CM4 - Lincoln City, 2004-05

[QuikSand]

Lincoln City, 2004-05

This thread continues my career as manager of Lincoln City, a Third Division English club in Championship Manager 4, started following the release of expansion pack #4. I’m playing with “lower league rules” – all fictional players, no fancy tactics. So far, the budget has been strained – but the on-field results have been pretty decent.

Thread History:
Lincoln City, 2002-03
Lincoln City, 2003-04

Team History:

SEASON   League          Pos   W  D  L   GF  GA   Pts

2002-03  Third Division  6th  23 11 12   71  45    80
2003-04  Third Division  2nd  28  9  9   82  41    93   

From here, we will start up in July, and kick off preparations for the new season.

Here, as a refresher, is a recap of our player performance from the 03-04 season:

Keepers            Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App   Con  AvgR

Darren Baines       27  £300   £16K   Rushing Out,Eccentricity             24    15  7.33
Steve Howarth       18  £275   £16K   Determ,Stamina,Bravery,Agility       21    22  7.28
Alan Ryan           24  £550   £18K   Kicking,Comm,OneonOnes                5     9  7.00

Defenders          Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App     G  A  MoM AvgR

Martin Gibbons      23  £700  £140K   Decisions,Determ,Stamina             40     0  1   5  7.52
Michael Kelly       21  £1.0K  £16K   Stamina,Finishing,Aggression         41     3  2   0  7.09
David Francis       21  £1.1K  £18K   WorkRate,Determ,Aggression           38     0  3   1  7.10
Andy Davies         21  £375   £16K   Heading,Bravery,Marking,Jumping      35(1)  0  2   7  7.44
Andrew Cross        23  £160   £16K   Heading,Jumping,Strength             23     0  2   4  7.52
Ryan Hughes         16  £ 75          Heading,Creativity,Positioning       10     0  0   0  7.40
Andy Hughes         20  £300   £16K   Determ,Teamwork,WorkRate              2     0  0   0  6.00
Ian Hutchinson      26  £475   £16K   Determ,Marking,Bravery,Jumping        0(10) 0  0   0  7.09

Midfielders        Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App     G  A  MoM AvgR

Gary Webb           24  £1.0K  £16K   Passing,Technique,Stamina,Flair      40     6  2   0  7.22
Richard Lewis       21  £1.0K  £16K   Dribbling,Acceleration,Pace          40     9  3   1  7.25
Lee Williamson      22  £400   £40K   WashingUp,Jumping,Bravery,SetPieces  37    19 13   8  7.67
Jason Wilson        20  £950   £40K   WorkRate,Determ,Aggression,Infl      31(6)  1  6   0  7.54
Andy Allen          19  £ 90   £16K   Anticipation,Stamina,WorkRate        23(12) 0  5   0  6.80
Lee Harris          16  £ 85          WorkRate,Marking,Stamina,Balance      8(8)  1  1   0  6.75
Paul Warner         16  £ 80          Passing,Heading,Technique,Aggression  3(8)  0  1   0  7.09
Craig Russell       16  £ 90          Dribbing,Heading,Crossing,Teamwork   11(2)  0  0   0  7.07
Andy May            22  Loaned In     OffTheBall,Teamwork,WorkRate,Bravery 13     2  2   0  6.76
Adam Newman         18  £ 80   £18K   WorkRate,Determ,Aggression,OffBall    5(1)  0  0   0  6.83
Mark Oakes          26  £400   £16K   Determination,LongThrows,Bravery      3     0  0   0  6.33
Jamie Mason         26  £800   £16K   Determ,WorkRate,OffTheBall,Balance    1     0  0   0   ---

Forwards           Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App     G  A  MoM AvgR

Alan Jones          18  £ 80   £16K   Creativity,Agility,Balance,Infl      29     8  5   3  7.68
Matthew Jackson     15  £ 70          Stamina,Aggression,Bravery,Finishing 21(3) 14 10   5  7.41
Chris Morgan        29  £500   £16K   Determ,OffTheBall,Agility,WorkRate   21(4) 13 16   2  7.48
Jamie Barnes        21  £550   £28K   Pace,Crossing,Positioning,Finishing  18(6)  9  8   0  7.29
John Garner         16  £110          Strength,Stamina,Bravery,Flair        5(1)  2  3   0  6.83

[QuikSand]

June 2004

Technically, we are wrapping up the final stages of the 03/04 season now, but with competition concluded – it’s basically the “offseason” and we are focused on the coming year.


Our first big move is the follow through on our big Bosman transfer—we bring in Ukrainian Volodymir Fedorov, who is without a doubt our first impact transfer in. To put this into context, without getting bogged down in a bunch of numeric ratings, I’ll just say that his skills are generally a full range better than my guys’ are. Tough to say why he was willing to sign with us, but now that he has, we’ll try to get him worked in. His one real drawback seems to be pace – he is a bit stodgy, it would seem. But he’s a defensive-minded player, not a showboating striker… so that fits okay.

My initial thinking is that we’ll try to use Fedorov on our right side midfield, and then we will take Gary Webb (who has been pretty solid there) and use him as a sort of roving midfielder—giving him time in the mix with Richard Lewis (in the attacking middie spot) and perhaps even with Jason Wilson (in our defensive central midfield slot). I still plan to get Gary Webb into most of our matches, but he probably won’t be our official starter anywhere.

However – a big caveat is always needed when promoting, as it seems that certain players just cannot hack the added competition. Sometimes it comes as a total surprise, but it does seem to happen. So, having a starter-quality guy in the rotation is a good thing, no worries.

Incidentally, Leicester (from the EPL) is already expressing interest in Fedorov, who has a current price tag of £130,000 according to my screen. Oddly, Fedorov was graded at over £3 million before he moved here – so something’s going on, it would seem.


Two of our young players, keeper James Anderson and midfielder Paul Warner, both leave following the expiration of their youth contracts. I put in offers to retain both of them, as having playable young guys around seems to be a worthwhile investment—and I’m not exactly finding this kind of guy just sitting around. Anderson was slated to come up this past season, but an untimely injury gave Steve Howarth the chance instead, and Howarth impressed enough to keep the second keeper role all season. Both Warner and Anders accept my youth contracts, and rejoin the club under firmer terms.


16 y/o Steve Marsden is one of the numerous midfielders I have pursued in recent months, and now he is sitting without a contract. I make him an offer as a rotation player, in hopes that he can serve in a role similar to that held by loan-in Andy Ryan last season. Playing for York last year, he was pretty adequate – but not a star by any stretch.

However – it turns out we lack the funds to complete the transfer – as he is a youth player, and his required compensation if £40,000 – just beyond the reach of our current £35,000 transfer budget. Ouch.


Lincoln’s Alan Atkinson has retired from professional football.

Well, we tried to talk him out of it – I’ll check to see how we can fill in for him. All I can do is find a totally unproven former player, so we bring aboard Steve Walters, a 30y/o who doesn’t look too bad. He accepts our modest offering, and we have him locked up.


Hearing that we are shopping for a left side middie, Hereford offer up one of their guys, 23 y/o Ben King. They don’t want much, but it’s because he’s probably below replacement value. I pass.


Jamie Mason’s contract has expired, and we release him from the club. That frees up some much-needed wage space, as we were getting pretty tight in that regard. He earned £800/wk, and now we can plan to recycle that into more productive players.


We add another player via Bosman deal – Paul Harper. The 22 y/o Harper is a bit of an unknown but can play either center or right midfield. My best guess is that he ends up in the rotation along with our youngsters for time all along the midfield – and will get a chance to earn more time with his play.


Lee Williamson has been voted Lincoln’s Player of the Year by supporters.

I agree with this decision – he had an even better season this year than last, and now is our two-time winner.


Lincoln have received £300,000 for Second Division TV rights for the forthcoming season.

I don’t know how much our budget will change with the promotion, but this seems welcome.


The Lincoln board have announced that your transfer budget for this year will be in the region of £140K.

Now that’s more like it.


The Lincoln board are very pleased with your performance as manager this season.
The team is expected to battle bravely against relegation from the Second Division in the coming season.


