | 4 (17) Assists: 1. Kevin Francois | 11 (15apps) 2. Jackner Louis | 11 (17) 3. Ea-Rhon Rogers | 4 (13) Average Rating: 1. Ian Winder | 7.80 (6apps) 2. Jackner Louis | 7.74 (17) 3. Ethan Williiamson | 7.27 (17) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks for reading this episode of the Jacobs Ladder Challenge. The final part of Tier One. We'll be moving onto Tier Two in the next episode and I'm excited to see where this journey will take us. We'll see in the next episode anyway! Check back to see where we end up! Tongey!

Cavalier FC | The Bahamas | Mid-Season Update | 2025/2026 I thought life was going to be tricky at Cavalier, having gone up a division, but it's been the total opposite. In fact, I've had that much spare time after giving the lads a day off after a big win that I've found myself a new local haunt. Club Dub is back baby, and it's an absolute belter! Senor Frogs is our new host, and we've had a lot of memorable nights here so far. I've even invited the players some nights, although it's more of a coaching staff kind of night. My Director of Football is becoming quite a local myth after his activities on a night out. Anyway, enough about Club Dub, I'll bring you up to date with how this season has gone so far... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Transfers | IN & OUT 3 in, and 3 out. I'm delighted to bring back Ea-Rhon Rogers who was released by Freeport under my time due to registration rules, but I managed to persuade him to rejoin my journey here at Cavalier. Ethan Godet comes in to strengthen the back line further, and Ricardo Mareus was a late addition towards the latter few games of this half season. I was saddened to see Ednel Godet leave the club around the same time as he was performing pretty well. IN: Ea-Rhon Rogers | DL Ethan Godet | CB Ricardo Mareus | RB OUT: Devaughan Pedican | CB Matty Webb | AML Ednel Godet | ST ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- October 2025 Bears | AWAY | 1-2 | WIN Our first win of the season in my first game in charge! It was by no means pretty, but we got the job done which is all that matters. We actually went 2-0 up thanks to goals from Peter Francois & Ethan Adderley, but let our performance slip as the game went on. We let a soft goal in and they put the pressure on. I was impressed with how we held on when it mattered most. 3 points. Baha Jrs. | HOME | 2-0 | WIN A team that offered me the job at their club came to visit, and I sent them packing with their tails between their legs. A 2-0 win with Evelt Williamson & Ednel Godet starring and netting. Evelt was a former player of mine at Freeport but he left just before I did. I'm glad to have joined up with him again as he was quality last season. He's already showing that here in Nassau. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- November 2025 Dynamos | HOME | 2-0 | WIN 3 in a row for the boys from Nassau. A debut goal for Ethan Williamson and a late, late strike from experienced winger Jackner Louis gave us a massive win. We left it late, but we deserved all 3 points so I'm glad to have come through this one. They are a decent team. Western Warriors | AWAY | 1-3 | WIN Jackner Louis is really starting to show his experience out on that right wing. He's been brilliant the past two games and he showed once again that he's still got quality even at the age of 32. He scored one early and one later with Ethan Williamson netting another goal to give us that 3-1 victory. We weren't troubled massively in this one but were professional enough to come through and gain all 3 points. Baha Jrs. | AWAY | 0-4 | WIN Our best performance of the season, and against the newly promoted side Baha Jrs. We were brilliant, and I love it when we have different scorers for each goal! We have quality all over the field. We dominated this one from start to finish and we're now 5/5 in the league. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- December 2025 & January 2026 (1 game) Boca (BAH) | FA Cup Second Round | AWAY | 0-3 | WIN We've only gone and progressed nicely into the 3rd round of the FA Cup. It was an easy tie for us, and we came through it with ease. A 3-0 win thanks to goals from Ednel Godet & 2 from Jackner Louis. A fantastic performance and a chance to progress further. Dynamoes (BAH) | AWAY | 1-1 | DRAW A 1-1 draw is our first dropped points of the season so far. We've been immaculate until now, but a 1-1 draw was an alright result for us. An early strike from Peter Francois put us ahead and in control but we really let our performance drop after that. I think the lads thought it was far to easy, and they made us pay by getting that deserved equaliser. A rare draw, but it's not a bad result in all honesty. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- League Table: 6 games in, or half a season complete and we're on top of the table. As of now we'll be in that playoff spot which will decide where the trophy is heading. We've got a 3 point gap between ourselves and Western Warriors, but we also do have 2 games in hand so the gap could stretch up to 9 points. We've only got 6 games left so it's definitely in our hands as of now. Come on the Cavalier! We're also still in the FA Cup so success may be on the cards in that one too. Could we get a double? It's too soon to tell, but that's the aim for sure! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks again for reading this latest episode of the Jacobs Ladder Challenge. Things in Nassau are looking good. Senor Frogs is a new local haunt and I look forward to welcoming you all to our promotion party there soon! Tongey!

