Rick87

Unfortunately, this is on hold for now, FM crashed and I lost a month's worth of games since I had last saved. I just have no motivation to go back and redo them at the moment. I've kept the save so that I can hopefully return to it in the later.

6th - 12th November 2023 Monday: *Rightback Adam Walton is back in training following a twisted ankle against Marine last month. Tuesday: *Following his hat-trick against Guiseley, Scott Allison is named in the NPL Premier team of the week. The striker has eight goals in ten appearances so far this season. *Marske United, the only club beneath us in the NPL currently has appointed Grant Black as their new manager, he was previously in charge at Ossett United. *Jim Atkinson leaves the club after five years to join Hebburn Town in NPL Division One East. Good luck to him, he will probably do well dropping down a step as it was glaringly obvious that he was a liability between the posts this season. Farewell Jim *One out, one in; as we complete the loan signing of Carlisle's 17-year-old prospect Will Maddison. The supporters aren't too impressed by this signing, they think we already have enough cover in the right-back position and Will is no better than Aidy Roxburgh or Greg McCarragher. Frankly, I disagree, both Aidy and Carra have been prone to blunders that have cost us dearly, and neither add much when supporting attacks. I will be giving young Will a chance against Lancaster this weekend. Friday: *Three changes to the team before tomorrow's trip down the A595 to Lancaster, one of them forced; Lewis Reilley comes in for the injured Steven Rigg up front. As I mentioned above, Will Maddison goes straight into the team, and Greg McCarragher drops to the bench. Finally, Connor Tinnion is restored to the starting lineup at the expense of Ciran Casson in the middle of the park. Saturday: *For the second game in a row, we go down 4-3. Since changing to 4-4-2 four games ago against Ilkeston, we have scored at least twice in every game, so things are working from an attacking point of view, the key to us getting results though rests with us tightening things up at the back. *Lewis Reilly had a mixed game, he scored his first goal of the season to make it 1-1, but then missed an interception that ultimately cost us the game. * Will Maddison became our youngest ever player, he turns 18 on Monday. It was also his professional debut, so quite an occasion for the lad. *Whilst Will was making his first appearance, Dav Symington was making his 200th for the Reds. Since joining from Carlisle in 2015, he suffered relegation in 2020 and celebrated promotion last year. So far he found the net 60 times from the left wing, with hopefully many more to come! Dav Symington; Two Centuries and not out! *Marske have surprisingly won their first game under their new manager Grant Black, they beat FC United 2-1. Great for them, not so great for us as they can now pass us and drop us to the bottom of the table if things go badly next week. Next Week: *A double header next week, on Tuesday evening we host Grantham Town of the NPL Division One East in the NPL Challenge Cup, Grantham are 13th in their division. I said previously that I wouldn't be taking this competition seriously, however, I am reconsidering. A game against a club a step below could provide a moral-boosting win, equally a defeat to a lower-league club could seriously damage it. So I think I will be putting out a strong side after all. Following the cup fixture, we welcome 19th placed Bamber Bridge to Cumberland. This one is an important game for us, it is the first time we've faced another club in the relegation struggle since we played Marske on the opening day. I've said all along that if we can win our games against the teams around us, we should be ok. But of course, we must indeed win games like this if we are to remain in the NPL Premier.