The board indicate that they are investing in expanding the club’s training facilities.

Such is the response to my first board request.


As it stands, our total wage budget is £21,500 per week – up again from last season. With a total bill of around £17,400/wk, that means we have some room to move. £4,000/wk might mean two or three quality additions somewhere along the way, and that’s before we make any more moves to clear out space. The ripest targets there are probably keeper Alan Ryan (£675), forward Jamie Barnes (£600) and striker Matt Dixon (£575).


We have inked a new long-term deal with forward Alan Jones, getting him locked up through 2007. He was unhappy with his youth deal, and rightly so, as we have used him as a first teamer for two seasons. I expect Matthew Jackson will be next, and we’ll also go after him for a long term deal. This isn’t an awful way to use some of that wage room.


I’m now pretty well resigned to believing that we will start the season with our left midfield position still unsettled. We will probably start out using Lee Williamson there – just because he is solid, and the players we have at striker are better than those we have at left mid. When Williamson isn’t there, my best option is seemingly Andy Allen, though he doesn’t have anywhere near the same range of offensive skills that Williamson has.

[Anrhydeddu]

Hearing that we are shopping for a left side middie, Hereford offer up one of their guys

Is this literary license or does the AI actually react in this manner?

[3ric]

I've seen this as well, and it does seem as the AI recognize when you are searching for a particular position. This happens more often with players you have shortlisted, however. Sadly, the players being offered are mostly such of such quality you'd like to unload from your own team...

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Anrhydeddu
Is this literary license or does the AI actually react in this manner?

Don't know yet, but among the offers I have received, most have been midfielders - where I've been looking. 3ric might be correct, this might be a function within the game, which would be cool. Alas- they do all seem to be garbage. (I'm getting many more offers after installing EP5 by the way)

[Anrhydeddu]

It seems to be subtle yet profound design that makes immersion deeper; that is, giving some semblance that you - as the gamer - do not control the universe. It's what I call an "Event" (using Civ2 terminology) where based on an action you take, an event is triggered. It's just frustrating to see in games like FOF and OOTP - using two of the most popular US sports - where the AI does its own thing and where you totally dictate the events of the game. This is probably what makes CM special.

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Anrhydeddu
This is probably what makes CM special.

I'm down with that.

I think if a sim game that represented a sport that I really, really liked in real life tried to introduce the elements of role playing and so forth that this game does, it would be a bit or a problem for me -- I think I'd be a little upset that the role-playing stuff might be "getting in the way" of my sports sim. But when I play CM, I don't have any reall attachments to the sport it's trying to emulate - and my "suspension of disbelief" (with apologies to Coleridge) is a little bit easier to reach.

In addition, the fact that futbol is really a never-ending enterprise (or much closer to it than any American sport) helps this out. The notion that I'm practically always thinking about contracts, transfers, and so forth helps-- unlike (for instance) the NFL, where most of thst stuff happens in the summertime, and once the season starts you don't get a whole lot of it involved. Not right or wrong, just different - and I think it works for futbol pretty well.

[Godzilla Blitz]

Originally posted by Anrhydeddu
It seems to be subtle yet profound design that makes immersion deeper; that is, giving some semblance that you - as the gamer - do not control the universe. It's what I call an "Event" (using Civ2 terminology) where based on an action you take, an event is triggered. It's just frustrating to see in games like FOF and OOTP - using two of the most popular US sports - where the AI does its own thing and where you totally dictate the events of the game. This is probably what makes CM special.

Not to hijack, but...

I came back from Japan a few weeks ago, and while I was there I bought a dozen or so console games, and read up on the current state of gaming overseas. It's interesting to see that a much greater percentage of Japanese games incorporate "event" scripting into them. As an example, I got two elaborate horse racing sims, both of which have "rival" characters that appear at different points in the game, and provide different choices, opportunities, and challenges. Also, there are random events, random characters, etc., that crop up in both of these games.

It would be like playing FOF and getting an email from a coach that says, "Was on vacation in San Antonio, and saw an Arena League game. They had a wide receiver that was phenomenal. I'm thinking that we should check him out." Then the game would give you a choice of either spending resources to check the guy out (scouting report, training camp effectiveness drops 1-2 percent), or ignoring him and continue working on next year's game plans (no change).

I have mixed thoughts about such additions. First, even playing a short time, they get repetitive, as many of them seem to play out the same way every time. After the second time, they become more of an annoyance than anything else. However, done well and sparingly, they add quite a bit of immersion to the games.

Back on track, looking forward to the upcoming year!

[Anrhydeddu]

QS, I think GB is on the right track. I am not talking about "role-playing" events but events that directly relates to what you already are doing. I know we've gone round and round on that but your prose reminded me of it again. In either game of baseball or football, you and I still have to draft, acquire free agents, make trades and manage our rosters. In each of these four areas, events can be triggered of a more in-depth message to an the would cause you to make a critical decision. I agree that a soccer universe is probably more conducive to the constant flow of decisions but I would like to think you agree that in other similar games, we can get some evidence that the AI is playing along with us.

[QuikSand]

July 2004

I do some fishing in the conference, and find a pretty decent midfielder who played with Yeovil Town last season. Jamie Boyce, 23, was a select player last season, and a prodigious assist man. I’m hoping he is the right kind of player for us – as I put in a transfer offer. For £22,000 Yeovil agree terms – and we get to sit down and talk with a potential addition at my top need slot.

Boyce, however, seems cool to the idea – he apparently enjoys being a big fish down in the conference. I make a good offer - £1,100/wkplus incentives – but he spurns us. Once again, we are left wanting for a new addition at that spot.


We have our first friendly, hosting Ipswich. Left defender David Francis gets injured – that’s the biggest news. Volodomry Fedorov strikes from his midfield spot for our first goal – that’s a nice sign (especially as he is supposedly a defensive-minded player). We get a decent 2-0 win at home, and please the already deliriously happy fans.

At Rochdale in our next friendly, we edge out a 1-0 win without much incident, and no injuries.


I forgot how uneventful July can be in this game – that wraps us up, as we continue to train up to the regular season.

As I see it, for the season ahead, here are the big three questions for our squad:

#1 – Competition in Second Division. How much better are these clubs? The fact that two of my fellow promotees this year were relegated from Second Division the season before suggests to me that we’ll be in for a much tougher ride this season. If that’s so – then we may have to re-evaluate much of our squad, even places (like our defense) where I feel that we have a good group already.

#2 – Filling the midfield slot. I’m not happy to still be unsettled at a spot on the roster, but left midfield remains a mystery. We’re getting thinner at striker (by design) and the pressure to use Lee Williamson there will be significant. If we can fill that hole with a quality player– by transfer, loan in, or just performance from within the current roster- that will help settle my big concern.

#3 – Fedorov settling in. Fedorov is a big deal player, from what I can see so far – definitely the type that usually turns my offers down right away. If he can become an impact player for us, that might be the catalyst we need to remain competitive and successful, even if the year overall is challenging. Alternatively, if he becomes a transfer target – we might get a windfall out of that.

We’ll see how all this progresses.

[condors]

quiksand-

not sure if you given it any thought but if you have a left sided defender(where you seem to have depth) you may consider training him into a midfielder i have had success with this in the past, espcially if your unable to transfer in a winger also don't discount a player because he is right footed some can excel playing on the left side

good luck and its been a great read

[QuikSand]

August 2004

We take on Northwich Vics in our next friendly, and we end up in a 1-1 draw. Volodymyr Fedorov set up our goal with a nice centering pass, but he missed a PK later on that would have won it. I do get the sense that he will be a significant part of our offense, though – even though defense is his stronger suit.

Our final friendly is against Leyton Orient. We get a 2-1 win, spread out our playing time, and should have everyone pretty well tuned up for our debut in a week.


We get news that Gary Webb will miss about 2 months with a torn calf muscle. That seems to settle our worries about being too deep in the right midfield – but we will still hope to get him back in good stead for use later. (And it reaffirms the obvious argument that depth is not a bad thing)


Milwall and Wigan have been made 7-4 join favourites to gain promotion from the English Second Division this season. The rest of the main contenders are priced at: 2-1 Sheff Wed, 5-2 Peterborough, 10-1 Hull and 10-1 Rotherham.