A New Challenge | Staying In The Bahamas | Cavalier FC I was sitting on my porch looking out over the ocean, drowning my sorrows after losing out in the Promotion Playoff Final, when my IPad pinged into action! I had received three different invitations to jobs: all three of them from teams in the BFA Senior League. It would've been stupid of me to not attend any of them, so I replied and went along. Cavalier FC finished in 4th position in the BFA Senior League last season. United FC finished as runners up in the whole league including the Playoff Final Bears finished as runners up in their half of the BFA Senior League As it happened, the only team to offer me the job after attending the interview was Cavalier FC. So here I am, standing infront of you all as the new manager of Cavalier FC. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Club Overview: Team Name: Cavalier FC Nickname: N/A League: BFA Senior League Founded: 1971 Kit: RED & WHITE (Home) & WHITE (Away) Facilities: Stadium: Roscow A.L. Davies Soccer Field Capacity: 1,000 (700 Seated) Training Facilities: Poor Youth Facilities: Basic Youth Recruitment: Excellent Youth Coaching: Basic --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Squad Overview: It's a fairly decent squad once again, and I'm sure I'll be making some more improvements from the transfer market. They'll be no spending money on transfers of wages so it's a free for all to improve with. We do have some very good players and every player apparently is a quality prospect once they mature a little. Ones to look out for are: Elijah Delancy | GK William Thompson-Palmer | CB Tre Bain | CM Dwayne Francois | ST --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks for taking the time to read this latest update: I'm excited to see how I fare in the top league here in the Bahamas! Up the Cavaliers! Tongey!

Freeport RFC | The Bahamas | End of Season Update | 2024/2025 Well, well, well, you're about to find out why you can't rest on your laurels! Things may be going excellently but strange things can happen in the blink of an eye! I'm absolutely fuming with how the season ended, but you'll find out why in just a second. Read on to find out. A few of you who may be waiting in Tony Macaronis for me to start the party, may be waiting for a little longer! Bahama Breeze fuelled Club Dub are no longer at the moment. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- January 2025 Baha Jrs | AWAY | 1-2 | WIN A tight victory away at Baha Jrs is a very good result. We didn't play our usual free flowing attacking football, but we did get all 3 points! Evelt Williamson got us in the lead just before the break. They got on level terms mid way through the second half, before a last second winner from Logan Wood secured us the points in a game that could've gone either way. Sharks (BAH) | AWAY | 2-3 | WIN Another tight game, and another game in which it could've gone either way. We're struggling to find our usual attacking forceful football, but I'm sure it'll be back. Two injury time goals in the first half saw us take the lead after going behind. We stretched our lead further when Williamson scored a penalty. A late goal for Sharks made it closer but we rode out the storm at the end and still claimed our maximum points. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- February 2025 Western Warriors B | HOME | 4-1 | WIN The first of two games against Western Warriors B this month, and the first of two hammerings. A Logan Wood hattrick was the highlight of the show as we showed them that we are a lot better than they are. They are bottom for a reason. Easy as pie. Western Warriors B | AWAY | 1-5 | WIN The second win this month, and a second hammering of the same team. We won 9-2 on aggregate over the two games. That impressive. Logan Wood once again showing them why he's the best striker in the league. It'll be tough to keep hold of him. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- March & April 2025 Renegades B | HOME | 4-1 | WIN Will you look at that. We found our scoring boots again, and with 4 different goalscorers it proves we have scoring ability all over the park. I'm delighted with this performance. We were never in doubt or troubled in this one. Excellent. Baha Jrs. | HOME | 4-1 | WIN Make that two 4-1 victories in a row this month. Baha Jrs were no match for our fantastic attacking football. Joseph Kirby was insane scoring a hattrick. The 2nd being an absolute stunner! We're on fire at the moment. The final game of the season was a brilliant spectacle for the fans. Where did we finish though? League Table That is an absolute battering of a league campaign! We won the league title by a whopping 18 points! That's insane after only 12 games. We absolutely dominated the rest of the league, but as of now it means nothing as we have to play in a Playoff to