FM: P'boro Utd, Year 3 ('06-'07) -- Goals Ahoy!

Butter · 03-11-2005, 11:51 AM

Remember this whole thing? Sure you do. If not, refresh your memory.

Or you could just slack off and hope I'll fill you in on the goings on behind the hottest club in the English Football Leagues, Peterborough United!

No laughing.

Butter · 03-11-2005, 01:48 PM

Offseason, June 2006

We sign another young Scandinavian goalkeeper, this time it's 20 year old Peter Karlsson with Swedish side Norrkoping. He has masterful reflexes, but still needs some technical work... but will join us for just $8k over 4 seasons, so you can't beat that.

Lamine Traore, the Burkinabe (had to look that up) central defender currently toiling for Belgian side Anderlecht gets his work permit! He'll join us on July 1. He is a terrific player and I'm quite excited to have him coming to the squad. He joins us for $170k, plus a 15% wage rise each year for the next 4 seasons. He will be out of training until mid-July due to a broken shoulder suffered in late May.

We also get notice that the golden child of American soccer, Freddy Adu, has been released from his DC United contract. *Drool* I imagine there will be several suitors for his services, but we hope to be the first ones in with our $280k per season contract offer. He rejects that, and we up it to our maximum, $320k with a $70k signing bonus. Inter and Valencia quickly follow us into the bidding, and he eventually signs with Inter for just $56k per year, but his value is nearly $10 million.

I get a new notice I've never seen before:
Eoin Jess has been awarded the Gold FA Coaching badge, the attacking midfielder has stated to you that he hopes he can make use of his qualifications in the near future.

Then, the same day:
PETERBOROUGH'S JESS SETS DATE FOR RETIREMENT

...Eoin Jess has announced his retirement at the end of the season. He has struggled to break into the first team of late, and feels that it is probably time he called it a day.

I get the same notice for Dean Edward Martin. Is that the end of next season... or now? I don't know. A check of their "future plans" notes that both mean on June 27, 2007.

I offer Jess a coach's contract for next season, with an additional $28k attached to it.

Andy Legg, Steve Yates, and reserve midfielder David Farrell also set a June, '07 retirement date a few days later. All of whom I wasn't re-signing anyway, so they might be retiring earlier than they think.

Our main defensive midfielder from last season, Alexis Nicolas, is transferred from Chelsea to League One Blackpool for over $1M. So much for loaning him in again.

Preston North End offer me $900k for Andy Monkhouse. Now he has a minimum fee release clause of $1.7 million. So, I split the difference and ask for $1.35 million... + 10% of his next sale.

The year officially flips (it's a game thing... sometime in mid-June, the processing takes extra long and you know then that the cut-off for the next game year is starting, where everyone's stats get moved to "last year", and that sort of thing).

Jean-Louis Valois has been voted Peterborough's Player of the Year by supporters.
-We sold last year's Fans' Player of the Year, Callum Willock, pretty shortly into last season. Good move there.

Peterborough are given $1.1 million for Championship TV rights for the forthcoming season.
-More than I expected. Sadly, the board decide not to give me any of that money for the transfer budget, so I still only have $70k despite our budget surplus jumping to over $1.6 million, and our wage budget now being $340k under budget.

At some point, also, the board have cut me from "delighted" in their eyes, to merely "very pleased". Both the club and the fans expect us to "battle bravely against relegation" this year.

Les Ferdinand also announces his retirement from the game, and he has also earned certification as a coach.

Preston offer us the $1.35 million, but remove the 10% clause and allow no more negotiation. I decide that I can hold out for the full $1.7 million if someone wants him badly enough, so I decline.

Dean Marney and Phillippe Senderos, of Spurs and Arsenal respectively, decline loan offers to play for us.

Butter · 03-11-2005, 01:49 PM

World Cup 2006 recap
Group Play
Group A
Portugal 7, Jamaica 3, South Korea 2, Ireland 2

Group B
Holland 4, Spain 4, Morocco 4, South Africa 4

Group C
Italy 7, France 5, Turkey 3, Canada 1

Group D
Argentina 9, Ecuador 6, Belgium 1, Slovakia 1

Group E
Germany 7, England 5, Croatia 4, Uzbekistan 0

Group F
Czech Rep. 6, Mexico 4, Chile 4, Cote d'Ivoire 3

Group G
USA 9, Jordan 4, Denmark 4, Senegal 0

Group H
Brazil 5, Saudi Arabia 4, Angola 4, Paraguay 2

Second Round
Portugal 0:1 Spain
Holland 3:1 Jamaica
Argentina 1:0 France
Italy 2:0 Ecuador, in extra time
Czech Republic 2:0 England
Germany 2:1 Mexico
Jordan 0:2 Brazil
Saudi Arabia 2:1 USA, in extra time

Quarterfinals
Holland 1:1 Italy, Holland win 4-2 on PK's
Spain 2:1 Argentina
Czech Republic 2:0 Saudi Arabia, in extra time
Germany 0:1 Brazil

Semifinals
Spain 0:0 Czech Republic, Spain win 4-3 on PK's
Holland 0:2 Brazil

Third Place Game
Czech Republic 1:0 Holland

Final, from Olympiastadion, Berlin
Spain 1:1 Brazil
-A taut defensive game climaxed the 2006 World Cup. This Cup was full of surprises, including the advance of Jordan, Jamaica, and Saudi Arabia to the knockout stages, not to mention KSA's upset of the US in round 2, winning on a goal with just 1 minute of extra time to play. In this match, Inter's fabulous striker Adriano beat Real Madrid's Iker Casillas to the near post in the 30th minute with a terrific strike that looked like it might hold up. But in the 2nd half's 6th minute, Arsenal's Jose Antonio Reyes was upended on a set piece and the penalty was given. Deportivo's Albert Luque struck the ball well and in to even the match at 1. The rest of the match was played on pins and needles, neither side wanting to give an inch. The extra 30 minutes decided nothing, so the match went to penalties. When the first 5 penalties ended even at 3, we needed to go to the 7th PK before Emerson converted the sudden death goal to give Brazil yet another World Cup title.

Unsurprisingly, Germany head man Jurgen Klinsmann was sacked after Germany's poor showing on their home field here.

Butter · 03-11-2005, 01:50 PM

And thus begins the signing:
-First signing of July is 19 year old forward Alexis Kubilskis, a Belgian signed on a free transfer from Nott'm Forest. He will take $8k per year to play for our reserves for a year or 2. He is signed to a 3 year deal. Mostly signed for a potential future transfer fee.

-Next, we pick up 22 year old defensive midfielder David Fox. We signed Fox on a Bosman last year, but it turned out we were due to pay Man U $1.5 million for the transfer for some reason. So we dropped the bid and just waited for his contract to expire. Fox still has some technique to learn, but is terrific mentally and physically. He signs for $100k per season, plus a 5% wage rise per year, until 2010.

-Our third signing is a huge one, 32 year old defender/defensive midfielder Ivan Campo signs with us. He comes over from Bolton where he made $1 million last year. He'll pick up a measly $360k for the next 2 years for us.

PETERBOROUGH FANS WELCOME IVAN CAMPO SIGNING

...The 32 year old midfielder is already proving a big favorite with the club's supporters and many young fans are already queueing up to have Ivan Campo's name printed on the back of their replica shirts.

That about does it, not as many signings as last year, but then we don't need quite as much. I would kind of like to sign another striker, but I'm not going to overpay for one.

SirFozzie · 03-11-2005, 08:53 PM

ahhhh.. yer still Posh Scum

Butter · 03-14-2005, 12:33 PM

Our friendly list is finalized, and looks like this:
@ St. Mirren (SCO)
v. Man Utd. Reserves
@ Port Vale (L2)
v. Monaco (FRA)
@ Bangor (NIR)
v. Chelsea (EPL)

And with that, our first friendly is upon us. We plan to stick with the same formation as last year, a 4-4-2 diamond, with 2 wingers pressing far forward in attack, an attacking midfielder supporting the strikers, and a defensive midfielder supporting the defense, but pushing ahead when needed. Our 2 central defenders have backward arrows to play deep. We use an attacking mentality, mixed passing that leans toward the short side, and a slow tempo. Our defensive line plays a bit further up than normal, and our entire team plays fairly narrowly down the field, using wing runs only when they present themselves.

Our lineups will switch around a lot in the preseason, but here's our lineup in this one:
GK: Masalin
Def (Left to Right): Pritchard, Plummer, Cave, Dakinah
DM: Navarro
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Monkhouse
Str: Aaritalo, Johansen

July 10, Friendly #1
@ St. Mirren (Scottish Premier League)
We drew with St. Mirren 1-1 2 years ago in the preseason. Valois takes a knock in the 10th minute, and comes off for Kubilskis. The match was fairly even in the first 15 minutes, but we dominated the final half hour of the first half, but couldn't dent the scoresheet. Both Johansen and Kubilskis were particularly good, Johansen with at least 3 narrow misses. Subs on in the 2nd half. Paul Shaw plays a through ball to Derek Holmes 4' into the 2nd half, and Holmes slots it home. Derek making the most of his time in the lineup. Shaw scores on a 20 yard strike from Tobias Eriksson in the 65th to make it 2-0. In the 79th, Jon Masalin with maybe the most impressive series of stops I've seen from any of our keepers in 2+ years, stopping 3 powerful St. Mirren shots within 10 seconds of each other, and grabbing another cross to end the danger. Jon Masalin with a well-deserved MoM award, rates a 9. Pritchard and Eriksson pick up 8's, and everyone else gets a 7 in a good effort. We outshot St. Mirren 19-13, and outpossessed them 53-47.
Win, 0-2
A: 2,219

Paul Shaw picks up a late knock, a calf strain that will sideline him for 2 weeks. Valois' injury is not serious, thank goodness.