You have been rated at 50-1. The bookmakers think that promotion for your team is unlikely and that you should be far more concerned about the possibility of getting relegated.

Comforting – but at least we know who are the likely contenders in this new territory. And, just to renew an old habit:

We hate Wigan.


I am getting frustrated with the players on the transfer market, and decide to forage around for a possible loan in. I put in offers to two pretty good fits, and hope that we might come away with another player with potential to really help us. Nottm Forest immediately moves in to try to loan one of the same players we targeted, followed by West Ham – making m think that James Anderson from Leeds (our top choice) is unlikely to arrive with us. I’ll hope instead to secure Kyung-Tae Park, a South Korean midfielder from German club Leverkusen.


Our first match in Second Division is home for Cambridge. Ten minutes in, Lee Williamson sails a crossing pass to Andy Allen, who sends it home for the first score. Cambridge, though, are a fleet team, and they even it up after 22 minutes. After feeling outplayed early, we manage to do well down the stretch, but the score stays knotted. Lincoln 1, Cambridge 1.

Andy Davies, our breakthrough player of the year last season, is hurt pretty badly – he will miss a couple of months. We are deep – but still lousy news.


Leverkusen’s Kyung-Tae Park has agreed to join Lincoln on loan.

Leverkusen’s Kyung-Tae Park has been granted a conditional British work permit for his new move to Lincoln.

Our deal runs until the end of the season, and this ought to be great. The 23 y/o midfielder/forward can play on either side, but my obvious interest is to use him as a left winger. He has great physical skills, and his arsenal of abilities is strong all around. With high determination and work rate, we expect that he can deliver on his immense promise –and really help us this season. His market value is tagged at £3.5 million, for what that’s worth.


We head to Tranmere, where Park will immediately debut as our left winger. Things look pretty even through a scoreless first half – both imports Fedorov and Park have earned their 7 ratings in the early going. After 77, it’s a Williamson corner kick that gets in off Alan Jones for the lead – back to the combo that works for us already. At 90 minutes, Park takes a ball from midfield, penetrates between two defenders, and sneaks it right past the keeper for the icing goal. Lincoln 2, Tranmere 0. Good effort all around, and park gets the MOM in his first appearance.

Rather that committing huge resources to a big transfer – we might have made the right move to upgrade the midfield via loan in – as Park might be just what we needed back there. Now, we will have to make sure that our other players don’t get upset by his presence.


We have a quick turnaround to our next match, and need to rotate many players. We host Cheltenham, and get out to a quick lead off the foot of Matthew Jackson. Lee Williamson threads in for another goal, and is in again after 30 minutes – for a strong 3-0 lead in the first half. The flurry continues with Richard Lewis getting on the board, and then Williamson finishing his hat trick just before the halftime break. This one gets and stays out of hand, but a great triumph for our men. Lincoln 7, Cheltenham 1.

Our latest injury is striker Matthew Jackson, whose ankle will keep him sidelined for three weeks or so. We’re having our worst rash of injuries ever.


Lincoln City chairman Martin Knowles cold not hide his delight following his team’s 7-1 win over Cheltenham Town.

The Red Imps’ performances so far this season warrant the top half position they currently occupy, but at this early stage of the season they must be aware that a few defeats would see them head rapidly towards the foot of the table.

They might still be favourites to go down but the start they have made to the season certainly has been encouraging.


We play at Blackpool, where we will need a good showing to extend our modest winning streak. Even at 40 minutes, Blackpool has a goal disallowed, and we get to the half scoreless, though I feel we are being outplayed. We make a great play on defense to cut off a big chance, and this keeps the score flat. Park and Williamson attempt a give-and-go at 84, but their defender blocks the crossing pass to Wiliamson. However, at 86, Blackpool finally strike and take the 1-0 lead. Blackpool 1, Lincoln 0. Several of our players are tallied with embarrassing match scores – and perhaps this is more of a sign of the real Second Division competition lying ahead.


We’re through August – and we have to be pleased with the start, which has us in 5th position through the early going. I am somewhat surprised (but pleased) to see Tranmere struggling, with only 1 league point after four matches.

[QuikSand]

September 2004

We host Barnsley, and have a seemingly endless series of corner kicks in the first half – yielding nothing but a few shots and saves. Richard Lewis gets us ahead in the early second half with a simple nutmeg move, rather than all this complicated centering stuff. Jones and Williamson execute a breakaway to get ahead 2-0. Martin Gibbons gets sent off at 59, and we will have to defend the lead a man down. We commit a penalty, but Baines makes the save to keep his clean sheet though 82 minutes. At 91, Barnsley get on the board, but we hold on for the win. Lincoln 2, Barnsley 1.

Now, it’s Andrew Cross who is hurt – he was moved in as a starter in central defense after Andy Davies went down. Now, I don’t know who will be playing for us – we’ve suddenly gotten very thin. I’ll use Ryan Hughes and Ian Cook in the middle for our next match (as Martin Gibbons serves his very untimely suspension). After that, we’ll see – might be open auditions.


We suit up at Stockport, and have a nearly-terrible mistake early, saved only by a quick kick-away from David Francis. We slip behind 1-0 by the half, and Stockport seem totally in control. They go up 2-0 after 75, and we are lost. Stockport 2, Lincoln 0. Tough match – we seemed to be fully outclassed there.

And to compound the bad news – Volodymyr Fedorov has pulled up lame, and he is now listed as out for a couple of months. This has just gone from bad to worse – we’re dwindling quickly. Suddenly Paul Harper, an offseason addition without a place to play, is our main player at right-side midfield – the position that seemed overloaded up until now.


We have a mixed-up lineup as we take on Q.P.R. in the first League Cup match. Park is on international call for the South Korean U23 team, so Lee Williamson is drawn back to play the left wing. All seems lost as we trail 1-0 through most of the match, but Chris Morgan manages to get a long outlet pass and connect to even it up at 1-1 in the 90th minute. So late in the game! In extra time, through 109 it’s still even, but we get a good chance – but Morgan is denied. At 111, Q.P.R. puts one past Baines, and take the match with that edge. Q.P.R. 2, Lincoln 1.

On the road at a First Division club – that’s not too bad. Defender Chris Richards looked positively lost out there, and gained the first match rating of 4 this side has seen. Our defense has been riddled with injuries –and he’s pretty clearly not the guy to use as a fill-in.

And now, just to add injury to injury, our central defender Neil Barnes is injured, and out for about two months. What’s in the water around here – this is crazy!


We play host to Brentford, who are in 9th on the league table right now – right behind us. Scoreless through 77 minutes, we finally break through when Martin Gibbons heads in a score off Lee Williamson’s corner kick. We battle to protect the lead, and eventually at 91 Matthew Jackson finishes the insurance goal. Lincoln 2, Brentford 0.

I feel like at the very least, we are probably demonstrating that we are not a relegation target. We ought to rack up enough league points to keep us out of that morass – even should we suffer a bad run down the road. The big question is: are we just a mid-table squad who happen to be doing fairly well now? Or are we possibly better than that?


At Wigan (we hate Wigan) we play to a tight scoreless draw at the half. It’s still scoreless after 89 minutes, when we get a breakaway chance on a counter attack. Park, in his first game back after playing internationally, pushes forward, dishes to Matthew Jackson, and we lead 1-0. As Wigan try to rally, we get them again, this time Jackson setting up Williamson, and that wraps it. Lincoln 2, Wigan 0.

We get another note of encouragement from our delighted chairman, Martin Knowles.


Martin Gibbons, our stalwart defenseman, is the next to be injure – he will miss a couple of weeks. In the past, this has meant that the whole team fell apart – we’ll try to avoid that this go-round.


Well, that wraps up September – and what’s not tot like. We are riddled with an unseemly list of injuries, but overall our play has still been up to par. My best guess is that we won’t be able to gain a serious position, but might be good enough to be mid-table, and perhaps in the running for a while.