Thanks mate, I think things have improved a bit since changing to 4-4-2 and I'm hopeful we can stay up still. 30th October - 5th November 2023 Monday: *Our relegation rivals Warrington Rylands have a new manager, former Bristol Rovers player and coach Lee Mansell takes over at the Rec. We will be heading there at the end of November. Tuesday: *A shock result elsewhere in the NPL Premier; Morpeth stuffed FC United 6-1 to climb to seventh. Wednesday: *My hometown club, Sutton Coldfield Town make an offer to sign the transfer listed Jim Atkinson on free. I accept, even though the goalkeeper says he isn't interested in swapping Cumbria for Birmingham. *Scott Allison comes second to Macclesfield's Kane Drummond in the Player of the Month award. Scotty has been in fine form, scoring four goals in three games throughout October. *It's the first of the month, and that means it's performance review time; The pre-season media prediction was for us to finish 18th, and narrowly avoid relegation, I still think this is achievable, if we focus on beating the teams around us. *Our monthly financial update is available, if I can offload Jim Atkinson that will save us £400 per month and give me some room for maneuvering on our maxed-out wage budget. Friday: *This weekend's opponents, Guisley are excellent at set pieces, so we have been focusing heavily on routines in training this week. In midfield, Ciaran Casson is in for Connor Tinnion, Tinners is more of an attacking threat, but with Guisley being top of the league I want an extra ball winner breaking up the play in the middle of the park. Saturday: *Obviously, we lost, but this was an outstanding performance by my team against the league leaders, twice we pegged them back after going behind, and I thought it was game over when Liam Tongue scored his second to make it 4-2, but we again roused ourselves and cut their lead through Scott Allison completing an excellent hat-trick. We had a great chance to equalize in stoppage time as Dav Symington slipped through and beat the keeper, only for the linesman's flag to go up. Of course, it's not ideal to lose, but I'm happy with the performance, and the improved showings in the three games where I have switched to 442, if we play like this against the other teams battling the drop, I think we will win comfortably. Concerningly, I had to bring Steven Rigg off, the big forward twisted his ankle and will be out of commission for at least a month. Not ideal as I only have three forwards in the squad and one of them, Lewis Reilly hasn't found the net once this season yet. Sunday: *I've asked our Cumbrian neighbors, Carlisle United, about possibly loaning their 17-year-old fullback Will Maddison. Neither Aidy Roxburgh or Greg McCarragher have been consistent on the right. Both have made mistakes that have cost us points this season and I would like to get someone a bit better with the ball at their feet when supporting attacks. As Carlisle is a senior affiliate club, the loan will be free, with us required to pay no wages. Next Week: *A juicy fixture this week as we take on our closest geographical rival in the NPL Premier, Lancaster City at Giant Axe (One of the best stadium names around), around 60 miles to the South. The Dolly Blues are 4th in the table and aiming to reach the National Leagues this season, so it will be yet another tough fixture, but if we can match our performance against Guiseley, we have a chance.

23rd - 29th October 2023 Monday: *During our monthly staff meeting, coach Jamie Devitt suggests that we should transfer list Jim Atkinson as his performances this season don't merit his £100 per week wages. Whilst Jim is a firm fan favorite and an influential member of the squad, he has conceded a few he should have kept out and I do now have four goalkeepers in the squad. So I agree with the advice and list the 28-year-old. Whether we will have many inquiries for the former Queen of the South, Annan and Gretna keeper, I don't know. Tuesday: *Physio Caitlin provides her weekly injury update, only fullback Adam Walton remains on her treatment table, he's out for another three weeks after twisting his ankle in the defeat to Marine. Friday: *Preparing for the trip to Basford tomorrow, I have opted against any personnel changes following our win against Ilkeston last week, I will however be telling the players to float their crosses in for Steven Rigg and Scott Allison as their goalkeepers have an eccentric side and struggle with their aerial reach. Saturday: Gutting, we played extremely well for the first hour of this match and thoroughly deserved to be 2-0 up, but in the space of twenty minutes, things went completely pear-shaped. I was furious we allowed a comfortable lead to evaporate in such a way when we looked to be cruising to three points. This was an amazing chance to build on last week's win and bring us within a point of escaping the relegation zone, but we blew it big time. Saturday: Things don't get any easier next week as we host top-of-the-table Guiseley, It goes without saying I would much rather be going into a tough match like this on the back of consecutive wins, but not to be.

Liechtenstein I reckon. Them or Spain anyway. it's a toss-up.