We get notice of our first TV game that I'm aware of, as our late-September league tussle against Fulham at Craven Cottage is moved to Sunday afternoon for TV.

July 16, Friendly #2
v. Man Utd. Reserves
Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Cave, Landgren, Burton, Carr
DM: Campo
Mid: Eriksson, Martin
AM: Jess
Str: Johansen, Holmes

We make a good defensive play in the 22nd minute that Sagi Burton heads into our own net. Martin had stolen it cleanly and probably played it into a bad place, but I can't honestly say the own goal helped matters. Cave yields a penalty in defense in the 35th minute, but Kruse saves it. Subs in at the half, as our offense was pretty horrible in the first half, yielding one clean chance that Johansen headed over the bar. In the 50th, a good counter creates a goal, as reserve striker James Faulkner takes the pass from Aaritalo and converts the free chance with a 15 yard strike over the keeper's hands. In the 67th, Kubilskis with a good steal, to Devlin, who finds Faulkner who converts again. We yield another penalty in the 70th, off a bad tackle from Charlie Daniels (a reserve midfielder). Man U with a nice header in in the 80th minute, but Faulkner appears to pick up a hat trick in the 85th, but it's called back as he was offside. That's how it ends. Man U had more chances than us, but an own goal and a PK were 2 of their 3 goals, so we certainly could've won this one. Faulkner was particularly impressive, and he'll get a better look during the preseason now. Faulkner had our only 8, and most others had a 7 rating.
Loss, 2-3
A: 395

DMC David Fox picked up a thigh strain late in this one, and will miss about a week of training.

July 19, Friendly #3
@ Port Vale (League 2)
Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Burton, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Monkhouse
Str: Ferdinand, Hammond

We don't play well in this one. Port Vale score right before the interval to lead 1-0. In the 80th Jess scores an odd goal to make it 1-1, but Vale with a quality cross and header in in the 89th to win it. No one really distinguished themselves in this one. Azinovic picks up our only 8 as the sub keeper.
Loss, 2-1
A: 7,391

Butter · 03-14-2005, 12:34 PM

Our final 3 friendlies should really help prepare us for the season. I've screwed around enough with the lineup, and not much is going to change. Faulkner may get a bit better of a look at striker during the year, but we plan to play our starters for most of this next match, and all of our final match against Chelsea. Unfortunately, it looks like Traore is going to miss the entire pre-season, and Sarr doesn't arrive until just after our match with Chelsea, so I'm still thin at the defensive positions until they arrive.

I'm somewhat concerned that Lukas Kruse is not quite up to Championship quality. So I make a few offers around to loan in a keeper for the year to take the pressure off. I don't want to HAVE to replace Kruse, but I want some options. I notice an aging Edwin van der Sar is on the market, and would probably be signable... but I pass for now.

July 23, Friendly #4
v. AS Monaco (France - Ligue 1)
Monaco is a club who has been contending for Champions League spots in recent years... so this is a top-flight European team we have at London Road. We start the same lineup as we did vs. Port Vale.

My faith in Kruse is not reinforced as he is credited (debited?) with an own goal off an 8th minute Monaco header in the box. We fight back immediately, with Monkhouse earning a PK off a Ferdinand cross in the 11th minute, and Hammond converting it. And again, Kruse with a mistake off a 23rd minute corner, as the corner swings directly into the net, past a watching Lukas Kruse. 2-1, Monaco. Hammond is injured in the 33rd minute... it appears minor, but I put in Aaritalo just in case. Campo and Devlin are struggling at the break, but I leave them out there. I bring on the subs around minute 70, and they create 3 pretty decent chances, but Aaritalo misses 2 clean chances, being stoned on a breakaway once, and missing the top corner on a good cross another time. We finish with a loss, but performed reasonably well. Monaco seemed to have about half their first team on the field against us. Only Lukas Kruse finishes with a 6, everyone else who played rated a 7.
Loss, 1-2
A: 15,165

We are able to convince former Southampton wunderkind Leandre Griffit to visit us on trial for 2 weeks to assess his skill. I tried to loan him out 2 years ago, but he snubbed us. I should do the same to the guy, but if he can help me, I'll sign him... as long as he doesn't go crazy with the wage request.

Southampton hire German legend Jurgen Klinsmann to take over, as they fired Steve Wigley during the offseason. Southampton is slowly trying to build themselves into a consistent European contender, but faltered late last year under Wigley and fired him in the offseason.

July 26, Friendly #5
@ Bangor (Northern Ireland)
We play as many backups as we can, to rest the regulars to play pretty much the entire final pre-season match.
Lineup:
GK: Masalin
Def: St. Ledger, Cave, Landgren, Carr
DM: Fox
Mid: Eriksson, Griffit
AM: Martin
Str: Johansen, Faulkner

A fairly lackluster first half turned in. Everyone stays on, and in the 65th minute, Leandre Griffit with a good steal and pass ahead to Johansen, who fakes the keeper out and slots it home. Johansen strikes again in the 70th, after doing some nice work on a poor corner kick by Fox... Johansen poked it away from a defender, then slid it around the keeper and another defender before powering it home. We put it away in the 3rd minute of stoppage as Griffit with a terrific cross right to the head of Faulkner who has an easy finish. Leandre Griffit wants me to sign him, earning the man of the match and an 8 with his 2 assists. Masalin, Johansen, Cave, and Faulkner also pick up 8's. Don't want to get too excited about the backup squad here, as it was an inferior opponent.
Win, 0-3
A: 1,352

After the match, I ask Griffit what he wants to sign with us. He wants $340k per year for 3 seasons. No freaking way, Leandre. I already have a crapload of salary tied up in the midfield. I try $180k, and up the signing bonus from $28k to $40k, also increasing the number of years on the contract to 4. He snubs that completely, and I bump up the salary a bit, and the signing bonus.

And with the final friendly, comes our final lineup unveiling:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Burton, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Monkhouse
Str: Ferdinand, Hammond

Lamine Traore and Sarr will probably squeeze in the lineup for Plummer and Burton once they arrive... and after that playing time will be based on performance, with everyone playing some matches early in the season. Fox and Navarro will have to split time as Campo's backup... and Campo hasn't exactly impressed in the preseason, so more playing time may be in the offing for the 2 of them. And Jim Johansen is pretty much a goal away from being named our third striker, as Aaritalo has struggled to find the net in the preseason.

July 29, Friendly #6
v. Chelsea (English Premier League)

The Blues are starting their first teamers against us, so this should be an excellent challenge. I don't alter our tactics prior to game time, preferring to see how we stack up with one of the Big 4. Doesn't take long, as in the 5th minute Adrian Mutu crosses to recently acquired Michael Ballack, who nods it in past Kruse. Mutu scores himself off a free kick in the 8th minute. Yuk. Plummer with a steal in the 17th right to the foot of Mutu, who scores his second. 3-0 after barely 15 minutes. Gudjohnsen scores in the 18th minute and makes it an embarrassing 4-0. Shaw comes in for Monkhouse, who is rating a 4. Masalin also on for Kruse, who is embarrassing himself... and me. Chelsea pretty much pulls all the way back and just try to hold the ball in midfield the rest of the way. We put in the subs around the 60th... why hurt anybody in this mess? An embarrassing mistake by Chelsea in the 70th, as Kofi Dakinah plays a long ball off a free kick from our own half... and it takes a hop off Lucio's foot and goes in. A goal directly off a 75 yard free kick... I'll take it.

Monkhouse and Ferdinand both pick up 4's, and Kruse and several others rate 5's. A horrible performance all around. I suppose that'll teach me to try and play an attacking style against a Premiership foe. We held the ball less than 40% for the match.

Loss, 1-4
A: 15,240

Not the good tune-up I was hoping for, really. Just a big whitewash. Hopefully it won't get the lads down too badly, as we've got a season to play.

Leandre Griffit rejects our latest contract offer. I like the kid... so I make one more offer that would make him the 2nd highest paid player on the team at $240k per season.

Sarr finally joins us... and he will be making $220k per year. Ouch. But he is a good looking player, so hopefully this outlay of cash I'm making will pay off in the table.

Sadly, both our loan efforts for a keeper and the chance to sign van der Sar dry up, and we're stuck with Kruse and Masalin in net for the year.

Butter · 03-15-2005, 10:07 AM

ENGLISH CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS FROM TOTALBET.COM
Coventry have been made 7-4 favorites to gain promotion from the English Championship this season.

The rest of the main contenders are priced at:
Charlton, Blackburn - 2:1
Nott'm Forest - 5:2
Everton, Fulham - 3:1

Coming in at 40-1 it seems clear that the bookmakers have you tipped as an outside chance for promotion this campaign.

Whether you make it or not will ultimately depend on how your side fares against the top teams in the division.

Hmmm, that was unexpected. I thoroughly expected to be picked for demotion. Maybe the bookies like our roster, I don't know. We'll see if we can live up to it.

Sarr arrives unfit and promptly injures his wrist in practice, which will keep him out a week. Good start there.

The League Cup draw arrives, and we draw favorably, a home game to League 1 Watford.

Our schedule starts out fairly easily, but then we hit almost all the league favorites right in a row in late September through October. So, if we have problems early, it's not likely that we'll be able to recover very quickly when we face the likes of Everton, Fulham, and Blackburn.