[QuikSand]

October 2004

Through a couple months of the season, it’s time to check the status of our squad. We’ve been beset by injuries all over the place – and so we have an interesting mix of players getting playing time.

Keepers            Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App   Con  AvgR

Darren Baines       28  £300   £24K   Rushing Out,Eccentricity              5     6  7.19
Steve Howarth       19  £325   £24K   Determ,Stamina,Bravery,Agility        4     2  7.75
Alan Ryan           24  £550   £24K   Kicking,Comm,OneonOnes                0     0   ---

Defenders          Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App     G  A  MoM AvgR

Martin Gibbons      24  £900  £130K   Decisions,Determ,Stamina              8     1  0   2  7.62
Michael Kelly       21  £1.0K  £24K   Stamina,Finishing,Aggression          9     0  1   0  7.00
David Francis       22  £1.1K  £24K   WorkRate,Determ,Aggression            8     0  0   0  7.12
Andy Davies         22  £375   £24K   Heading,Bravery,Marking,Jumping       1     0  0   0  7.00
Andrew Cross        24  £160   £24K   Heading,Jumping,Strength              2     0  0   0  7.50
Ryan Hughes         17  £ 75          Heading,Creativity,Positioning        2     0  0   0  7.00
Andy Hughes         21  £300   £24K   Determ,Teamwork,WorkRate              0     0  0   0   ---
Ian Cook            19  £ 80   £24K   Workrate,Determ,LongThrows,Strength   4(2)  0  2   0  6.83
Chris Richards      21  £375   £24K   Stamina,Teamwork,Flair,Strength       2(1)  0  0   0  5.33

Midfielders        Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App     G  A  MoM AvgR

Richard Lewis       22  £1.0K  £30K   Dribbling,Acceleration,Pace           8     2  0   0  7.25
Jason Wilson        21  £950   £40K   WorkRate,Determ,Aggression,Infl       8     0  1   0  7.00
Kyung-Tae Park      23  Loaned In     Aggression,Acceleration,WorkRate      6     2  2   1  7.16
Volodymyr Fedorov   20  £1.7K £130K   Bravery,Crossing,WorkRate,Creativity  6     0  1   0  6.50
Andy Allen          19  £ 90   £24K   Anticipation,Stamina,WorkRate         2(2)  1  1   0  7.00
Craig Russell       17  £ 90          Dribbing,Heading,Crossing,Teamwork    2(2)  0  0   0  6.25
Gary Webb           25  £1.0K  £24K   Passing,Technique,Stamina,Flair       0     0  0   0   ---
Lee Harris          17  £ 85          WorkRate,Marking,Stamina,Balance      0     0  0   0   ---
Paul Warner         17  £ 80   £24K   Passing,Heading,Technique,Aggression  0     0  0   0   ---
Adam Newman         19  £ 80   £24K   WorkRate,Determ,Aggression,OffBall    0     0  0   0   ---
Mark Oakes          27  £400   £24K   Determination,LongThrows,Bravery      0     0  0   0   ---

Forwards           Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App     G  A  MoM AvgR

Lee Williamson      24  £475   £40K   WashingUp,Jumping,Bravery,SetPieces   9     5  6   2  7.55
Alan Jones          19  £750   £16K   Creativity,Agility,Balance,Infl       7     1  1   0  7.42
Matthew Jackson     16  £350          Stamina,Aggression,Bravery,Finishing  3     4  1   0  8.00
Chris Morgan        29  £500   £16K   Determ,OffTheBall,Agility,WorkRate    1     1  0   0  7.00
Jamie Barnes        22  £600   MtM    Pace,Crossing,Positioning,Finishing   0(1)  0  0   0   ---
John Garner         17  £110   £24K   Strength,Stamina,Bravery,Flair        0     0  0   0   ---

It’s still early in the season, so it’s tough to reach any real conclusions. Over time, once we settle in, we’ll spread around the playing time more. Right now, I’m mostly playing my best healthy players every match.


At the moment, we are in 7th place on the league table – but are a match short of our rivals. So, we might be a threat for a playoff spot were the season to end now. Millwall look to be the team to beat – as predicted early on, I believe. They have only conceded one goal in their first 9 matches. Ouch!


At Rushden, Park lets go an early long shot that has a real banana arc on it – he’s the first guy in our uniform who can do that. It misses wide – but looked cool. We gain an early led, but Rushden strike for two before the half to get ahead, then run away with it. When Lewis and Jackson strike in the early second half, we are back alive, down only 4-3. But that’s as close as we can get. Rushden 4, Lincoln 3.


We get Gary Webb back from injury – and we will use him as a sub a few times to get him up to speed. My thinking is that we’ll try to use him in the attacking midfield spot, cycling with Richard Lewis. He may also get time in with Vlod on the right midfield spot. I’m pleased with Vlod overall, though he may not turn out to be a huge impact player. (He is a little bit stodgy)


We are at Plymouth, and are hoping to recover from our defensive failure last match. After Richard Lewis misses on an easy chance, Park sets up Matthew Jackson for the 17th minute lead. We hold that lead until 73, when Plymouth strike to even it up. Richard Lewis again misses on an easy chance, and after 82 minutes, they score again to go up 2-1. We let this one get away, with another disappointing effort on defense. Plymouth 2, Lincoln 1.

We need to get our defending squad back healthy, as we are just disorganized and vulnerable out there right now. Fortunately, Andy Davies is back in training – that should help, definitely. He needs training and fitness, but should be playable fairly soon.

And more importantly, it looks like Martin gibbons can return for our next match – he’s our captain and defensive centerpiece, and we need him badly.


I also am putting Gary Webb into the starting lineup t the right side – we need him. Young Craig Russell has been trying his best, but is really not ready to start at this level – I need more experience. Webb will just have to struggle to get back into game shape.


We are at home for Oldham, and really hope that Martin Gibbons’ return will help us regain our defensive form. Lee Williamson gets one in after only 9 minutes, and we have a lead to protect now. Matthew Jackson tacks on another goal, then park sends in a rocket-- and we are up 3-0 at the break. Back in good form, it seems. Michael Kelly surprises everyone with a deep shot, his first of the season. Lincoln 4, Oldham 0.


We host Peterborough, looking to stay in as god form as our last home match. We get ahead in the first half after a crowded corner kick leads to a bounced-in ball off a Boro player. At 67, Lee Williamson send up a perfect assist for Jackson, who nails it home. Jackson tacks on another, and narrowly misses his hat trick in the mighty win. Lincoln 3, Peterorough 0.



Our next match is in the Vans Trophy – at Boston United. Our chairman hates Boston, so this is a bigger deal than we might have imagined originally. Boston Utd gets ahead right away, getting a weak shot past Alan Ryan in the first minute. They net another after 6 minutes – and are rolling right away. We completely fall apart defensively, and Ryan is dreadfully bad in goal. We’re down 4—after 25 minutes, and they coast home from there. Boston Utd 4, Lincoln 0.

Keeper Alan Ryan is immediately on the transfer list, and I place him up for offer – I’m ready to let him go right now. Howarth has stepped up to rival for the starting job, and Ryan has definitely slipped to #3 at best.


We are back in league play, and face Hull at The Circle. Richard Lewis gets a chance, but again fails to convert – that’s getting troublesome. He gets redemption on a feed from Park, and we lead 1-0 at the half. Our defense plays well, and we hold on to win with that margin. Lincoln 1, Hull 0.

Defender David Francis is the latest injury case – he will miss a couple of months with a thigh strain. I’m wondering – did we do something wrong to bring on all these injuries?


Midfielder Andy Allen is apparently unhappy with his contract, and wants to talk about a new deal. Well, he has nothing else to do while he nurses his injuries, I guess. I think he has played well enough to merit a real contract – so I offer him a rotation deal. He signs the deal – and he have him locked up through 2007.

[Anrhydeddu]

Park lets go an early long shot that has a real banana arc on it – he’s the first guy in our uniform who can do that. It misses wide – but looked cool.

How can you tell with a top-down, 2D view?

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Anrhydeddu
How can you tell with a top-down, 2D view?