go up! That seems strange when you absolutely batter a league. I'm into the Bahamas Hall of Fame. Not many of you can say that eh? Islands League Promotion Playoff Final I'M ABSOLUTELY FUMING! Let me just tell you the result we've had when we've played Baha Jrs this season! HOME - Freeport 5-0 Baha Jrs - FA Cup HOME - Freeport 5-3 Baha Jrs - LEAGUE AWAY - Baha Jrs 1-2 Freeport - LEAGUE HOME - Freeport 4-1 Baha Jrs - LEAGUE Then we only go and lose in the most important game of the season! Like, how does that even happen? We only lose one game all season, that being in the FA Cup, and we've only dropped points in one league game. I'm absolutely baffled, but we'll go again next season. IN THE SAME FRICKEN LEAGUE! We miss. out on promotion after falling at the final hurdle! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks once again for reading this latest heartbreaking episode of the Jacobs Ladder Challenge. You've seen us fall at the final hurdle, but you're going to come back and read how we come back next year and win it all right? Thought so. Tongey!

Freeport RFC | The Bahamas | Mid-Season Update ||2024/2025 I've found myself a new favourite cocktail: The Bahama Breeze! It's an absolute banger when celebrating a win. I treat the coaching staff to a well deserved drink or two after every win, in what we now call "Club Dub". It's a known tradition in which cocktails start flowing, and the music starts blaring! Just a way for me to thank my coaching staff after all their hard work. Of course Toni Macaroni's is the beach bar of choice! Occasionally the players try and sneak in but me and the barman are tight and he won't let them in. They have to go down the road to Joe Conch Shack! No gate-crashing my party. Treat em mean, keep em keen! Transfers | IN & OUT Obviously there are more players leaving than joining, but that's ok. That's how you roll in the second division and on amateur contracts. Players quite commonly leave to go and sign for a club in the top league. The pay is the same, but the prestige is higher. IN Carlos Richardson | RB Rene Duval | CB Joseph Kirby | AMC OUT Sean Bethel | CB Michael Moss | CM Ambry Francois | CM Isiah Wood | ML Ronaldo Mullins | AMR Raymorn Jones | ST ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- October & November 2024 Baha Jrs.B | FA Cup 1st Round | HOME | 5-0 | WIN What a fantastic start to life in the Bahamas! A nice 5-0 win sees us progress in the FA Cup to the 2nd Round. A brilliant performance with 5 different scorers putting the ball into the back of the net. 2 before the half from Logan Wood & Evelt Williamson, before Devaughn Curry, Shakeem Lewis & Travis Green put the icing on the cake in the second half. All in all, a good days work. Renegades B | HOME | 6-1 | WIN We follow up the 5-0 win, with a first league win of the season. A 6-1 victory with a brace from Shakeem Lewis, and a massive 4 goals from Logan Wood. A little switch of player position making sure that Wood played up front worked wonders and paid dividends straight away. I'm trying to figure out who's good in the league and who isn't, and it seems that they aren't. A great first league game for the lads. Sharks (BAH) | AWAY | 3-3 | DRAW Well, I've not had to type in a different colour other than Green for a long time now. This is the first time I've dropped points in over a year. That's a crazy stat. This was a great game of football. It was back and forth with us coming back from a goal down twice, before taking the lead in the 83rd minute and losing that lead 4 minutes later. A fantastic match for the neutral and one I'm not too disappointed in. Western Warriors B | AWAY | 1-2 | WIN Back to winning ways as we beat Western Warriors B away from home. We weren't that good in all honesty, but we got the 3 points which is the main thing. Michael Moss put us ahead in the 33rd minute, before Logan Wood added to the lead in the 64th. We conceded a late goal in the 84th minute leading to a last 6 minutes of panic stations. We held on thankfully. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- December 2024 Renegades B | AWAY | 3-4 | WIN Last time out against Renegades B, we absolutely trounced them 6-1. This time it was a much closer affair. The result was the same, but it was more stressful for sure. They were ahead in the 73rd minute but a screamer from Shakeem Lewis put us back on level terms before Logan Wood broke free of the last man and found the back of the net to give us all 3 points. Sharks (BAH) | HOME | 3-1 | WIN Another win for the Freeport lads! Evelt Williamson the hero on the day as he nets a 30 minute hattrick. You can't ask for a better performance from an individual. He's a consistent performer and I'm delighted for him. He definitely deserved his MOM award. Another good win. Dynamos (BAH) | FA Cup Second Round | AWAY | 2-1 | DEFEAT Our first loss of the campaign and it comes in the FA Cup. Now success probably wasn't on the cards as we're a second tier outfit right now, but I'd like to have played a bit better. The scoreline definitely flatters us. Logan Wood grabbed our only goal of the game. I guess on reflection it's not a bad result against a Premier League side. Baha Jrs | HOME | 5-3 | WIN Back to winning ways, and back to scoring lots of goals! Evelt Williamson & Joseph Kirby both grabbed a brace, with Logan Wood grabbing the other goal. We were brilliant. The only downside beinng that we conceded 3 goals. That's not on in my eyes. Defensive training incoming so that doesn't happen again. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- League Table We're storming into a commanding lead at the top of the Group A table! We currently have a 6 point gap to Baha Jrs. who occupy that 2nd place. We also have a game in hand on them so it could well be a 9 point gap. With only 6 games to go we're in poll position to go on and win the Group. Easy sailing so far... ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks once again for taking the time to read this latest episode of the Jacobs Ladder Challenge. We're well on our way to something special here in the Bahamas, so thanks for sticking with us. Come back soon to see how the season ends and see if we can get ourself into the top tier of Bahamian football. Tongey!

Freeport RFC | The Bahamas | 2024/2025 Goodbye Anguilla, Hello Bahamas! All I've got in my head is that damn Beach Boys song. "Bermuda, Bahamas, Come on Pretty Mama" I'm here anyway, and I've been hired as the new manager of Freeport Rugby Football Club. Hopefully we will be focusing on the football side of things, rather than the rugby side as I don't have a scooby doo about rugby. It confuses me, so I'll stick to football. The side play their football in Freeport, which will come as no surprise to anyone here. They currently play in the second tier of Bahamian football, which means I'll be here for a longer time than the previous teams I've been in charge of. I'll be looking to put down some roots in a little beach bungalow, but that'll come. Freeport is such a beautiful place, and I'm guessing a fair amount of tourists visit the area! Maybe we can entice some of them to come and watch us play. Maybe some are good at football and will sign on for us! I'll offer them free beer and half priced board at my bungalow. They can do the cooking though as I don't fancy that every night! I think I've come with a foolproof plan for the future right? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Club Overview: Name: Freeport RFC Nickname: The Port Founded: 1965 League: Bahamian Island Leagues Kit: RED (Home) & WHITE (Away) Facilities: Stadium: Grand Bahama Stadium, Freeport Capacity: 4,000 (3,100 Seated) Training Facilities: Poor Youth Facilities: Poor Youth Coaching: Basic Youth Recruitment: Basic Honours: N/A - Nothing won. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Finances: Just like at my previous club: Roaring Lions, the club is in a pretty good place financially as there are very little outgoings. The wage budget is once again £0pw so anything the club makes from admission costs and sponsors isn't really coming back out again. If I'm here for a few seasons, I'll be looking at the board upgrading some facilities hopefully. We'll see anyway. At the very least, they'll be able to pay for my coaching qualification courses. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Squad Overview: The club has a really good set of players, and a very god number of them to provide some squad depth and rotation options. I think the only thing of note is that we lack that top end quality in serious numbers. We only really have 4 good players at the club: Marc Laguerre (AMR) Evelt Williamson (CM) Dwayne Francois (CM) Michael Julmis (AMR) It's a shame that two of them play the same position but I'll fit them in somehow. I'll be looking to delve into the transfer market to pick up some more quality in defence, and probably up front too! We'll definitely need it to mount a title challenge. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Aims: The club finished bottom of their respective league last season, but it was pretty close overall! I'm not sure why Baha Jrs. B got relegated in 3rd, instead of us in 5th. That doesn't make much sense but we'll see as we play through the season. Results are obviously going to be close and each game is going to be piviotal. We play each other 3 times so I'll be expecting to push towards the title if I can. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Thanks for reading this latest episode of the Jacobs Ladder Challenge, make sure you pop by or even comment below if you're enjoying it. I'll update you around 1/2 way through the season to assess how we are getting on. Tongey!