We get to ease into the season a bit, drawing our first match on the road at Hull. Hull barely survived the drop to League One last year, but they dominated League One two years ago on their way to promotion, though we fared well against their defensive formation.

This season, I'll be giving you my lineup and the opponent's, as there are more likely to be familiar names amongst them now.

Aug. 5, Match 1 - from The Circle, Hull
@ Hull (finished 21st in Champ. last season)
Series: Even, 0-2-0
Fav: Tigers, 6:4

Lineups:
Peterborough United
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Traore, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Monkhouse
Str: Ferdinand, Hammond
Subs: GK Masalin, DC Burton, Str Johansen, DM Navarro, AM Eriksson

Hull City, 4-4-2 formation
GK: Boaz Myhill
Def: Wayne Quinn, Leon Cort, Marc Joseph, Ryan Taylor
Mid: Stuart Elliott, Tom Beattie, Alan Quinn, Nick Barmby
Str: Delroy Facey, Jason Euell

5'- Valois with a nice cross that's punched away right to Ivan Campo, who lets loose from 20 yards but it sails high.

7'- Valois with 2 30-yard attempts within a minute of each other, one was saved, the other just wide.

12'- Devlin with a steal in midfield, finds Ferdinand, who lays it into the path of Valois... Valois with several short dribbles is in on the keeper, but his shot is easily saved, tipped over the end line for a corner.

20'- Hull's first attacking move is a Facey cross to Barmby, but Plummer heads it away... they switch the play to the other side but Elliott's attempted cross is grabbed by Kruse.

30'- Facey with an angle at the right post... he passes to Euell, a great pass, but Kruse with a nice diving save to just tip Euell's shot around the bar.

39'- Euell with a 25 yard shot struck with power, but it's miles high. Kruse with the quick restart, great long ball down the center to Monkhouse... Monkhouse is behind the defense! The keeper charges him, but he gets him to ground early, then taps it around him for our first Championship goal! Monkhouse starting again in great form, with our first goal of the year.

43'- Devlin with a terrific corner kick to an advancing Traore, who hits it on the half volley just wide.

45'- Two scary chances for Hull late, Cort with a good corner to Wayne Quinn's head, but Kruse with a spectacular acrobatic save to keep it out... then about a half minute later, Euell is onside and takes a good shot, but Kruse tips it and it rolls along the goal line... all the way across... and Facey is there for the tap in but he manages to hit it into the side netting somehow. WHEW!

Valois the only player who is rating less than a 7, with a 6 at the half. No changes for now.

52'- Facey is played on by Elliott... Facey all the way down the left past the challenge of Traore, then he crosses into the six for Euell, who climbs above Pritchard and heads it in. 1-1. Not a good defensive play.

This is Euell's debut for Hull after signing in the offseason from Charlton Athletic.

65'- Elliott with a pass to Alan Quinn, who has space at 12 yards, but mis-hits his shot way wide.

72'- Johansen on for a tiring Ferdinand.

82'- Dakinah with a great ball to Hammond, who beats the keeper and scores from a tight angle... but the flag was up when the pass was made. Rats.

90'+- At the death, Traore with a great ball for Devlin, who runs it down, then crosses for Johansen, but Myhill is there to take charge of the cross.

We end drawn, not a bad result for our first league road game. We actually dominated from a chances standpoint, but Hull dominated ball possession, keeping it in our defensive third for 30% of the match. Chris Plummer with a surprise MoM honor, rating a 9 in central defense. He won all 12 headers attempted, 9 of them key. He also won 6/7 tackles and made 6 interceptions. Dakinah, Pritchard, and Monkhouse picked up 8's, while Valois underwhelmed with a 6.

Draw, 1-1, start in 15th
Shots/on target: Tigers 10/4, Posh 17/10
Poss: 57-43, Tigers
A: 22,711

Sadly, Elvis Hammond twisted his ankle early in this game... and I didn't sub for him. He is due to be out for 2 weeks.

Butter · 03-15-2005, 10:44 AM

Community Shield, from Wembley
Arsenal 1:1 Chelsea
-Joe Cole evened this match at 1 at the stroke of halftime, and Rob Styles sent off 2 men in the 2nd half to back both teams into a bunker. Arsenal ends up winning 5-4 on PK's as Patrick Vieira converted the decisive PK.

Our next match is a home lockup with Derby County. We start many of the 2nd team, to preserve our legs as much as possible. Derek Holmes gets a pity start today to see if he can help us.

Aug. 8, Match 2 - from London Road, Peterborough
0-1-0, 15th pl., 1 pt.
v. Derby County (1-0-0, 5th pl., 3 pts. - beat Millwall 2-0)
Series: First meeting in at least 3 years
Fav: Rams, 6:4
Lineups:
Peterborough Utd.
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Burton, Plummer, Dakinah
DM: Navarro
Mid: Eriksson, Martin
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Holmes

Derby County, standard 3-5-2 formation
GK: Lee Grant
Def: Gerry Taggart, Pablo Mills, Simon Walton
Mid: Morten Bisgaard, Nathan Doyle, Adam Bolder, Tom Huddlestone, Marco Reich
Str: Tommy Smith, Grzegorz Rasiak

Rasiak scored both goals in Derby's win over Millwall, and 25 last season. Huddlestone, Doyle, and Walton are all under 20 years old and starting in their first season for the Rams.

2'- Rasiak with a 30 yard strike off a pass from Smith, and Kruse gets a finger to it, but can't keep it out. Not a good start, 1-0 Rams.

Derby just seem to be playing at a different speed than us.

12'- Johansen is free down the left, and draws the keeper out... he tries to cross to Derek Holmes, but the ball is tipped, and Holmes can't take the volley cleanly... and the chance is stopped.

20'- Bisgaard with a 25 yard free kick that skips off the top of the bar and out.

27'- Martin is free, but help arrives quickly, and his attempted cross is grabbed by Grant.

30'- Tobias Eriksson is forced to leave thanks to a Marco Reich challenge. Monkhouse comes on.

Derby dominate the first half, and we created just the one off target shot all half. Holmes and Johansen don't seem to be the problem... I'm not sure what the problem is. No changes yet for half 2.

47'- Rasiak and Bisgaard both miss good chances inside the box.

60'- Plummer misplays a goal kick into a breakaway for Bolder, but he misses his shot high.

64'- Martin with a cross for Plummer, who heads it well over. Aaritalo on for Burton, and we switch to a 3-4-3... we up the tempo and send long balls to Aaritalo.

73'- Substitute midfielder Ben Wilkinson receives a nice pass from Huddlestone, and pretty much walks in on the keeper... he fires top corner and buries it. 2-0.

Derby pretty much pack it in the rest of the way and take the points. Kruse with particularly poor performance today, rating a 5. But I can't say our offense helped, creating virtually no chances. Maybe Derby will be this hot all year, and I won't feel so bad about this one. Or maybe I've learned a lesson about substitution patterns and fresh legs for the season.

Loss, 0-2, drop to 20th
Shots/on target: Posh 4/1, Derby 17/8
Poss: 51-49, Rams
A: 11,149

Eriksson has strained a groin (his own, thankfully), and will be out 2 weeks.

Butter · 03-15-2005, 11:28 AM

We sign a young midfielder thanks to a scouting trip... 17 year old Jonas Gustavsson from Sweden, who can play all 3 midfield positions signs for just $6k per year for 4 seasons. He has some good physical attributes, but is spotty with the technique. He goes immediately to the reserves.

Paul Devlin goes out with a chest injury for a few days as our bad luck continues.

The march of death through the Championship continues as we travel to first place Reading. No games are a cinch at this level, as I'm quickly finding out.

Aug. 12, Match 3 - From Madejski Stadium, Reading
0-1-1, 20th pl., 1 pt.
@ Reading (2-0-0, 1st pl., 6 pts.)
Series: First meeting
Fav: Royals, 5:4
Lineups:
Peterborough
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Traore, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Monkhouse
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Ferdinand

Reading, attacking 4-4-2
GK: Marcus Hahnemann
Def: Nicky Shorey, Peter Castle, Curtis Osano, Graeme Murty
Mid: Bobby Convey, Steve Sidwell, Andy Hughes, Glen Little
Str: Dave Kitson, Danny Dichio

The Royals with 2 US players in Hahnemann and Convey. Hahnemann had a shaky season in '04-'05, but settled down a bit last year, and has 2 shutouts so far this year.

1'- Valois heads a goal kick all the way forward to Johansen, who is free on Hahnemann. Johansen's tough angle shot is deflected out for a corner, though.

4'- Kruse with a good grab of a cross, and he outlets it to Ferdinand, who nods it to Monkhouse... Andy with a centering pass to Johansen, who slips a ball through to Shaw... Shaw and the keeper on a 50-50 ball, and Paul Shaw wins it, tucking it into the corner! 1-0, Posh!

Not much happens for a while, but Reading earn 2 cards trying to hold Ferdinand and Shaw back.

33'- Traore with a free kick in the center circle. He sends one ahead to Ferdinand at the top of the box... 2 defenders and the keeper attempt to converge, but Ferdinand flicks it on with his head to Johansen, who is played onside by a defender on the right, and has an open goal to shoot at, and he converts! 2-0, Posh! What a play by Ferdinand and Johansen!

41'- Kitson to Convey, who has all sorts of space... Bobby Convey with a good pass to Dichio, who dives onto it and heads it in past Kruse. 2-1.