The banana arc is "side to side" - his trajectory of the shot probably veered about 15 degrees over the course of 30 yards... or over the course of an inch and a half on my monitor, take your pick.

There was a defender between the shooter and the goal, so he shot to the left of the defender, with a curve toward the goal - it missed by about a ball width or so, I'd hazard.

[Bee]

The banana shots do look pretty cool on screen.

[QuikSand]

November 2004

The Lincoln board are delighted with your performance as manager.


Kyeugn-Tae Park will be out for about two weeks with a damaged shoulder.

Ouch – the injury bug continues to bite hard. We will reluctantly drop Lee Williamson to play the left wing, and will get Alan Jones back into the lineup at forward.


We host Wimbledon, another top club, currently just ahead of us in 3rd place. They score right away to gain the 1-0 advantage – in the first minute. Matthew Jackson does a lot of work to get us back even after 13 minutes – might this be another shootout? Both sides cool off, and it remains 1-1 through the first half. Matthew Jackson takes a long forward pass from defenseman Ryan Hughes, and at 64 we take the lead. A minute later, Jackson seals his hat trick with another dandy – and we seem in control. In add-on time, Jackson taps in another with a header, and seals the impressive win and MOM award. Lincoln 4, Wimbledon 1. Matthew Jackson’s 4 goals are a club record.


Only a few days later, we are home to Wycombe, and will need to reshuffle some of our lineup to remain fresh. Chris Morgan, off the bench for a rare start, gets up ahead after 25 minutes finishing off a feed from Lee Williamson. But Wycombe pull even shortly afterwards. Morgan sets up Alan Jones for a nice goal, and we lead 2-1 at the half – but Lee Williamson ha come off injured. Paul Harper makes a great forward play from the right side to set up another goal for Jones, and we pull ahead 3-1. A late tally from Lewis gives us our final margin. Lincoln 4, Wycombe 1. Martin Gibbons, back into his best form is awarded the MOM for centering a tough defensive effort.


We face Sheffield Wednesday – who are in 5th place to our 3rd. A pretty big league match this early in the season. Jason Wilson is injured right away – and our midfield looks a mess already. After a failed pass from our defenders, a Sheff attacker steals and strikes for the early lead – demerit to Andy Davies. Our offense is anemic all game, and we never are in contention – they put it away easily, as that early advantage let them lock it up. Sheff Wed 2, Lincoln 0.

The good news is that it looks like both Park and Fedorov will be ready to go for our next match – meaning our first team offense ought to be close to intact.


Our first FA Cup match is slated against Northwich Vics – a conference club whom we faced in a friendly earlier in the season. I have not quite our first team in there – we’ll use this to get some play for a few reserves, and to get a few guys back into game shape. Gary Webb delivers to Alan Jones for a nice goal to give us a lead early on. They draw even at 58, and we need to make an adjustment or two. We get ahead at 67, as Richard Lewis subs in and finishes a corner kick. Lincoln 2, Northwich Vics 1 – Lincoln advances.


We now have a three-match stretch over only five days – playing league matches on Saturday, Monday, and Wednesday. With so many injuries, we are bound to be exhausted for the final match at Colchester. Then, we have another match only three days after that. This will be a real test of our depth – which I fear we will not pass.

I decide to call up 19 y/o keeper James Anderson, and we’ll use this trying stretch to get him some playing time. I also call up young defender Martin Hill – as my defensive squad is still riddled with injuries, and we will need somebody to play a few spots.


We first face Chesterfield, playing at home at Sincil Bank. Chesterfield notch a nice counter attack goal to lead early, and put us onto our heels right away. Alan Jones is wide with a penalty kick, and we go into the half down a goal. We yield an embarassing breakaway in the closing minutes, and fumble this match away to start the rough spot. Chestertown 2, Lincoln 0.


Next up, unfortunately, is Millwall – the dominant club in Second Division, it seems. Their defense is seemingly impenetrable, and we will have a sketchy group in to face them. We do get Volodymyr Fedorov back, though – and we’ll need him to try to help out the offense a bit against the stingy Millwall defense. We are under pressure early, but it takes until 38 minutes before they get a great long shot by us, to take the lead. True to their usual form, Millwall takes their lead, and east the rest of the clock with tough defense. Millwall 1, Lincoln 0.


That ends November, but we’re just in the middle of a tough run of matches – and so far, tough results.

[GoldenEagle]

QS, are you using the mind compression tool to do your printing? If so, how are you copying and pasting? If not, can you tell me what tool you do use.

[QuikSand]

I am typing all my stuff up by hand. The MC utility is not suited to the things that I want to do, so I'm doing it all manually - taking a lot more time than in the previous versions of this very game. Thus, some of the data is bound to be dated - like age and salary stuff, which I only update sporadically. It's just too much of a hassle to attend to - but I feel the dynasty thread needs that kind of data to keep cohesive. *sigh*

[GoldenEagle]

Is there a type of program that you use to keep everything aligned neatly?

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by GoldenEagle
Is there a type of program that you use to keep everything aligned neatly?

I just use MS Word, employing an even-spaced font (Courier), and then use the code-in-brackets tag so it displays evenly on the forum. Nothing fancy, really.

[Celeval]

QS -

I'd suggest taking a look at MCM4R - not the greatest thing in the world, but it does help with roster printing (if not standings, etc.).

     Name                      Club                    Wage           AppearanceGoal     Assist   Clean sheEnd dateSquad status
     Jaime Moreno              MetroStars              £ 3200         480       194      109      0        12/31/20Indispensible
     Marco Vélez               MetroStars              £ 298          0         0        0        0        12/4/200First team
     Joseph Addo               MetroStars              £ 1500         225       0        0        0        12/20/20Backup
     Mark Lisi                 MetroStars              £ 600          90        0        30       0        12/15/20Squad rotation
     Craig Ziadie              MetroStars              £ 550          250       0        0        0        12/21/20Backup
     Kenny Arena               MetroStars              £ 242          100       0        10       0        12/6/200Squad rotation
     Jeff Moore                MetroStars              £ 275          125       0        12       0        12/10/20First team
     Ricardo Clark             MetroStars              £ 726          300       0        30       0        12/8/200Indispensible
     Eddie Gaven               MetroStars              £ 320          102       20       10       0        1/2/1900Backup
     Mike Magee                MetroStars              £ 390          125       25       12       0        12/11/20First team
     Tim Glowienka             MetroStars              £ 222          92        0        0        0        12/8/200Backup
     Jacob LeBlanc             MetroStars              £ 242          100       0        10       0        12/20/20Backup
     Tim Regan                 MetroStars              £ 242          100       0        0        0        12/22/20Backup
     Paul Grafer               MetroStars              £ 350          52        0        0        17       2/1/2004Backup
     Steve Jolley              MetroStars              £ 1400         210       0        0        0        12/31/20First team
     Eddie Pope                MetroStars              £ 3200         480       0        0        0        12/31/20Indispensible
     Richie Williams           MetroStars              £ 1000         150       0        50       0        12/31/20Backup
     Clint Mathis              MetroStars              £ 2400         360       228      120      0        12/31/20Squad rotation
     Tim Howard                MetroStars              £ 3680         1600      0        0        160      12/31/20Indispensible
 

Edited to avoid dola:

Check out http://www.mindcompression.com/ for the utility. It'll export to html, text, csv; although it does give more information than I'd like to see on some reports (ability, hidden attributes, etc).

[Karim]

You're definitely a better manager than me in getting playing time to everyone. I follow the Mike Keenan philosophy and play my "favourites" until they drop (barring injuries of course).

A couple questions:

1) Do you take morale into consideration when choosing your starting 11?

2) What is Millwall doing on defense? Is it the formation, the defenders themselves, superior goalkeeping, is the entire team committed to defense or all of the above? Once again, defense wins...

[QuikSand]

Thanks, Celeval - but I think that's the utility that I already have - perhas I don't have the mosr recelty updated version? I don't think mine will make a printout that looks like yours from above.

I'll try to check it out a little more. Thanks for the tip - that isn't too bad.