Roaring Lions | Anguilla | End of Season Update | 2023/2024 An unbeaten season on the cards? What an achievement that would be this early on in my career. It would certainly make future employers look twice that's for sure! Anyway, can anyone remember how my daily life goes here? Cocktails and Wins! I think I'm going to end up being an alcoholic by the time I finish managing in the islands. The local bartenders keep giving me free drinks for every goal the team scores! I'm pissed most nights. Here's how we got on in the last 5 games of the season. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- March 2024 ALHCS Spartans | AWAY | 0-3 | WIN This was the game that could've really derailed our title charge! They were closely monitoring us and keeping us in check at the top of the table. Well we put that to bed with this result. It was all square at the break which was a rarity, but we put the pedal down in the second half. Jermal Richardson, Jarvis Jones & Kayini Brooks-Belle with the goals. Kicks Utd | HOME | 5-1 | WIN Well, I don't think we've had a game where we haven't scored 3 or more in all competitions. That record continued with a 5-1 victory! Kayini Brooks-Belle with 2 goals, and a superb perfect hattrick for Tyrique Lake who finished it off with a calm penalty in the last seconds. Attackers (AIA) | AWAY | 2-7 | WIN More goals! Well actually, LOTS more goals! Kayini Brooks-Belle did what he does best, and for the first time this season he scored 4! He's just a different gravy baby! We're rompng to the league title, and tbh my attention as switched to having a perfect season! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- April 2024 West End Predators | HOME | 3-0 | WIN The West End Predators weren't nearly as predator'ish as their name makes them sound like. In fact, they were rubbish! We made them look average and even though they were 2nd in the league at the time we turned them over. A brace from Shermari Bryan saw things out after the main man up top put us ahead. 1 more game to go! Masters (AIA) | AWAY | 0-3 | WIN 3 first half goals from 3 different players saw us take a comprehensive lead into the break and made the second half a non-contest! We coasted to an unbeaten season and deserved every single victory! AN UNBEATEN SEASON FOR THE ROARING LIONS! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- League Table 9 wins out of 9 for the Lions, and my first unbeaten season for a god damn while! The goal difference is remarkable for only 9 games! In fact we only conceded 6 goals in the league, whilst scoring 40! Incredible! I haven't even waited for the final games to be played before I posted this as it's not even close! We've won the league by a minimum of 8 points! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Player Stats Goals: 1) Kayini Brooks-Belle - 22 (13) 2) Shemari Bryan - 8 (11) 3) Jarvis Jones - 8 (13) Assists: 1) Jarvis Jones - 8 (13) 2) Jermal Richardson - 8 (13) 3) Shermari Bryans - 7 (11) Average Rating: 1) Kayini Brooks-Belle - 8.13 (13) 2) Jarvis Jones - 7.86 (13) 3) Shermari Bryan - 7.75 (11) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks for taking the time to read this latest episode of the Jacobs Ladder Challenge! Another country ticked off in Tier One, meaning one only more to go and we can climb a rung to Tier Two. Where will be next? Who knows, but check back here to find out! Tongey!