16th - 22nd October 2023 Wednesday: *The NPL Challenge Cup pits us against NPL Division One East team Grantham Town at home next month. This is the last of the three cups available to us, and the only one we are still active in. Frankly, it isn't important enough to risk injuries to key players as we battle relegation, so I will use this competition to give my fringe players some game time. Friday: *We host Ilkeston Town tomorrow, the Robins are seventh after a mid-week win over Stafford Rangers. You may remember we have already tangled with Ian Deakin's men this season, they beat us 2-1 at the Manor Ground in September to end our involvement in the FA Cup. I have made a tactical switch for this one, changing from 5-3-2, to 4-4-2, or 4-2-4 depending on how you look at it. I've told Greg McCarragher to sit narrower to make life harder for forwards and wingers who like to cut in from wide positions, I've also instructed him to stop dribbling as he has conceded possession all too often. Carra being deeper will allow Charlie Birch more license on the other flank to use his attacking skills to get up and support Dav Symington. If anyone has any feedback on my tactics I'm always keen to get advice. Saturday: A massive three points! Fortunate or not, I'll take it. My team, particularly the defense was massively improved, and the back four looked solid throughout, with Goose and Finn Wallbank making a robust partnership. Carra was also far more effective with the stripped-back player instructions I mentioned yesterday. I admit I feared the worst when Connor Dixon canceled out Scotty Allison's opener midway through the second half, those feelings of doubt were amplified when the Robins were awarded, in my opinion, a soft penalty. Thankfully former Newcastle man James Perch's spot kick smashed against the post. That bit of luck was most welcome, and indeed we took full advantage of this upturn in fortune, Allison was on hand to tap in an inch-perfect Dav Symington cross just eight minutes later for his brace and what proved to be the winner. Even with the win, we are still firmly in the red zone, but make no mistake this was an important result that prevented us from being cut adrift any further. Next Week: We venture down to Nottingham to face 12th-place Basford United, with hopes of following up on the win over Ilkeston with another three points. The Lions are managed by James Jepson, who I'm familiar with from watching him in his playing days at Gresley Rovers when I lived in that part of Derbyshire.

Good luck with Forfar, I remember having a fun few seasons with them on an old FM as part of the British Steel Challenge. Nice to see you bringing in some of your St Roch's players in.

9th - 15th October 2023 Monday: *Lewis Moore has just turned seventeen, and thus, is now eligible for a senior contract, which I have duly offered the promising midfielder. While he hasn't played in a competitive game yet, he did feature several times in pre-season, doing well, he is certainly in my plans for the future. *Scarborough have accepted my loan offer for goalkeeper Matt Bancroft. The 25-year-old has yet to feature for the National League North side this season. Thursday: *We complete the Bancroft loan signing until the end of the season, best of all we won't be paying a penny in fees or wages! I've added him to the starting lineup for Saturday, hopefully, that isn't a mistake as he isn't yet match-sharp. Friday: *Lewis Moore has accepted our offer and is now on a non-contract deal. *I've had to speak to Lewis Reilly who only reached a 4.6 rating in training. With Scott Allison back in training, I have dropped Reilly until he improves his efforts. *Club legend David Hewson, who is now a coach at Ashington publicly criticises Jim Atkinson for his performances in goal this season. Jim has conceded a fair few goals, he hasn't been helped by the players in front of him at all; Saturday: Another thumping, another game where we didn't play all that badly but were let down by sloppy defensive mistakes. All of Boro's goals were preventable. Debutant Matt Bancroft isn't match sharp yet and it showed, I am hopeful that he will improve with another game or two under his belt. I switched to 4-4-2 in the second half with Sam Smith coming off for Lewis Reilley which almost instantly improved things as we started creating chances, with better finishing, we might have managed to get back in the game. Unfortunately, we only managed to convert one of those chances in stoppage time, when it was already too late. Four points adrift in the relegation zone, is certainly not ideal, but our next two fixtures are both against sides in the bottom half of the table, so I'm hoping we can pick up some points. Next Week: I'm treating the visit of 11th place Ilkeston Town as a good chance to pick up some vital points and avenge our defeat by them in the FA Cup.

I think most on here have a far more immersive football knowledge than the average Baz the builder who goes about calling every other country 'farmers leagues', and thus we can appreciate that winning International tournaments isn't as easy as just turning up because we have a handful of good players.