[QuikSand]

December 2004

Hopefully, this current tough run will come to a close – as our one-impressive league position has taken quite a blow of late. Here’s the top of the league table as of now:

                W  D  L   GF  GA   Pts

Millwall       14  2  2   51   8    44
Rushden        12  0  6   38  28    36
- - - (auto promotion line) - - -
Sheff Wed      11  2  4   30  14    35
Barnsley       10  3  5   35  26    33
Rotherham      10  2  7   27  29    32
Lincoln        10  1  7   36  19    31
- - - (promotion playoff line) - - -
Brentford       9  4  5   33  16    31
Wimbledon      10  1  6   36  20    31
Chesterfield    9  4  4   26  14    31

As you can see, it’s very tight near the top. We’ve lost three league matches in a row to drop down into the tier competing for the playoff spots – until then, we had been right in the mix with Rushden for the second position. Millwall looks unstoppable, though.


We’re at Colchester, filing a mixed lineup, trying to stay healthy but solid. It’s scoreless through the first half, but Matthew Jacson gets us ahead with a nice strike early in the second half. When Chris Morgain sails in a crossing kick for Matthew to finish off, we lead 2-0 and feel like we’re going to get our much-needed win here. Colchester end up seeing two men sent off, and we are able to protect our lead against their narrowed squad. Lincoln 2, Colchester 0. Martin Hill, our young defender, earns MOM honors in his debut with a solid all-around effort. That’s awfully encouraging.


Now, with both Park and Williamson dinged up, we have literally nobody who technically plays the left side midfield. Well, nobody save Simon Williams, who has pretty well worked his way totally out of our plans.

With Lee Harris slotted on the left side, we head home to face Northampton. After this we get a much-needed week’s rest. We get goal after a complicated setup series, finished off by our red-hot striker Matthew Jackson. We drop back to play defensively, and to conserve energy. Jackson comes off injured (ack!) and our defense needs to keep this one up. We manage to fend them off, with young Martin Hill lending another MOM performance. Lincoln 1, Northampton 0.

Matthew Jackson suffered a leg injury – but will only miss about a week.


Well, it’s December – and that means time to think about Bosman transfers, seeking players who could come over after this season ends. I trawl around, looking for some potential additions – and also need to pursue new deals with some of our own players.


Our first re-signing is with Lee Williamson (can’t you tell he is my favorite player) – who inks a new deal through 2007. Defender Michael Kelly also takes a new deal, keeping him settled on the right side of our defense – he is solid, but hasn’t been the star I had hoped for there. And keeper Steve Howarth accepts a pretty modest offer, to my surprise. Regardless, those were probably the most important extensions of current players for us.


We’re back on the pitch, hosting Scunthorpe in the FA Cup. We are drawn at 1-1 into the second half, when Martin Gibbons – recognizing that the Scunthorpe keeper had ventured forward a bit, lofts a 70-yard shot from behind the middle line, which goes sailing right into the goal. Amazing! We have this one well in hand during the second half, and sail to a nice win. Lincoln 3, Scunthorpe 1 – Lincoln advances.


Back in league action, we face Rotherham at home. Fedorov scores on a OK in the first half, and that lead holds up through the late stages. We face some pressure from the Rotherham attack, but eventually nail down the narrow win. Lincoln 1, Rotherham 0.


We’re at Notts County next, visiting lovely Meadow Lane. Their winger makes a great move to set up the first goal, and give them the lead. But park returns the favor, pitching in to Jones for the evening tally, and just before the half he throws one forward for Morgan to send home. We end up with a solid win, and Park predictably gets the MOM honors. Lincoln 3, Notts Co 1.

Park’s success this season is certainly a little bittersweet. It would be very nice to have him on the actual roster, so we could plan around him. However, even knowing he won’t be here long term, it is nice to have some high quality performance from that position, and I certainly feel that’s playing a role in our league success thus far.

Park’s contract is up in June, and I put in a Bosman offer for him. My assistant manager says he’s not a realistic target for us, but it’s worth the effort.


We have a big match at Port Vale, and Park is brought off with an early injury – terrible news. Fedorov is next off the pitch with an injury, and we are reshuffled and reeling. We do get to the half, though, without breaking the scoreless tie. John Garner sends home the go-ahead goal after 47, and Alan Jones nails a PK at 63 to give us an improbable 2-0 lead. Lincoln 2, Port Vale 0. Huge road victory, but we lose Fedorov for two weeks.


We conclude our first Bosman deal, but it’s a minor one. Danny Douglas is a 34 year old veteran midfielder, who has done well in the conference with Farnborough. I offer him a rotation deal, looking to lend some leadership to the squad full of youngsters. His enthusiasm to accept suggests to me that he may be washed up already.

Kyung-Tae Park’s agent tells us to get bent – there’s no way he’ll be playing for us down the road. Looks like this is a one and out deal.


We head home to Sincil Bank, to host Tranmere Rovers. They beat us out for the league title last year in Third Division, but have not fared so well this season, sitting in 16th position on the table (but they have played better of late). Williamsosn, back in at forward, sets up Alan Jones for a nice goal. We take firm control, and run off to a solid win without much problem. Lincoln 3, Tranmere 0. This gives us a new record – seven wins in a row.


It’s the end of December, and we have yet to make a potential impact signing of any player for next season. It looks like once again our main need will be in the midfield, especially at the left side. But so far, I have had some 20 offers spurned, with little hope to get anywhere.

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Karim
A couple questions:

1) Do you take morale into consideration when choosing your starting 11?

2) What is Millwall doing on defense? Is it the formation, the defenders themselves, superior goalkeeping, is the entire team committed to defense or all of the above? Once again, defense wins...

Morale is my second consideration after talent in picking my starters. If my regular starter is off, I look for a reserve with high morale.

I can't explain Millwall's rock solid defense - they seem to have good players, but not really standouts. They all have high ratings - but they are winning nearly all theiur matches, so that's kinda cyclical. I can't find teh root cause of it all - but it is pretty cool to see a team that really stands out in form.

[Godzilla Blitz]

All these inuries remind me of the first release of TCY.

Great job this month!

[Bee]

After reeling off all those victories, how do you stand in the table now?

[Anrhydeddu]

Question about Cup matches. Why would there be non-league games that does not mean anything in the standings and add the risk of more injuries or slow down healings?

[Bee]

Originally posted by Anrhydeddu
Question about Cup matches. Why would there be non-league games that does not mean anything in the standings and add the risk of more injuries or slow down healings?

Money and prestige. From my understanding, in real life many fans would rather their club win some of the more prestigious cups than win the league. In the game, many of the cups have cash payouts every time you advance a round. Early in the game this can really help out if you get on a run and go several rounds into one of the cups.

[Anrhydeddu]

QS wrote very little about finances (except the limitations of transfer money) so I wonder if the extra revenues make a difference? Also, in the game, can you decline to participate if you want to reduce the risk of more injuries?

would rather their club win some of the more prestigious cups than win the league

That's silly. Why bother with leagues then?

[condors]

millwall- may use a 5-4-1 when they have a lead and maintain possesion without bringing men forward its a tactic the computer tends to use when it gets a lead brings a midfielder to the backline and pulls a striker to the midfield could lead to better ratings for the defenders, may be something to check out if they get a lead next time you play them (look for millwall is changing tactics message)

[Bee]

I think QS mentions somewhere along the lines of getting 20-30K pounds for a Cup victory early on. That kind of money can make a big difference for a small club. I don't think you can decline to participate, but you can play backups and basically lose in round 1 without risking any starters.

I had a cousin (from England so I consider him an expert ) tell me once that the leagues were only slightly more important than a "slotting system". The higher the league you're in, the more important the Cup you will be invited to. While that's very important, the Cups are what it's all centered around. At least, that's the way I understood what he was saying. He speaks with a heavy accent and uses all the "English terms" that I seldom understand exactly what he's saying.

[QuikSand]

I think I have received 20K for a first round win in the FA Cup, and 30K for a second round win. I'm sure it goes up from there, but I haven;t goten that far. Plus, there is good attendance in cup matches - so they bring in good gate receipts if you play at home.