Reading with a couple of more nice crosses to Dichio, who gets his head to them both but puts them over. The Royals are pressing hard for the equalizer already. No changes to the squad for half 2.

61'- Convey with a pacey cross to Sidwell, who is able to gather it and score from 8 yards. CRAP! 2-2. Kruse is having another poor game.

65'- Convey receives a short corner, then puts a ball into the six that Kitson heads in. 3-2, Reading.

82'- Navarro on for Plummer, Aaritalo for Ferdinand. Shaw moves up front, and we go to a 3-4-3 again, with Campo moving up to midfield.

88'- Traore clears a Convey cross, but right to sub Dean Morgan, who strikes it past Kruse to stick the dagger in a bit further. 4-2.

Well, we had a great first 35 minutes, and it all went to hell shortly thereafter. Another crap game from our defense, and Kruse in particular. He picks up a 5, and Chris Plummer also picks up a 5. I guess it's back to defensive tactics on the road for a while after this debacle.

Loss, 4-2, drop to 21st
Shots/on target: Royals 17/5, Posh 9/6
Poss: 54-46, Royals
A: 19,781

We may have to consider a slight tactics adjustment if things don't improve, especially on the road. We only yielded one goal to Hull, but they typically play a defensive style anyway, so that doesn't move me. A goalkeeper signing is again also a possibility to stop the bleeding if Kruse doesn't improve.

Butter · 03-16-2005, 07:17 AM

Not a great start for us, 2 points in 4 games. I'm confident of our attack, though... Johansen has played well. Hammond has been injured the last 2 matches, and Shaw has been great in the center. Seems as if our attacking midfielder is more well-positioned to pick up goals than the strikers are. Shaw and Monkhouse have 3 of our 4 goals, while Johansen has the other.

Next up, a trip to Wigan. Hammond, Eriksson, and Valois still aren't fit, but Sarr moves into the sub rotation, and will probably be fit enough to start our next match. We back our tactics down to slightly defensive, and counter-attacking, and using Aaritalo as a target man.

Aug. 19, Match 5 - From JJB Stadium, Wigan
0-2-2, 21st pl., 2 pts.
@ Wigan Athletic (2-1-1, 9th pl., 7 pts.)
Series: First meeting
Fav: Latics, 5:4
----------
Lineups:
Peterborough Utd.
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Traore, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Monkhouse, Devlin
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Aaritalo

Wigan Athletic, 4-4-2 standard
GK: John Filan
Def: Leighton Baines, Emerson Thome, David Marek Rozehnal, David Wright
Mid: Lee McCulloch, Stephen Clemence, Liam Miller, Gary Teale
Str: David Graham, Chris Reski

18 year old Chris Reski gets his first start up front, as regular striker Jason Roberts is out injured.
----------

A fairly plodding game after a half hour, with no clear chances, then:

31'- Kruse receives a back pass and screws around with it... he is dispossessed by Reski, who shoots at an open net from 15 yards, and manages to miss. Wow.

A tentative first half both ways, with only 1 on target shot requiring a save, and that was a 30 yarder that Kruse had no problem with. 4 chances for the Latics, 3 for us. No changes for the 2nd half.

66'- Aaritalo is played onside by Johansen... but his shot is stoned by Filan.

71'- Navarro in for Shaw, Sarr in for Pritchard... Traore moves to left fullback.

84'- Sarr with a good spot of Navarro... Navarro unmarked shoots from 20 yards... off the crossbar and into Filan's arms!

The final whistle goes... pretty good performance by the lads. We easily could've won this one 1-0. But a road point is big. Wigan keeper John Filan with the MoM. Aaritalo, Campo, Traore, and Pritchard pick up 8's for us.

Draw, 0-0, up 1 spot to 20th
Shots/on target: Latics 8/1, Posh 10/4
Poss: 51-49, Wigan
A: 10,107

No injuries in the post-game for once! Nee-ha!

Butter · 03-16-2005, 08:18 AM

MK Dons offer us $6k and 40% of the next sale of Tom Penford... a disgruntled reserve midfielder who was a prominent player for us 2 years ago. His salary is $100k, way too much for a reserve, so we accept, despite the fact that we paid $10k for him. Penford agrees to a contract with MK of League Two, and we say goodbye.

Campo is selected in the Team of the Week, our first such honor.

A huge blow as Andy Monkhouse is due to be out 2 months with a torn groin muscle. As if this season weren't already going badly enough. Ugh. Monkhouse is one of our top players, and our most versatile. He'll be missed.

Next up, we get a breather from league play with our first round League Cup match against Watford. Our scout mentions that Watford's attack is weak. We'll see.

Goalkeeper Thomas Myhre agrees to a contract with us... Kruse hasn't been bad, but he is averaging a 6.2 through our 5 league matches, not exactly awe-inspiring. Myhre out-rates him in every keeper category, as well as most mental and physical ones. He is a bit expensive, but if he can keep out 10 more goals than Kruse this year, he'll be worth it. Myhre is signed for just 2 years, as he is 32 years old, but will pull down $180k per year and will likely become our starter in goal.

Aug. 23, League Cup First Round
v. Watford (13th in League One)
Series: Posh lead 2-0-0
Fav: Posh, Evens
----------
Lineups:
Peterborough United
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Burton
DM: Navarro
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Watford, 4-1-2-1-2 direct
GK: Andy Marshall
Def: John Hayward, Dom Blizzard, Andy Todd, Cameron Mawer
Mid: Brynjar Gunnarsson, Anthony McNamee, Paul Martin, George James
Str: Billy Paynter, Bruce Dyer

We made a brief run at Blizzard during the Bosman period last year, but he ended up re-signing with Watford. Probably just as well, as he's never really performed for the Hornets.
----------

1'- Devlin with a chance off a free kick, but his 15 yard shot is well high.

3'- Paynter with a header over the bar.

11'- Dyer gets a pass from Paynter in the middle, but Burton tackles it away... Watford keep possession, then Paynter is open off a pass from Dyer, and he strikes it home inside the post from 12 yards. Not good defense on that one, Paynter was unmarked. But it was a good strike, ricocheting off the inside of the post and going in. 1-0, Hornets.

25'- Valois is sent through by Pritchard, but his shot is weak and saved easily.

43'- Johansen has a good chance, but has it tackled away... right to Valois who sends it wide of the target.

We managed a few chances in the half, but nothing anywhere remotely close to a goal. We keep the same players on for half 2.

59'- McNamee with a cross, and Dyer challenges Kruse, but Lukas handles it well.

71'- McNamee again to Dyer inside the six, and this time Kruse has to save it, and does very well to tip it over for a corner. Campo on for a limping Devlin, Navarro moves up to midfield as we turn up the attack to try and grab the equalizer.

84'- Finally, a chance, as Valois is free down the left... totally unmarked after a nod on from Johansen... his cross to Hammond is pinpoint, and the finish is clinical! 1-1!

89'- Blizzard with a shot from 20 yards... hits the crossbar! It rolls back toward Bruce Dyer... Pritchard tries to tackle it away, but the referee points at the spot! Pritchard with a poor challenge there, and the penalty is given. Sarr with a yellow for dissent in the aftermath, and Pritchard lucky not to get sent off as he kicks a guy while waiting for the PK to get set up. Substitute striker Heidar Helguson to take it... and he gets his foot way under it and sends it well over! We're going to extra time! Fox in for a tiring Navarro in extra time.

92'- Campo to Hammond, who backheels it to Fox... lovely pass and Fox is free... Fox slots it to the right of the keeper, and it's in! David Fox with the goal in the 2nd minute of extra time to give us the lead!

100'- Todd steals the corner kick and shoots it long to Dyer... Dyer is 1-v-4, but persists, and beats Pritchard... Dyer is into the box... then Watford with a great series of passes in and around the box, ending up on the foot of the man who started it, Andy Todd... Todd shoots from 18 yards and it's in! Great football from Watford to equalize in extra time.

Les Ferdinand on for Traore, and we go to a 3 man back to try and nab the winner.

109'- Johansen on the edge of the area, sends it across for Fox, who is unmarked near the back post... David Fox with the header but it's just wide! Great chance there.

114'- Helguson is wide open and walks in on Kruse, but sends his shot too high.

We're going to PK's! What a game this has been.

Ferdinand steps up for us first... and it's saved... Todd scores easily for Watford to give them a 1-0 lead.
Johansen hits the post and misses! Luckily, sub Lloyd Doyley misses the target completely for Watford.
Hammond steps up... and scores! Helguson for Watford... and he puts it into orbit! 1-1!
Sagi Burton goes fourth... and he makes no mistake, right into the upper corner! Gunnarsson steps up for the Hornets... and he's not close! Watford not even giving themselves a chance, and we lead 2-1 going into the final round.
David Fox can end it for us.... and he does! David Fox with a goal in extra time, and now the clinching PK in an impressive performance for the Posh!

Sarr, Valois, and Hammond nab 8's, as Andy Todd nabs the MoM for Watford. But we're moving on.

Win, 2-2 (3-2 on PK's), move on to round 2
Shots/on target: Posh 9/2, Hornets 19/6
Poss: 53-47, Hornets
A: 4,110

We win $36,000 for our victory, which is nice, because we just blew a chunk of change on that Myhre signing.

Butter · 03-16-2005, 09:09 AM

The bad part about that victory was going to extra time, and we have a game with just 2 days rest in-between.