I expect in years to come, when we're back to being bundled out of tournaments in the last 16 or QF's by the likes of Iceland, the Southgate era will be referred to much more fondly than it is presently.

Thanks mate, yeah the weekly updates slow progress but I do find them more immersive. Glad you're enjoying it, keep reading. 2nd - 8th October 2023 Monday: Concerningly, the supporters are disappointed with my start at Worky; In my defense, except for the narrow defeat by Bradford PA in August, every game we have lost has been against clubs who are in the top half of the table and would expect to be competing for promotion. In the matches against the teams who are expected to be our fellow relegation battlers, we have picked up four points from a possible nine. If we can keep picking up points against the other teams in the bottom half we should be ok. Thursday: Acting upon Stu Brightwell's first player recommendations in his new role as Assistant Manager/Scout, I have made a loan offer for Scarborough's goalkeeper Matt Bancroft. Both Jim Atkinson and Danny Eccles have been poor between the posts so far, to be fair they haven't been helped by the weak defense in front of them, but I think a more reliable keeper will help further tighten things up at the back. Matt Bancroft Friday: * Scott Allison is back in training after being forced off at halftime with a twisted knee in the 6-2 defeat against Marine. *I'm handing center-back Camron Gbadebo his first start of the season tomorrow, Finn Wallbank drops to the bench. Kitt Nelson is also dropped with Adam Walton coming in in the right wingback position. Saturday: Well, it wasn't another 6-2 humbling, but we still struggled to contain Marine who were pretty firmly in control for most of the game, we did have a few bright spells but none of our efforts went in until Brad Hubbold's long-range strike squirmed under Marine keeper Luke Hutchinson with two minutes to go. By then it was a case of too little too late, as we fell at the first hurdle in the FA Trophy. Adam Walton's injury will keep him sidelined for around six weeks, he suffered a twisted ankle whilst going in for a tackle. Ciaran Casson also had to come off, albeit with a less serious condition, he has a calf problem but should be back in time for next week's game against Radcliffe. Next Week: Another tough fixture, we are away to 3rd place Radcliffe Boro in the league.

Just caught up with your story @_Ben_. Good solid first half of the season. Hopefully, you can go on and finish as high as possible to get some prize money to strengthen for a promotion push over the next couple of seasons. Beautiful layout and custom graphics as usual mate.

25th September - 1st October 2023 Monday: *We hold the monthly staff meeting this morning, upon the advice of my coach Jamie Devitt, I have approached 44-year-old former Hartlepool player Stuart Brightwell to be our assistant manager and chief scout. Stuart was an assistant at Whitley Bay most recently. The quality of our training is poor due to there just being me and Devitt on the coaching staff, and we have no scouting at all and thus no opposition reports. So needless to say this is a much-needed appointment should Stuart join. Stuart Brightwell Tuesday: *I have shifted tactically from 4-4-2 to 5-3-2 for tomorrow's trip to Atherton Collieries. We badly need to sort out our porous defense and adding an extra man in there should help. Dav Symington being more central instead of in his natural wide position may take some getting used to. Dan Wordsworth will be the lynchpin at the back, whereas I'll be asking Charlie Birch to get forward and cause problems for the opposition fullbacks. Greg McCarragher is preferred on the right side to Aidy Roxburgh who drops to the bench. Scott Allison suffered a twisted knee in the mauling by Marine, so Lewis Reilly comes in for his first start of the season. Wednesday: *Good news to wake up to as Stuart Brightwell has accepted our offer to take up the dual role of assistant manager and chief scout. Having an extra body on the staff could make a big difference. f * Onto the game; Yes!!!! A precious three points and a clean sheet to boot, as the tactical shake-up pays dividends. Birch made a constant menace of himself down the left flank and teed up Dav beautifully to head in the only goal of the game just before halftime. I was pleased by our robust defense even when Colls came at us with the kitchen sink late on. That is the first time I have been able to say that as Reds boss so far. The win isn't enough to lift us out of the relegation zone, however, it is a huge boost as we prepare for Stafford at the weekend. Thursday: *New assistant manager Stuart Brightwell has provided his first analysis of our recent games; Friday: *I've opted against making any changes to the team for the visit of Stafford Rangers tomorrow. After winning for the first time this season I don't want to upset the applecart. I will need to manage substitutions carefully though as some of the lads are looking a bit tired. Saturday: A horrible ten-minute spell cost us the game in what was otherwise a good performance, we had more of the ball and had plenty of chances, Dav Symington alone had enough clear-cut chances to have at least saved a point on another day. Tiredness was also a factor with several players struggling a bit after successive weeks of back-to-back games. A win was always going to be a tough ask against promotion-chasing Stafford so I'm not too disappointed with losing, but I felt our overall performance merited more than this. *Kitt Nelson picked up his fifth yellow of the season, meaning he is banned for one match. I attempted to use him as a complete wingback, but this didn't work as I had Charlie Birch also doing this on the left, this left the back three exposed as both wingbacks bombed forward. I was forced to change this during the first half. It's as you were as far as the table is concerned, albeit we now have the worst goal difference in the division. Sunday: *First of the month; here is our financial statement for September. A tidy £40k profit, mainly due to the gate receipts from the extra fixtures we've played this month. Next Week: *With the memory of our 6-2 pounding last week fresh in our mind, we once again face Marine, this time in the FA Trophy 3rd Qualifying round. Can we avoid another drubbing by the Merseysiders?