I basically try to play my starters in the cup matches- but I'm sure you cvan argue it either way. Anhrydeddu, it's just different - it doesn't make it wrong. I actually like the idea of multiple overlapping competitions, where each participant might have its own priorities abouut what matters most.

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Bee
After reeling off all those victories, how do you stand in the table now?

As of the end of December, we stood in 2nd place, just behind mighty Millwall (but down by 10 points). We were 2 points ahead of the third place club.

[Bee]

One more thing about the Cups in CM. I think doing well in the Cups will help you keep your job if you don't do as well in the league as expected.

[Anrhydeddu]

QS, it's just that I perceive you viewing Cup matches as simply exhibition games while focusing on league play. I understand now how in real life, it can be a big deal (even though I have a bias in that league play offers a truer test of comparative ability as oppose to lucky out in a tournament draw).

[QuikSand]

Not an unfair perspective... I'm basically taking the cops seriously once we start to do well. If a mixed batch of players can get a couple of wins, then I start to use better squads and try to keep going.

[QuikSand]

January 2005

Lincoln City’s Matthew Jackson has won the English Second Division Young Player of the Month award.

He’s a wintertime player – his three awards so far came in December, January, and December.


Here’s an update of our players’ status thus far this season:

Keepers            Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App   Con  AvgR

Darren Baines       28  £300   £24K   Rushing Out,Eccentricity             11    11  7.09
Steve Howarth       19  £325   £24K   Determ,Stamina,Bravery,Agility       14(1) 10  7.33
Alan Ryan           24  £550   £24K   Kicking,Comm,OneonOnes                1     4  6.00

Defenders          Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App     G  A  MoM AvgR

Martin Gibbons      24  £900  £130K   Decisions,Determ,Stamina             25     2  0   4  7.48
Michael Kelly       21  £1.0K  £24K   Stamina,Finishing,Aggression         28     1  2   0  7.03
David Francis       22  £1.1K  £24K   WorkRate,Determ,Aggression           13     0  1   0  7.00
Andy Davies         22  £375   £24K   Heading,Bravery,Marking,Jumping       8(3)  0  0   1  7.27
Andrew Cross        24  £160   £24K   Heading,Jumping,Strength             11(3)  0  0   0  7.21
Ryan Hughes         17  £ 75          Heading,Creativity,Positioning       16     0  1   0  7.00
Ian Cook            19  £ 80   £24K   Workrate,Determ,LongThrows,Strength   6(2)  0  2   0  6.75
Martin Hill         17  £ 80   £24K   Strength,Pace,Jumping,Acceleration    2     0  0   2  8.00
Chris Richards      21  £375   £24K   Stamina,Teamwork,Flair,Strength       0(1)  0  0   0   ---
Andy Hughes         21  £300   £24K   Determ,Teamwork,WorkRate              0     0  0   0   ---

Midfielders        Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App     G  A  MoM AvgR

Richard Lewis       22  £1.0K  £30K   Dribbling,Acceleration,Pace          22(2)  9  3   0  7.54
Jason Wilson        21  £950   £40K   WorkRate,Determ,Aggression,Infl      25     0  3   1  7.48
Kyung-Tae Park      23  Loaned In     Aggression,Acceleration,WorkRate     19     4  8   2  7.36
Volodymyr Fedorov   20  £1.7K £130K   Bravery,Crossing,WorkRate,Creativity 13     1  1   0  6.53
Andy Allen          19  £ 90   £24K   Anticipation,Stamina,WorkRate         2(2)  1  1   0  7.00
Craig Russell       17  £ 90          Dribbing,Heading,Crossing,Teamwork    4(3)  0  0   0  6.14
Gary Webb           25  £1.0K  £24K   Passing,Technique,Stamina,Flair       9(3)  0  3   0  6.91
Lee Harris          17  £ 85          WorkRate,Marking,Stamina,Balance      1(1)  0  0   0  7.00
Paul Warner         17  £ 80   £24K   Passing,Heading,Technique,Aggression  1(2)  0  0   0  6.66
Adam Newman         19  £ 80   £24K   WorkRate,Determ,Aggression,OffBall    0(1)  0  0   0   ---
Mark Oakes          27  £400   £24K   Determination,LongThrows,Bravery      0     0  0   0   ---

Forwards           Age  Wage  Value   Top Skills                          App     G  A  MoM AvgR

Lee Williamson      24  £475  £140K   WashingUp,Jumping,Bravery,SetPieces  20     6 12   4  7.50
Alan Jones          19  £750   £55K   Creativity,Agility,Balance,Infl      19     8  4   2  7.36
Matthew Jackson     16  £350          Stamina,Aggression,Bravery,Finishing 14    17  1   3  7.92
Chris Morgan        29  £500   £24K   Determ,OffTheBall,Agility,WorkRate    8     3  3   0  7.12
John Garner         17  £110   £24K   Strength,Stamina,Bravery,Flair        0(7)  1  1   0  6.85
Jamie Barnes        22  £600   MtM    Pace,Crossing,Positioning,Finishing   1(1)  0  0   0  6.00

Martin Gibbons is missing this game due to yellow cards, which always makes me nervous. But we have the exciting Martin Hill in – and that lends some intrigue. We’re at Cheltenham, who get ahead 1-0 after 23 minutes of good play. We are in trouble here, with our team looking its usual discombobulated self without Martin Gibbons. Park sets up Morgan for a leveling goal, though, and we are getting it together. However, they get ahead 3-1 by the half, and we look to be on our heels. Our run of wins comes to an ugly end here, as we get it handed to us pretty well. Cheltenham 5, Lincoln 1.


At Cambridge, we don our reds again and hope to recover from that disgrace. It’s very even through the first half, but I fee we’re letting this one slip away, too. At 68, Cambridge finally finishes off a chance and nets the lead. They shut down, drop back, and preserve the win. Cambridge 1, Lincoln 0.


For the FA Cup, we have mostly our first team in to face Charlton, a top first division side. We do well to keep it scoreless through the half, even as they got one open chance that sailed just wide. They get in a curved shot after 65 minutes, and this one seems to be getting away from us. They handle us for the slight score, but the win was pretty solid. Charlton 1, Lincoln 0 – Lincoln eliminated. We set records for attendance and handle for the match, though.


We have a real injury problem at forward/striker, where currently was have Matthew Jackson, Alan Jones, and now Chris Morgan out with injuries. We’ll use Lee Williamson, Jamie Barnes, and young John Garner as our rotation – but are perilously thin now.


We are at Barnsley, and need a win to stave off a real slide in team spirit. This looks like trouble, as we are outplayed badly early – and it’s just a matter of time until this translates to points. Barnsley get ahead at 31, and that’s all they need for the win. Barnsley 1, Lincoln 0. We are in some trouble, as we have now dropped to 7th place – out of the playoff realm, even. That was quick – we were just in 2nd place a couple of weeks ago.


We are home to Strockport, desperately needing a win. We get the lead with a great effort by Lee Williamson, hustling up to send one in while in traffic. We drop back, aim to protect the lead, and our defense comes through. Lincoln 1, Stockport 0. Needed that.


We host Blackpool, who are working their way up, but only in 17th place right now. Blackpol gain a 2-0 lead by 31 minutes, and we look terrible again. We stop the bleeding, and Garner’s goal at 82 gives us some hope. However, that’s all we get – back within one. Blackpool 2, Lincoln 1.


We travel to Brentford, and I sub out a few starters to try to go with a higher morale squad. It takes until 70 minutes, but they get ahead of us, and we just look so sluggish that I think it’s over. But the goal is waved off, and we have hope. With basically no offensive threat, we are very lucky to get a draw here, Lincoln 0, Brentford 0.


Well, it’s about time I laid this out. What’s the deal with Fedorov? His skills seem to be better than those of just about anyone on the team, but his on-field performance is downright weak. I can see that he is stodgy and slow – in this game is that something so powerful that it potentially overrides everything else? (He has “pace” of 1, FWIW) Seems that if you’re playing with a realistic model, you can have all the dribbling, passing, and physical skills in the world – but if you can’t get to the ball before the other guy does, it doesn’t matter. I wonder—but now it’s starting to make sense why a supposedly £3M player might be willing to sign with a Third Division side.