European Super Cup - From Stade Louis II, Monaco
Tottenham 3:1 Arsenal
-This meeting of the winners of the Champions League and Euro Cup ends surprisingly, as Spurs make short work of the Gunners. Henry earns a penalty in the opening minutes and converts, but from there it's all Jermain Defoe. Defoe scores twice in the next 40 minutes, and Robbie Keane puts it away with a breakaway goal in the 82nd to give Spurs the surprising victory.

I get a report on our next opponent, Burnley, and it mentions that their defense is slow. I don't think I've ever seen that before. Hopefully that will work to our advantage. My strikers aren't particularly fast, but Valois is good down the wing... which is our normal mode of attack anyway.

The Second Round draw of the League Cup is made, and we get to travel to Manchester City. Swell. Looking over our fixture list, it's been picked as a featured TV game for the Cup as well, so it'll be our first TV match in quite some time... and it's right before our trip to Fulham, which is also a TV matchup.

Aug. 26, Match 6
0-3-2, 20th pl., 3 pts.
v. Burnley (1-2-2, 14th pl., 5 pts.)
Last meeting: Posh 3:1 Burnley ('04-'05 FA Cup Third Round)
Fav: Posh, 6:4
----------
Lineups:
Peterborough Utd.
GK: Myhre
Def: Plummer, Traore, Campo, Dakinah
DM: Fox
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Martin
Str: Ferdinand, Aaritalo

Burnley, attacking 4-4-2
GK: Danny Coyne
Def: Zak Whitbread, Neil Guthrie, John McGreal, Michael Duff
Mid: Matt O'Neill, Chris McCann, Micah Hyde, Aaron Lennon
Str: Ian Moore, Robbie Blake

-Valois is a former Claret regular who came over to us at the beginning of last season. Robbie Blake already with 4 league goals for Burnley, and yes, Zak Whitbread is an American playing in England.
----------

4'- Valois with a nice pass to Ferdinand, who shoots first time from 12 yards, but right at Coyne.

Burnley pretty well dominate the remainder of the half, with Blake firing in a few chances at Myhre, but usually without much panic caused. We stick with things for the second half, and hope to make a breakthrough of some kind here.

48'- Valois with a shot from 15 yards that strikes the crossbar... and Whitbread kicks it out for a corner.

57'- Ian Moore is onside down the right... he fires a nice shot across the goalmouth, but it just goes out.

62'- Blake with a cross, Hyde tries to head it in, but it hits the crossbar and Traore clears it away. Sarr in for a tiring Fox, and Campo moves up to defensive midfield. Eriksson on for Martin.

74'- Ferdinand is exhausted, Johansen on for him.

77'- Duff with a free kick at around 45 yards. He sends it into the box for Blake... Dakinah sticks a toe in, but Blake goes around him, then blasts a point blank shot past Myhre, who probably should've come out for the ball a tad sooner. 1-0, Clarets.

83'- McGreal leaves injured for Burnley, and they've used their 3 subs, so we're a man up for the final 10 minutes or so.

We try desperately to up the attack, moving Dakinah to midfield, pushing he and Campo forward... nothing really works. Johansen is dispossessed in the box in the 93rd to end our last push.

Myhre and Valois earn our only 8's, but it is the Burnley keeper who wins the man of the match. 6 matches without a win now, and it's getting kinda depressing.

Loss, 0-1, down 1 spot to 21st
Shots/on target: Posh 8/6, Clarets 14/6
Poss: 50-50
A: 8,622

We're trying desperately to sign a top notch striker now, but it's not working for us. We just can't offer the kind of salary anyone is looking for, as the board is allowing a maximum of $340k per year for anyone, and usually a half-million dollar offer is a minimum for a top flight goal scorer. I'll keep trying.

Butter · 03-17-2005, 09:01 AM

"We will beat Peterborough," SAYS MOLBY

Sheffield United manager Jan Molby has added fuel to the fire in the build-up to their relegation battle on Tuesday by telling Peterborough manager Butter that his Sheffield United team are very confident of beating his side.

I respond with:

BUTTER DOUBTS MOLBY'S ABILITY TO SAVE SHEFF UTD

After reading Jan Molby's comments that Sheff Utd. are confident of beating Peterborough in their forthcoming clash, Butter reacted angrily.

At a press conference this afternoon, the Peterborough boss announced that he does not feel Jan Molby is capable of saving Sheffield United from relegation.

Traore and Devlin both liked my comments regarding Sheffield United. The other players didn't seem to care much about the whole thing. Sheffield's roster is a mess though... 3 players are unsure whether they can avoid the drop, 3 of them are determined to prove me wrong, and still another thinks they can win most games without much effort. Interesting.

Myhre and Traore are called up to their respective international teams in a week or so.

We'll see what happens at Sheffield.

I like doing the lineup summaries for the other team, but it's just taking me too long, so I'm stopping them now. We'll just go back to giving you the Posh lineup.
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Aug. 29, Match 7 - from Bramall Lane, Sheffield
0-3-3, 21st pl., 3 pts.
@ Sheffield United (4-0-2, 7th pl., 12 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-0-1
Fav: Blades, 5:4

6'- Bad start, as Ivan Campo is called for a penalty for barging over a player who was trying to reach a cross. FUCK! Jack Lester, a Blade striker steps up to take it... Myhre saves it! A rebound is shot, but hits the defense... then is headed back goalward, but strikes the crossbar and is cleared... sort of... Sarr is called for a foul just outside the box. The wall deflects the 18 yard, 1 inch free kick out for a corner. What a defensive series to keep the sheet clean!

We spend a good period attacking, but several shots are off target, including a close in header from Shaw off a Valois cross in the 26th.

35'- Sarr with the ball at around 20 yards, he has a go... it deflects off a leg, hits the post and rolls across the goal line... and is cleared. The teams are teasing their supporters today! It remains 0-0.

This match is pretty even as we head in for the break. Devlin and Valois are getting tired. But we can't take them out... hopefully we can dent the scoresheet after halftime.

46'- Lester with an easy chance against Myhre, but he misses the target.

48'- Shaw wins a ball in midfield, then finds Johansen unmarked at 15 yards... he shoots.... high! Damn!

71'- Lester has a run down the left... he beats the challenge of Sarr, then skips over Myhre and taps it in. 1-0, Blades. Dammit, we just have no luck at all! Not a good play, but we can't put together any good plays lately.

Aaritalo in for Pritchard, and Fox in for a tiring Devlin... we move to a 3-4-3, and push Campo up to midfield.

It doesn't matter. We can't score, yet again.

Dakinah and Valois pick up our only 8's.

Loss, 1-0, down 1 spot to 22nd
Shots/on target: Blades 12/4, Posh 9/3
Poss: 57-43, Blades
A: 27,200

Sheffield moves up to 4th, while we drop into the relegation zone, one of just 3 teams still without a victory.

Butter · 03-17-2005, 09:02 AM

Devlin suffers a strained wrist in training, and will be out about a week. We have lots of time before our next match, so that's ok.

We sign another young Swedish player, this time it's striker Fredrik Holster. Holster is just 18, and not too far off from being a good player. We sign him for $8k per season for 4 years, and stick him in the reserves.

What a rough month that was... the only win we managed was in penalty kicks against a team from the next lowest league. Hopefully, we can pick it up in September. Our attack must improve... somehow. The board is still very pleased with me, but that could change in a hurry if we don't get out of the relegation zone.

Paul Shaw picks up the third best goal of the month for his chip shot against Cardiff.

We sign a good Bulgarian striker who is out of contract, but work permit issues prevent him from playing for us.

Cardiff approach us again about Monkhouse, offering $1.2 million, and 20% of his next sale. I turn it down.

Valois is picked in the team of the week for the Championship, thanks to his performance against Sheffield Utd.

And we sign another Scandinavian player, yet another striker, as 19 year old Finnish player Jami Puustinen signs for $24k per season for 4 years to play mostly for our reserves.

Another relegation battle, as Millwall comes to London Road. Traore is out on international duty for Burkina Faso, and Monkhouse is still out injured. Devlin is also out still with his wrist problem, so Navarro will start on the right.
Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Sarr, Campo, Dakinah
DM: Fox
Mid: Valois, Navarro
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Sept. 9, Match 8
0-3-4, 22nd pl., 3 pts.
v. Millwall (0-2-5, 23rd pl., 2 pts.)
Series: First meeting
Fav: Lions, 6:4

15'- Valois lines up a 20 yard free kick from in front... and he scores! Valois with his first goal of the year! Good start for us.

23'- Johansen with a header from a pass by Valois, but it goes well wide.

45'- Millwall with a powerful shot on the right of the box, but Myhre tips it aside. Good save.

No changes at the half. Can we win one?

47'- A good series of passes ends up with Valois striking it fiercely from 10 yards, but the keeper pushes it aside. Nice play!

58'- Valois with a good spot of Johansen... He's free... the keeper charges at him, Johansen shoots from about 20 yards, but he just misses the post. Good chance, not a bad effort. The ensuing goal kick is stolen by Valois, who finds a wide open Paul Shaw... The keeper tried to chase the ball down, but took a bad angle, and Shaw with an easy chance against the surprised keeper scores it! Great midfield play by Valois, and Shaw with his 3rd of the year! 2-0!

64'- Valois steals another goal kick, and this time plays Johansen through... Johansen with a tougher chance from the left, the keeper comes at home... Jim slots it home inside the near post! 3-0! Valois is having a stormer!

69'- Aaritalo in for Johansen, Eriksson on for Valois.

79'- Sagi Burton in for Elvis Hammond, as we fall back on a 5-4-1.