18th - 24th September 2023 Monday: *I have been down the Job Centre, no, not to sign on! at least not yet, though if results don't improve, that may not be too long in coming. I have placed an advert for an assistant manager who I hope can double up as a scout to go and watch oppositions and give me more detailed dossiers for fixtures. Better preparations will inevitably help us. *The Under-18's are out of the FA Youth Cup following a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Coalville Town. *Jim Atkinson is back between the posts for the Whitby game tomorrow, my only change from the loss to Ilkeston on Saturday. Tuesday: It was a frustrating evening, we played well early on, taking the lead through a wonder strike from Ceiran Casson, who struck first time from 30 yards or more. Sadly we allowed the hosts to take charge of the ball after that and in the second half they broke down our fragile defense, a simple through ball unlocking the central pairing with consummate ease, exposing their lack of pace as Stephen Walker raced through the middle to score past Atkinson. I would have been happy to take a draw and get a point on the board, not to be however as Junior Mondal headed in from a corner with 15 minutes to go. We almost equalized late on when Steven Rigg hit the post, but unfortunately, our winless run went on. Strangely despite the loss, we moved up a place to 21st as Marske lost also and they have a worse goal difference than us. * In desperate need of some defensive stability, I have turned to Reds legend Dan Wordsworth, who left the club last season after making 207 appearances for Worky. He will stretch my wage budget to its top end, however, it will be worth it if we can stop concerning so many goals. Dan Wordsworth (or Goose, as he is affectionately known) receives a guard of honor in his last game for Workington. the former captain could be on his way back to the Borough Park setup. Friday: We complete the (re)signing of Dan Wordsworth, he's a no-nonsense, tough tackling centreback who I really hope will plug the leaks at the back. I've put him straight into the team to face Marine tomorrow which is a risk considering he hasn't played a game since leaving us at the end of last season. In more returning hero news, Connor Tinnion is now back to fitness and returns to the lineup in the heart of midfield. Tinners is the beating heart of the midfield so it will be great to have him back, even if he will probably need to regain some sharpness before getting back to his best. Saturday: Marine were heavily favored before kickoff, even so, this was pretty abysmal. I have to take responsibility, it was a mistake and perhaps unfair on the players to start Dan Wordsworth and Connor Tinnion, neither of who were match sharp. We just couldn't get to grips with the pace of Sol Solomon who ran the back four ragged, scoring four times. Despite the scoreline, we didn't even play that badly, we had the lion's share of possession and lots of chances, we were just opened up by the counter over and over. I have to be honest, the thought of packing it in crossed my mind at full time. I will stick it out however in the hope of turning things around. I do think I need to change things up tactically though. I'm considering a switch to 5-3-2 as I have five centrebacks in the squad, some extra cover at the back could be what we need to stop this rot. Even at this early stage, things don't look great in the league table, we drop back down to the bottom following this rout. Sunday: * The gods of the draw have a cruel sense of humor as the 3rd Qualifying round for the FA Trophy pits us against Marine, who smashed us 6-2 just yesterday. *I hold a team meeting to try and lift morale, my pep talk gets a good reaction with the players appearing inspired. Hopefully, that carries over onto the pitch next week. *I've also been re-working my training plan, putting in extra work on our defense and tactics as I look to introduce a 5-3-2 system, this will require our star player Dav Symington to adapt to playing wing-back however, or I could perhaps utilize him as a deep-lying forward, but I'm not sure how well that will work alongside target man Steven Rigg. Next Week: * Another two-game week, on Wednesday we travel down to Manchester to take on Atherton Collieries who are 13th in the NPL, obviously I expect a far better performance from my team than I got against Marine. We then welcome Stafford Rangers to Workington on Saturday, defeat is likely to 4th place Rangers, but I want to give them a fight at least.