Roaring Lions | Anguilla | Mid-Season Update | 2023/2024 Anguilla may be done and dusted pretty quickly! As I said in my previous post, we are clearly the best team in the league and I'm clearly the best manager in the league. Just joking about that bit. I always find these early Tiers to be pretty easy once you get a coaching qualification or two, as the players instantly raise their game for you once they are done! I'm delighted with how we've started and you'll see why in just a minute. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Transfers | In & Out I wanted to bring in at least one CB as we were severely lacking here, and I'm glad that I managed to do just that. Sedu is pretty damn good at his role! He'll definitely be a leader back there! Jarvis was a bit of a last second signing as I needed a little bit more attacking depth and he'll come in to provide that for me! In terms of outgoings, we only saw one player leave the club in Yariel Fleming! He wasn't guaranteed first team football so jumped at the chance to join Barcelona Atletico from the Dominican Republic. IN Sedu Bradshaw | CB Jarvis Jones | AMR OUT Yariel Fleming | AMR --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- November 2023 UPRISING |Presidents Cup Group B | HOME | 4-1 | WIN What a start to life in charge of the Roaring Lions! A 4-1 victory in which we dominated the show from start to finish. Kayini Brooks-Belle got us off to a flyer netting in the 3rd minute before firing us further ahead in the 34th. Jermal Richardson headed home a 3rd to give us a great cushion at the break. UPRISING got one back early in the second half but Shemari Bryan slotted a penalty past the keeper a minute later. West End Predators | Presidents Cup Group B | AWAY | 0-3 | WIN Lifes easier on the islands! It's simple. You train, you play a game, you win, you drink beer. A Kayini Brooks-Belle hattrick saw us run out 3-0 winners and cement our place as Group Winners and into the Semi-Finals! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- December 2023 Ballers (AIA) | Presidents Cup Semi-Final | HOME | 6-1 | WIN More goals for the Roaring Lions! It's fantastic football and we're showing why we're the best in the country by a mile! Jarvis Jones & Kayini Brooks-Belle both got braces, with Jermal Richardson & Bakari Battice grabbing the others. As easy a Semi-Final as we'll get. Can we secure the trophy at the first attempt? We'll face UPRISING again in the Final. UPRISING | Presidents Cup Final | NEUTRAL | 4-0 | WIN WOW. I can't actually think of a more comprehensive cup run as this. We dominated from start to finish, and the Final was no different. We should've been ahead in the first half but none of our 13 shots in the half could find the back of the net. We put that right at the break and Jermal Richardson, Tyrique Lake, Kayini Brooks-Belle & Shermari Bryan all got us goals to give us that trophy! Go on the Lions! ROAR ON! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- February & March (1 Game) 2024 Diamond (AIA) | AWAY | 1-5 | WIN The league finally kicked off a month after we lifted the Presidents Cup! We showed no sign of letting that affect us as we continued our lethal form and came out with a 5-1 victory over Diamond. We were brilliant and a first 3 points for us in the league! Ballers (AIA) | HOME | 4-2 | WIN Another game, another goalfest as we score 4 more! Kayini Brooks-Belle with ANOTHER hattrick as he claims the match ball once again. Shemari Bryan proving to be the ever dependent from the spot. A shame to concede 2 for the first time in Anguilla. +3. Development (AIA) | HOME | 6-0 | WIN WOW. Goals, Goals, Goals! 6 of the best for the Roaring Lions! We're not just purring along, we're absolutely ROARING! Can't quite believe how good we are and how dominant we are. I knew we were heavy favourites for the league but this is something else. UPRISING | HOME | 4-0 | WIN Another game against UPRISING. The 3rd time we've played them and the 3rd time we've scored 4 against them. Jarvis Jones the new signing came in and scored a lovely little hattrick. He nicked the penalty away from Bryan who wasn't happy. Kayini Brooks-Belle! Fantastic once again and we're 12/12 points in the league with 5 games to go! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- League Table A dominant start to the season sees us sitting pretty at the top of the tree with only 5 games to go! I absolutely love small seasons as you can just rattle through them. Turns the bad around quickly and just focus on the good! Look at that goal difference! +16 over 4 games. ALHCS Spartans are hot on our tails, but I'll back us to beat them when it comes down to it! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks for reading this latest episode of the Jacobs Ladder Challenge! We are performing well as we should be, but can we maintain it over the last 5 games? I think so, but funnier things have happened in Football. I'll see you all at the end of the season! Tongey!