The final whistle goes, and we get our first Championship win! Valois with a well-deserved MoM and a 10 rating, with a goal and 2 assists. Johansen, Myhre, Dakinah, and Fox all pick up 8's in the win.

Win, 3-0, up 3 spots to 19th
Shots/on target: Posh 10/5, Lions 6/2
Poss: 57-43, Posh
A: 8,275

The board praises me publicly after the win, and moves instantly to delighted status. A nice surprise to augment our first victory.

Butter · 03-17-2005, 09:03 AM

Brighton get trounced in a televised Sunday game by Charlton Athletic, and we pass them on goal difference into 18th.

We sign yet another quality youngster, as 17 year old Dutch midfielder Felix Hermsen agrees to join us for $6k per season for 4 years. Another good young reservist.

Champions League, Group Stage, Match Day 1
Group A
Fenerbahce 1:1 Chelsea
PSV 0:3 Inter

Group B
CSKA Moscow 1:1 Sporting Lisbon (POR)
Lokomotiv Plovdiv (BUL) 0:3 Barcelona

Group C
Dinamo Bucharest 3:1 Brondby (DEN)
Werder Bremen 1:3 Porto

Group D
Olympiakos 2:0 Lyon
Tottenham 2:0 Wisla

Group E
Paris 0:2 AC Milan
Trabzonspor (TUR) 1:1 FC Kobenhavn (DEN)

Group F
Arsenal 1:2 Real Madrid
Roma 1:0 Panathinaikos

Group G
Leverkusen 2:0 Ajax
Valencia 1:2 Man Utd.

Group H
Benfica 1:0 Ferencvaros (HUN)
Bayern Munich 0:0 Celtic

Another week off and hopefully another win against fellow bottom-mate Preston North End.
Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Sept. 16, Match 9
1-3-4, 18th pl., 6 pts.
v. Preston North End (2-1-5, 17th pl., 7 pts.)
Last meeting: Posh 0:1 Lilywhites (2005 League Cup First Round)
Fav: Posh, 6:4

2'- Good cross into the middle for Preston, and attacking midfielder John Eustace strikes it on the half volley from 15 yards, and puts it home. Myhre with a great attempt to try and keep the ball out, but it just goes off his fingertips and in.

5'- Doesn't take long for an answer, as Campo with a steal to Hammond... Hammond with a long ball onto the run of Valois, who is free on the keeper... Valois turns left, then shoots to the far post and scores! 1-1.

13'- A cross into the box for Preston, and Sarr backs into the recipient and is called for a foul in the box... penalty. Not a clear penalty, but it doesn't really matter, they're all worth an easy chance. Lilywhite striker David Healy steps up... and Myhre saves it again! Deflected wide and cleared by Sarr. We remain even!

16'- Shaw with a terrific chip into the box for Johansen, who fires a shot point blank at the keeper, but his leg cannons it out and clear.

20'- Traore with a steal passes to Johansen... We pass the ball down the field, then Johansen lays one square to Shaw... Shaw runs up to it and strikes it from 25 yards... it goes in! A fierce bending shot from 25 yards puts us up 2-1, as Shaw has his 4th of the year!

Eustace with 2 shots from the top of the box in the final 10 minutes of the half, both placed wide.

No changes at the half for us, as we try to earn our 2nd straight victory.

48'- Eustace with a long distance header, well placed, but it's off the post and cleared by Traore.

53'- Dakinah with a deep throw-in... Hammond flicks it on for Johansen, who is tackled from behind near the spot... and the referee points at the spot! A PK for us finally! Johansen to take it... he misses! Way over the bar. The goal kick is taken, and Preston with a good build up, but Pritchard with a steal. To Valois, who slides it ahead to Johansen. Johansen leaves it for Valois, who centers to Devlin... Devlin nods it down to Shaw, who is wide open... Shaw into the box and he shoots... GOAL! Shaw slips it inside the left post, and we take a 2 goal lead! Shaw with his 5th of the year already, and the London Road faithful are in euphoria!

70'- Sarr with a steal, to Devlin. Devlin down the right a bit, then passes to Hammond... Hammond lays it to Shaw, who is open from 25 yards, and that's in his range. He strikes it... GOAL! Shaw with his hat trick, on a wicked shot to the upper corner out of reach for the keeper! Unbelievable game by Paul Shaw, as he has single-handedly put us ahead 4-1!

Fox, Burton, and Eriksson on for Devlin, Johansen, and Paul Shaw, who gets a standing ovation from the crowd. We go to a 5-4-1 for the remainder.

81'- A young Preston striker just whips our back line, running past them all and scoring a good goal past Myhre to the far post.

But that's it. We grab 3 more points and land firmly mid-table! Paul Shaw with the MoM honors, as he rates a 10 and scores a hat trick. Valois rates a 9, and Hammond, Campo, and Devlin pick up 8's. A great performance all the way around today!

Win, 4-2, up 2 spots to 16th
Shots/on target: Posh 19/12, Lilywhites 15/5
Poss: 52-48, Posh
A: 9,934

We're now 3 points behind 15th place Everton as there seems to be a clear dividing line between the contenders and the rest of the group. Luckily we're 5 points clear of relegation now, as we're finally playing well going into the tough 2 match stretch at Man. City and at Fulham.

Butter · 03-17-2005, 09:04 AM

Devlin, Valois, and Shaw all pick up Team of the Week honors.

We get our first TV match since I've been manager next, at Manchester City in round 2 of the League Cup. I decide to try our regular attacking tactics, fearing that otherwise we'll be shut out of the attacking end altogether. I play as many regulars as possible, as everyone is seeming fairly fit early on.
Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Fox
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Shaw
Str: Ferdinand, Hammond

Sept. 20, League Cup Second Round
Televised from City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester
@ Manchester City (4th in Premiership)
First meeting
Fav: Citizens, 1:2

5'- Jon Macken is free in the box after turning past Sarr... he shoots at Myhre he beats it away, but it comes right back to Macken, who finishes. 1-0, Blues.

16'- Farinos with a free kick for Man City, and Myhre with a great effort to tip it away... Anelka pounces on the rebound, but he was offside.

Man City keep up relentless pressure until halftime. The ball was in our defensive third about 50% of the half, controlled by Man City 42% of that time, and over 60% total. No changes at the half... All I can do is hope for a couple of breakthroughs in the 2nd half.

59'- Fox with a shot from 20 yards that whizzes past the post.

65'- I was only half paying attention honestly, but Paul Devlin is red-carded for something by that champion of the red card, Rob Styles. Johansen in for Ferdinand, Campo in for Fox, and we go to a flat, standard 4-3-2, with Shaw moving back to central midfield, and Campo playing right wing.

79'- A cross is headed clear by Traore to Hammond. Hammond to Johansen, and now Shaw, Campo, and Valois are forward in support and we've got a 5 on 4. Campo, to Shaw who plays it forward to Johansen... Johansen on the edge of the area beats a man, then plays it square for Hammond. Elvis circles around his man, then shoots for the top corner, and scores it! Hammond with a wonderful strike to cap a great move, and we've equalized!

Can't imagine we can keep them out for another 41 minutes, but I'm gonna try.

We almost manage to get it to the full 30 minutes of extra time, but with about 30 seconds to go, Shaun Wright-Phillips finds Anelka just onside, he beats Sarr and is able to get it past Myhre for the game-winner.

We played as hard as we could, and almost created some more chances a man down, but kept having it dispossessed near the box, or being called for offside. Not a bad effort at all against a team that is tearing up the Premiership right now.

Thomas Myhre is named MoM for surviving the onslaught, rating a 9 in goal. Dakinah and Pritchard also pick up 8's in defense. Even with the shot count, I think the defense played pretty well.

Loss, 2-1, out of League Cup
Shots/on target: Citizens 27/15, Posh 6/1
Poss: 62-38, Citizens
A: 27,308

Devlin gets the automatic match ban for his red card, so we'll be missing him against Fulham in 4 days.

Jim Johansen picked up a strained wrist late in the match as well, so he'll be out about a week.

Butter · 03-17-2005, 09:04 AM

Devlin and Johansen will both miss the next match, and that creates a bit of a pinch in midfield, with no one particularly well-suited to playing the right wing, and I'm kinda tired of Dean Edward Martin, so I start Campo over there.

We are the last game of the weekend, televised, and no one caught us in 16th place, so we have a chance to put some distance between us and the relegation zone here.

Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Navarro
Mid: Valois, Campo
AM: Shaw
Str: Ferdinand, Hammond

Sept. 24, Match 10
Televised - From Craven Cottage, London
2-3-4, 16th pl., 9 pts.
@ Fulham (5-1-3, 11th pl., 16 pts.)
First meeting
Fav: Cottagers, 5:4

8'- Claus Jensen, a Fulham midfielder, lines up a 25 yard free kick... and scores. Myhre got a hand on it, but it was very well-placed. 1-0, Cottagers.

23'- Valois playing it down the left, he cuts it inside and plays a ball to Shaw... Shaw settles it and wastes no time shooting from 25 yards... and he scores! I don't know what Shaw is drinking lately, but I'll have some of that! 1-1 on his 6th of the year!

Fulham are just dominating possession, and had several decent chances, but our defense is keeping them out of the danger zone pretty well. No changes for us at the half... maybe we can steal 3 points here.

53'- Pritchard with a free kick in our half... it's cleared, but right to Valois. Valois with oodles of space, runs to the end line, then crosses it all the way across the six... the Fulham keeper just watches as Ivan Campo is there to volley it... and he scores! Campo with his 1st in the Posh blue, and we lead 2-1! Burton on for Ferdinand as we try to pack it in.