You probably made the right decision to hold off on moving clubs at this point, hopefully, you can continue to grow St Roch's and build a squad capable of challenging for promotion. Great win over East Stirlingshire there as well. On an unrelated note, I'm quite interested in the Strathclyde Cup as I've been tinkering with the editor and building the ancient kingdom of Strathclyde, basically, the South-Western part of modern Scotland and Cumbria that was also part of the kingdom. I hadn't realized there was a cup competition already in existence.

Going on strong at the moment mate, keep it going. I really like your custom graphics and your layout too. Excellent effort.

Sad to think that Baddeil and Skinners song that sang of 'thirty years of hurt' will now be thirty years old itself when the 2026 WC rolls around. Special anniversary edition incoming.

Good luck with Charlton. as you say, it's hard to believe it's been twenty years since they were in the top flight.

That was our chance to keep them on the ropes and go for the throat.we sat back and invited them onto us

Wow, a very bitter sweet final day. Congratulations on the cup win. Build on it and get that promotion next time.

11th - 17th September 2023 Monday: *Kitt Nelson is named in the Divisional team of the week. *Connor Tinnion is back on the training pitch, albeit with a lightened workload as he recovers from a knee ligament injury. Friday: *Three changes to the team for tomorrow's trip to Ilkeston; Bobby Carroll starts in central midfield in place of Brad Hubbold who struggled against FC United, Charlie Birch returns at left back at James Best's expense and Aidy Roxburgh is back from suspension at right-back, Greg McCarragher gives way for him. Bobby Carroll Saturday: *I made the late decision to drop Jim Atkinson in goal in favor of Danny Eccles, Jim got a dreadful 4.6 rating in training this week, I have warned him before about lack of effort in training, so he only has himself to blame. *Caitlin passes Tinners as capable of playing 45 minutes, I decide against selecting him for today's game as I'd prefer he got some action with the reserves first, he might feature against Whitby next week though. *Our FA Cup journey is over for another year, again we found ourselves going behind early and having to rally. In fairness my players gave it a good go and would have forced a replay had Steven Rigg's 90th minute effort not come back off the post. Liam Short came off the bench to score his first Reds goal late on. *Former Stoke and Birmingham defender turned Hanley Town manager Ryan Shotton was in the crowd, apparently watching Ciran Casson who he's interested in signing. He can do one, my policy is never to do business with anyone associated with Birmingham City. Next Week: It's a double header this week, first, on Tuesday we travel to the Yorkshire coast to take on Whitby Town who are currently 7th in the NPL, and also go into the game on the back of elimination from the FA Cup, in their case by Radcliffe Boro. Then, on Saturday we welcome 11th place Marine to Cumberland, they defeated Bradford PA 2-1 in their last game.