Bristol Rovers have responded to one of my offers – their 30 y/o versatile midfielder Dave Walker is available, but for a price of £75,000. I’m looking for midfield help for sure – and Walker can play anywhere – very valuable. I agree to their demands, and will hope to work out a new deal with him immediately. The negotiatiosn start off poorly, as he wants a good deal more than I start out with. I suspect we’re 50/50 to get something done here.


A very talented young striker George Fox is let go by Newcastle, and we decide to move quickly to make him an offer. We have been thin at striker, and the 19 y/o Fox could make a huge addition, I think. We quickly have company from many other clubs, though – I don’t know if our offer will be best. After a few days, George Fox agrees terms with Walsall – we apparently didn’t offer quite enough.


At Oldham, we’d love to get some offensive flash restored. John Garner botches two good first half chances, and when Oldham finally break through at 67, it’s for a 1-0 lead. They top it off right at the end, and our attack is barely noticed. Oldham 2, Lincoln 0.


Dave Walker gets back to us – forget about it. Our last offer wasn’t good enough, and he walks away from our transfer. It was pushing the limits of affordability for us anyway, but he would have made a pretty good addition, I think.

[Anrhydeddu]

Do you mean that you have been typing out each of the player's status code block by hand?

[RPI-Fan]

Damn, was so proud of myself for figuring out what was wrong with your team.

15 minutes after you did. (Federov, FTR)

(and I know he's not the only problem, but he isn't helping)

~rpi-fan

[Bee]

From my experience, Pace is important for everyone with the possible exception of the keeper. Watching the games, you can just see some guys move faster than others. As you have said if the guy can't get to the ball it doesn't matter how much skill he has. Pace isn't the only thing that matters, but if your guy has a Pace of 1 he moves like a pregnant yak.

[condors]

with a pace of 1 you may want to try him wide and up with the forwards since he has good crossing and creativity so he should at least get some assists and create something, with older fading players if you have an arrow on him take that off as it requires more running on their part

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Anrhydeddu
Do you mean that you have been typing out each of the player's status code block by hand?

Actually, I paste the previous update, then go in and edit in the new data. Saves a bit of time, but it is still a pain.

[Anrhydeddu]

Did anyone ever come up with a good reason why we lost the ability to export formatted text in CM4 and OOTP5?

[QuikSand]

February 2005

Well, after a very difficult month of January, the league table is very different for us:

                W  D  L   GF  GA   Pts

Millwall       24  2  3   79  12    74
Wimbledon      20  2  9   71  33    62
- - - (auto promotion line) - - -
Sheff Wed      19  4  8   57  27    61
Chesterfield   17  7  7   48  24    58
Rushden        18  3 10   60  47    57
Brentford      16  6  8   61  30    54
- - - (promotion playoff line) - - -
Cheltenham     17  3 11   73  50    54
Lincoln        17  2 12   51  31    53
Cambridge      15  6 10   50  36    51

So, we are now on the outside looking in – but still in the hunt for a playoff spot, with two-thirds of the season concluded. The most striking thing on the table to me remains the Millwall goals allowed – only 12 in 29 matches!


And a home matchup against Rushden is pretty big right now. Our team morale is awful – most guys are poor or very poor, and I don’t know how to combat this. In the early stages, we are playing fairly well, and controlling the ball a lot. However, after the half – we have five yellows and no goals. Jones finally tops off a chance with a header, and we get the lead at 68 minutes, and Park gets a long shot to follow that up. Our constant pressure finally pays off, as we withstand a late PK to take the important win. Lincoln 2, Rushden 1.


With that boost in overall morale, we try to go on with a battle against Wigan. We hate Wigan. After Williamson gets flipped on a breakaway, Gary Webb misses the OK, and we remain scoreless. But Williamson finishes off our next chance himself, and we lead after 34 minutes. Park adds two more in the early second half as we pull away from our hated rivals. Late in the match, we suffer some pressure, but handle it well, and preserve Baines’s clean sheet. Lincoln 4, Wigan 0. Maybe we are coming out of this funk.


We’re home to Plymouth, and get ahead early off a good effort by Richard Lewis. However, we slide, and let them gain the lead in the early second half. This one gets away from us, along with (I fear) our morale boost. Plymouth 3, Lincoln 1.


While my initial offer to midfielder Andy Harris didn’t get him to sign, the 19 y/o player doesn’t completely reject it out of hand, either. He wants a minimum release clause and a bit more money – but we might have a shot. He projects as a serious addition to our midfield, if we can land him away from Middlesbrough. However, he accepts a bid from Preston, and sets aside our increased offer. I have made advances to seemingly countless midfielders, with no luck so far.

Finally, though, we get a breakthrough, albeit probably a minor one. Paul Price will join us on a transfer from Wrexham, where he has been pretty effective as a left side midfielder. He accepts a modest contract as a youngster (he’s 19) and will join the rotation in our midfield immediately. If he pans out, this will have been a very worthwhile deal, for the £14,000 transfer fee.

And it seems the dam has broken, as we finally break through with another player I have been seeking for some time. Bulgarian forward Aleksandar Nikolov has agreed terms with us, after my third attempt. He’s a natural forward, and I think the best slot for him might be as our attacking central midfielder – but he could certainly rotate in the forward/striker slots as well. He’s very fast and very good off the ball – not a bad addition, I think. At 28, he’s not a developing player, but we will hope he can provide some additional offensive punch when he joins us. That is assuming he gets a work permit – which we have applied for. We’ll hear back in early march about that – and will have our fingers crossed.


With Park getting a needed rest, I slot Paul Price in on our left side, and we’ll give him a trial by fire. We are at Peterborough, who gain an early edge with a weird header. Our defense plays well, but we again lack any offensive punch, and fail to draw even. Peterborough 1, Lincoln 0.


After some real strain, we have inked a new deal with young striker Matthew Jackson. He has been out injured for a while, but we recognize his importance to the squad, and have now secured him through 2008. He has 17 goals in 14 appearances this season – very impressive. He should resume training in another week or so, and be ready to play by the first of March, I’d guess. We need him, clearly.


We are home to Hull, and look sharp early – but then fall behind on a nicely set up goal by Hull’s two forwards. To our relief, it’s called back – and we go to the half scoreless. At 55, Williamson sets up Lewis for a great score, and we finally lead. We make this one hold up throughout, with a solid defensive effort. Lincoln 1, Hull 0.


In our next match, we are at Wycombe, and I have pressed midfielder Volodymyr Fedorov forward a bit – trying to send him down into the wing. It might weaken our defense a bit, but we need to do something with him. Chris Morgan scores off a nice counter attack, and we lead 1-0 at the half. Wycombe strikes right after the break to even it up. Abdy Allen gets us ahead off a free kick, and we try to hold that lead. I have pulled Fedorov for Gary Webb, who drives for a shot, but misses just wide. However, we manage to hold on for the win, with defender Andrew Cross gaining MOM for the second straight time. Lincoln 2, Wycombe 1.


In the FA Cup finals, Millwall take Man Utd all the way down to the wire, with mighty U winning only 1-0. The headlines blare about the resolute Second Division club – what a showing!


I approach a young Irish midfielder Alan Ryan, currently playing for Swansea, on loan from Tottenham. There seems to be a lot to like (though he is stodgy, a la Fedorov) – I put in an offer to bring him aboard starting next season after his Spurs contract ends.

[Anrhydeddu]

Are the games against Hull, Wycombe and Wigan considered league games? I don't see them in the standings or are just printing part of it?

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Anrhydeddu
Are the games against Hull, Wycombe and Wigan considered league games? I don't see them in the standings or are just printing part of it?

I'm only printing the top handful of teams in the league - there are 24 in total. My fingers thank me for the abbreviation... and I hope you can forgive the abridgement. (If you look closely, you'll see there aren't anough losses to match up to the wins among the teams I'm showing - this is just the upper tier)

[Anrhydeddu]

Thanks, that makes sense. I've wondered that which led me to believe that there are other games counting in the standings (knowing now the role of Cup matches).