59'- Fulham score off a scramble after a corner kick, a 15 yard volley that Myhre barely saw, and it's 2-2. Blech.

Aaritalo for Pritchard, as we go back to our standard formation.

Myhre makes a couple of good saves to keep us even over the next 10 minutes.

75'- Hammond beats two men and is in on the keeper... who gets a finger to it and saves it! Aaritalo can't quite get to the rebound in time.

83'- Hammond with a great ball to Valois, who has caught the defense flat-footed... Valois in on the keeper... but he's tackled from the side... the ball comes to Aaritalo who has to do nothing but hit the ball low and in the net, but he skies it at an open goal! Frustration for me and Mika on that one!

The final 10 minutes of this game were just exhilirating and exhausting to watch. Play went end to end, with each team making last second challenges to save good chances, or sticking a leg in to make a clearance and earning a counter attack. But in the end no one could score again, and we take a well-earned point from Craven Cottage. This was maybe the most fun game I've yet watched, and hopefully it entertained the TV audience.

Valois is back to his old self, picking up another MoM and a 9 rating in midfield. Dakinah, Traore, Sarr, and Shaw all pick up 8's. Our defense is really rounding into shape.

Draw, 2-2, remain in 16th
Shots/on target: Fulham 20/9, Posh 14/5
Poss: 60-40, Cottagers
A: 15,769

Ivan Campo played most of this match with a slight groin strain. He played well on the right side, but he'll be sidelined about 2 weeks, unfortunately. Devlin should be back for the next match, though.

Butter · 03-17-2005, 09:05 AM

I feel like we're finally back on track. We outplayed Man City in the 2nd half of that game, just came up short on a refereeing decision and on defense... and we drew with a Premiership quality team in Fulham, on the road. I think we're on track now.

We sign yet another young Dutch player, this time it's 20 year old D/DM RC Gideon de Graaf signing for 4 years and $8k per. Our reserves are starting to look good. And this guy is already in double digits in the big 3 defending skills, heading, marking, and tackling. Also has good speed.

Champions League, Match Day 2
Group E
FC Kobenhavn 0:0 Paris
Milan 2:0 Trabzonspor

Group F
Panathinaikos 1:3 Arsenal
Real Madrid 3:1 Roma

Group G
Ajax 0:1 Valencia
Man Utd. 1:0 Leverkusen

Group H
Celtic 1:1 Benfica
Ferencvaros 2:0 Bayern Munich

Group A
Chelsea 1:0 PSV
Inter 2:0 Fenerbahce

Group B
Barcelona 0:0 CSKA Moscow
Sporting 3:0 Lokomotiv Plovdiv

Group C
Brondby 1:2 Werder Bremen
Porto 5:1 Dinamo Bucharest

Group D
Lyon 0:0 Tottenham
Wisla 0:1 Olympiakos

Doncaster offers me $2k and some cruddy 20 year old midfielder for 17 year old Andreas Landgren. I pass.

Another relegation battle, as we host struggling Rotherham. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Fox
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Sept. 30, Match 11
2-4-4, 16th pl., 10 pts.
v. Rotherham (1-2-7, 22nd pl., 5 pts.)
First meeting
Fav: Posh, 5:4

12'- A corner kick is flighted in by Devlin... Fox heads it down, but it comes off the crossbar, back to Shaw, who also tries to head it, but the Millers keeper tips it over.

17'- Devlin with a magic ball down the right to Hammond... Hammond is behind the defense... he charges at the keeper, gets to about 10 yards, then shoots far post, and scores! Elvis scores his 3rd of the year, and we take the 1-0 lead!

Rotherham manage a couple of long range shots, but nothing too troubling as we hit the break. We got outplayed in the final half of the first 45', let's see if we can make the goal hold up.

61'- Valois is played onside, but his shot goes sailing over.

68'- Former Posh player Callum Willock enters as a sub for the Millers. Willock was our top scorer in '04-'05, but we sold him to Rotherham for $100k early in the '05-'06 season, a decision I've never regretted.

73'- Willock sets up a decent chance for Paolo Vernazza, a Rotherham striker, but Myhre with a good save.

79'- Burton on for a tiring Pritchard, and Navarro in for Johansen, as we put 2 defensive midfielders into the game to try and salt it away.

87'- Vernazza again for Rotherham, he tries from 15 yards, and it hits Sarr, but Myhre with great reflexes to recover and tip it away at the last moment.

90'- Good ol' Willock, foils a good Rotherham move by being fractionally offside. Thanks, Callum!

The Millers with a corner at the death, but Dakinah heads clear to Navarro, who holds it until the whistle goes for our 3rd straight league win! Paul Devlin picks up a 10 and MoM honors, with his assist and 7 key passes. Only Valois, Johansen, and Traore don't manage to get 8's among the starters. A very good effort putting us ever closer to the top half of the table.

Win, 1-0, remain in 16th
Shots/on target: Posh 17/7, Millers 12/3
Poss: 53-47, Posh
A: 11,273

The news notes that Gillingham record their first win of the season to climb out of the relegation zone... The Gills were expected to contend for a playoff spot this year, but find themselves in 20th about 1/4 of the way through the season.

Butter · 03-17-2005, 09:06 AM

October begins with the board delighted with my performance, and satisfied with our league position. The fans also remain delighted with my work.

Jean-Louis Valois is named player of the month of September! Valois had a slow start, as did the team, but his quality is showing now.

Paul Shaw also picks up goal of the month honors for his 25 yard belt against Preston. I am 2nd in manager of the month voting.

Paul Shaw is among the league leaders in scoring so far, a great surprise as I nearly didn't re-sign the guy. He has been filling in splendidly for Andy Monkhouse, and this'll make it almost hard to bring Andy back when he returns in a couple of weeks.

Devlin is selected in the team of the week.

Kofi Dakinah makes some noise as the first of our underpriced players to publicly wonder about getting a new contract. Dakinah has been a rock at right fullback, averaging nearly a 7.4 this season over there. He makes just $44k currently. We offer him a raise of 100%, while extending the contract 2 years on this 26 year old Denmark fullback. He rejects it, wanting $150k for 3 more seasons. I go $110k and a $10k signing bonus through 2010, that also includes a 10% pay cut if we get relegated. He agrees to that, and I lock him up for an extra 2 years.

In a shocking result, England beat Bosnia and Herzegovina 9-0 at Wembley in Euro 2008 qualifying. Steven Gerrard had 5 goals in the match.

Elvis Hammond strains a groin in practice and will miss 2 weeks.

Monkhouse returns to the lineup as we travel to Liverpool to face Everton... a team that embarrassed us last year in the FA Cup.
Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Monkhouse
Str: Shaw, Johansen

Oct. 14, Match 12 - From Goodison Park, Liverpool
3-4-4, 16th pl., 13 pts.
@ Everton (5-3-3, 10th pl., 18 pts.)
Last meeting: Toffees 4:2 Posh (1/7/06 - FA Cup Third Round)
Fav: Toffees, 5:4

Not much action early, both sides feeling each other out. We're playing much better than we did last year, that's for sure.

26'- Pritchard with a deep throw-in on the left, to Campo... Campo back to Pritchard, who spots Johansen making a run about 8 yards deep in the box... he's played onside by a defender marking Shaw... Johansen dribbles at the keeper, then unleashes a rifle shot to the far post and scores! Jim Johansen with a wicked strike to put us up 1-0!

35'- Tim Cahill with a fierce shot from 15 yards for Everton, but Myhre tips it off the crossbar, and Dakinah clears.

Everton with a boatload of possession in the first half, but Myhre doing a good job making them earn goals. We keep the same 11 for the 2nd half.

67'- Campo mishits a free kick, but gets the ball back and tries a 35 yard chip shot, that misses about a foot wide.

77'- Valois with a great ball for Johansen, who is under pressure from behind and just dribbles it out of play instead of winding up and shooting.

Fox on for Johansen as we again go to a 4-5-1 to try and salt the game away.

87'- Sadly, our goals are not achieved as young striker David Vaughan is played onside and skips over a Dakinah tackle before crossing to an open Cahill who touches it in. 1-1.

Ferdinand on for Devlin, Eriksson for Monkhouse... Campo moves to the right wing.

91'- Good play in the midfield, as Valois is cut off for a cross, so he sends it to the top of the box to David Fox, who shoots from 20 yards and hits the crossbar! Shaw is dispossessed going for the rebound.

And so it ends.

We earned at least 2 points, but will go home with just 1. Sarr earns MoM with his 8 in a good defensive effort, winning 14 of 15 headers. Myhre, Dakinah, and Pritchard also pick up 8's.