4th - 10th September 2023 Wednesday: *Ilkeston Town defeated Guisborough 2-0 in the FA Cup, meaning we will travel to Derbyshire in the second qualifying round. 37-year-old James Perch, a familiar name to Newcastle, Notts Forest, and QPR fans was on the scoresheet for Ilkeston. *I've been tinkering with my training routines, the club atmosphere is low at the moment, so I've penciled in some team bonding every week for the next month to hopefully brighten everyone's mood a little. Friday: *Two changes for the FC United game tomorrow. Greg McCarragher comes in at right-back as Aidy Roxburgh still has one game left of his three-game ban and I'm not convinced by Adam Walton yet. Preston loanee Kitt Nelson returns to the line-up having been dropped for Liam Short in the previous game. Goalkeeper Jim Atkinson keeps his place between the posts after his good showing at Marske in the cup and the players remain in a 4-4-2 formation. Saturday: A cracker of a game, it's just a shame about the result! To be fair, my lads responded well after conceding two goals early on, not letting FCU out of reach, Steven Rigg was on form with a brace, and Scott Allison really should have had two as well, he had a golden opportunity to make it 4-4 late on but fired wide whilst clean through on goal. The late penalty put to bed what had been a spirited effort in the second half. We were never likely to beat the league leaders, but we did put up a good fight so I'm happy. Unfortunately, it doesn't help our league position, still propping up the table. It also can't be ignored that we have conceded five goals for the second consecutive league match. Whilst changing to 4-4-2 has improved things at the top end of the field, we look just as shaky at the back, something that badly needs remedying before we find ourselves cut adrift in the relegation zone. Next Week: *We are back on the FA Cup trail next weekend as we go to Ilkeston's New Manor Ground. The Robins are currently third in the Northern Premier League, whereas we are dead last currently. Can we upset the form book and continue on our cup adventure?

Good luck, South America is fun to play, I had a enjoyable save in Bolivia with Club Aurora but bitterly regretted leaving to move to Argentina when Racing came knocking. Anyway, good start, that stadium looks pretty spectacular with the steep sides and mountains nearby!

28th August - 3rd September 2023 Monday: *Our monthly staff meeting yields little in the way of workable advice, in terms of backroom staff, there is just myself, coach Jamie Devitt and physio Catilin Gribbon. I would like to hire another coach/assistant manager but everyone I've contacted wants a higher wage than I'm prepared to give. Tuesday: *Weekly injury update from Caitlin; only the one lad on the treatment table currently. Conor Tinnion is between 2 and 4 weeks away from returning from his knee injury. Friday: *First of the month, the chairman sends through our financial update; It's a concern to see us lose nearly £18k in a month, especially as I am operating with skeletal backroom staff, non-contract players, and no scouting. * I've made a host of changes for tomorrow's game, including a formation switch from 4-3-3 to 4-4-2. Only four players (Steven Rigg, Brad Hubbold, Dav Symington, and Sam Smith) keep their places from the drubbing at Macclesfield. I feel we need to freshen things up as we have simply not created anything going forward which has left the fragile defence badly exposed. Saturday: *Much, much better! not just the result, but the overall performance, and creativity were greatly improved. having a second forward helped us in transition, with just Steven Rigg to aim for up front we were constantly losing possession and inviting pressure, however with Scott Allison playing off of him in a poacher role, and Dav Symington overlapping from the left flank we countered much more fluidly. *21-year-old James Best made his debut at left-back, the former Penrith man got a solid 6.9 rating on his Reds bow. *We receive £2.25k for winning in the first qualifying round, which goes some way to negate the loss the club made last month. Sunday: *The draw for the next round of the FA Cup is made, we will travel to either North Yorkshire to face Northern League Division One side Guisborough Town, or Derbyshire to take on Ilkeston Town, who are currently third in the same division as us. Our trip to Whitby town has been moved to accommodate the cup fixture. Next Week: *We have the visit of FC United of Manchester to Borough Park next Saturday with the two sides bookending the Northern Premier League Table, FCM are top, having beaten Bradford PA, Ashton United, and Matlock, whereas we are bottom of the pile with just the one point so far.