Draw, 1-1, up 1 spot to 15th
Shots/on target: Toffees 16/6, Posh 11/6
Poss: Toffees, 56-44
A: 30,551

Butter · 03-18-2005, 08:57 AM

Champions League, Match Day 3
Group E
Milan 3:0 FC Kobenhavn
Paris 1:0 Trabzonspor

Group F
Arsenal 2:1 Roma
Real Madrid 1:1 Panathinaikos

Group G
Ajax 2:2 Man Utd.
Leverkusen 1:1 Valencia

Group H
Celtic 3:0 Ferencvaros
Bayern Munich 2:0 Benfica

Group A
Inter 1:0 Chelsea
PSV 2:2 Fenerbahce

Group B
Barcelona 3:0 Sporting
Lokomotiv Plovdiv 3:0 CSKA Moscow

Group C
Porto 0:1 Brondby
Werder Bremen 3:1 Dinamo Bucharest

Group D
Tottenham 2:0 Olympiakos
Wisla 0:1 Lyon

I take a look at the balance sheet, and notice we've made some serious bread this year. We're over $2.2 million in the black, thanks mostly to a vast increase in ticket sales, including about double the regular number of season tickets sold. As such, I request an increase in the transfer budget. I am declined. Swansea offers me $200k for Andreas Landgren... normally, I'd consider it. But I don't need the money... well, I do for the transfer budget, but I'm hoping that someday the board will loosen up their purse strings a bit and let me go out and buy somebody if I want. The board has told me in the past that any money I make selling players I can have for a transfer budget, but otherwise forget it. Maybe I'll give them an ultimatum one day... like if we're free and clear for promotion to the Premiership or something. Not now, though. I decline the offer for Landgren.

Next up, another game against a bottom feeder, as Coventry attempts to move back up. They were favored for promotion this year, but have just been awful so far. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Monkhouse
Str: Johansen, Ferdinand

Oct. 21, Match 13
3-5-4, 15th pl., 14 pts.
v. Coventry City (1-5-6, 22nd pl., 8 pts.)
First meeting
Fav: Sky Blues, 5:4

Coventry with a couple of attacking moves through the first 20 minutes, but both shots are not close.

30'- Pritchard with a back pass to Myhre, who sends a great ball back to Pritchard near midfield... Pritchard to Valois, who plays it square to Monkhouse... Andy has a go from 20 yards, but it's saved.

35'- Campo with a steal in midfield, then a great ball into the path of Johansen... Johansen has his man beat, and attacks the left side of the box... the keeper comes out to meet him, but Jim Johansen shoots far post... GOAL! Johansen's 4th of the year, and it's a 1-0 lead!

45'- A free kick from 25 yards for Ivan Campo... it's just wide. The goalie with a goal kick, but Valois steals it... Valois ahead to Johansen, who is in the same spot he was when he scored the goal... but this time, he lays it to Monkhouse, who shoots... the keeper deflects it right back to Andy, who tries to turn, but is yanked down... penalty! Monkhouse earns a PK with a nice move in the box! Johansen steps up to take it... he converts! A 2-0 lead at the stroke of halftime thanks to Monkhouse and Johansen! Johansen's 5th of the year puts us up 2.

Devlin is limping around, so he comes out for Shaw. Monkhouse moves to the right wing.

57'- Valois takes a corner, and Shaw heads it off the post, and it's cleared.

72'- Fox in for Ferdinand, as we switch to 2 DM's and a 4-5-1.

Monkhouse with one last off target shot for good measure, as we thoroughly dominate the Sky Blues today. They didn't force Myhre to make one save. Ivan Campo with a super game, earning the MoM and an 8 in midfield. Sarr, Valois, and Johansen also pick up 8's for their efforts.

Win, 2-0, up 2 spots to 13th
Shots/on target: Posh 12/6, Sky Blues 5/0
Poss: 54-46, Posh
A: 12,295

Looking over a few things after the game, I notice that at some point my reputation has progressed to "national"... this up from the "local" I had progressed to early last year, which followed my initial "obscure" reputation. Maybe a big club will ask me to take over someday. I'll probably turn them down, but respect is always nice.

Butter · 03-18-2005, 08:57 AM

Campo, Sarr, and Valois are picked for the Team of the Week.

Our schedule continues to favor us, as we face Plymouth Argyle who are struggling to get clear of the relegation zone. Traore has been less than impressive lately, so Burton picks up a start here. Shaw will also start up front as I struggle to get he and Monkhouse on the field as much as possible.
Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Burton, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Monkhouse
Str: Johansen, Shaw

Oct. 28, Match 14 - From Home Park, Plymouth
4-5-4, 13th pl., 17 pts.
@ Plymouth Argyle (1-6-6, 22nd pl., 9 pts.)
Series: Posh lead 2-0-0
Fav: Posh, 4:6

2'- Valois gets Johansen free in the box, but Jim skies it.

6'- Burton with some poor defense, missing a tackle and allowing a breakaway, but Myhre with a good save to keep it scoreless.

10'- An Argyle corner kick goes awry, and the ball comes out to Valois... Argyle is pressing way forward, and has no one in their end, and Valois is able to play it forward to Johansen, who starts his run in our half to avoid the offside... Johansen all the way into the box, and again he shoots at that far post, and scores! It's like Johansen uses that post for target practice, that's the 3rd goal he's scored in the same fashion, drawing the keeper out, then shooting at the far post. I'll take it! 1-0, Posh!

17'- Another nice bit of play, as Johansen gets it to Shaw, who plays it past one defender and has a free shot, but it's just wide.

20'- Campo with a midfield steal, to Johansen... Johansen to Shaw, who plays it left for an open Valois... Valois with a free run at the keeper from the left... he hits his shot low and to the near post and scores! We're on fire right now, shredding the Argyle defense, and lead 2-0 just 20 minutes in!

29'- Johansen dribbles through the middle... Argyle don't stop him until he's about 25 yards from goal, then he tries to poke it ahead to Valois, but it takes a touch off a defender... now it's a 50/50 ball between Valois and the keeper... Jean-Louis gets there first and touches it home! 3-0!

Traore in for Johansen at the break, and we go to a 5-4-1 after the interval with our 3 goal cushion.

53'- Eriksson in for a tiring Devlin... Monkhouse moves to the right wing, Shaw to AM, and Eriksson to a striker's role.

62'- A cross in from deep, and an unmarked Argyle striker heads it home from 8 yards. 3-1.

69'- Shaw to Valois, who is open on the left... Valois tries for the hat trick but whistles it wide of the far post!

76'- Hammond on for Valois, and Eriksson moves to the left wing.

We burn through the rest of the time, and easily take the 3 points! This team is playing terrific right now, I wish I could get Manchester City back on the pitch. Valois with another 10 and MoM honors. Dakinah, Burton, Sarr, Campo, and Johansen pick up 8's for us. Jim Johansen is exceeding expectations right now, playing out of his mind.

Win, 1-3, up 2 spots to 11th
Shots/on target: Argyle 10/3, Posh 12/3
Poss: 54-46, Argyle
A: 17,937

We close to within 10 points of first place, and just 6 of the playoff zone... we're 11 points clear of relegation, so hopefully we can put that possibility out of mind now and concentrate on having a solid season.

Butter · 03-18-2005, 08:58 AM

Sarr, Campo, and Valois are picked yet again for the Team of the Week.

A tough task against a hot Bolton squad lies ahead. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Fox
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Monkhouse
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Oct. 31, Match 15 - From Reebok Stadium, Bolton
5-5-4, 11th pl., 20 pts.
@ Bolton Wanderers (7-6-1, 5th pl., 27 pts.)
First meeting
Fav: Trotters, 6:4

2'- Bolton with a dangerous play, a wide open cross to the middle, where 2 Trotters wait for it, but Traore heads it away. Valois tracks it down, and finds Johansen... who plays it back to Valois... then a great ball to Hammond down the middle... Elvis with one man to beat, and he beats him... then he strikes it near post and scores! Elvis Hammond with a great move, and a wicked strike to put us on the board quickly! 1-0, Posh!

Bolton continue to apply heavy pressure, and we're barely escaping some dangerous stuff.

15'- Bolton defenseman Ricardo Gardner with a corner kick, right to striker Kevin Davies at the near post, who turns on the ball well and scores. 1-1.

The pressure by Bolton eases a bit, thank goodness.

22'- Valois with a free kick on the edge of the box, but he grazes the bar.

31'- Good move by Hammond, and he centers to Monkhouse, but the weak volley is untroubling to Bolton.

36'- Valois with a clean steal in midfield, and he draws a defender, then lays it ahead to Johansen... Johansen into the box, he plays a short cross to Hammond, who volleys it home! Elvis with his 5th of the year to put us up again, 2-1!

40'- Johansen with a great cross to Hammond, who smashes it at the top corner with his head, but just misses. Johansen and Hammond are teaming up great today.

43'- A pass goes right by Pritchard across the top of the box, who apparently forgets his role in the squad, and Kevin Davies receives the pass and finishes to the far post. 2-2. Horrible defending there, especially by Pritchard.

This is quite a barnburner of a game at the break. We make no changes, and hold on for the ride. I'd take a point out of this one.

60'- Jay Jay Okocha with a powerful strike off another Gardner corner, but Myhre with the reflex save... then the ball is crossed in again and another header goes just wide of the post. Whew!

61'- Valois with a steal, and he finds Hammond... to Monkhouse, who plays it long to Johansen... Johansen attacking the left side again, but this time his shot is saved and the ball is cleared before Hammond can get to the rebound.

64'- Valois with another good ball to Johansen... Johansen up the left of the box again, lays it back to Hammond... his powerful shot is deflected wide, right to Johansen, who passes back to Monkhouse with an easy finish... but Johansen was offside on the Hammond rebound. Crud.

68'- Bolton with a counterattack off a poor free kick by Fox... They get it all the way to the end line, then make 2 splendid passes, and an unmarked Neil Barrett strikes it just inside the right post past a diving Myhre. 3-2, Bolton.

Navarro on for Fox, Shaw for Monkhouse and Eriksson for Pritchard, as we go to a 3-5-2, with both Shaw and Eriksson lurking atop the area.

84'- Bolton cap things off with another goal against the weakened defense, this time a strike from the left past a weary-looking Myhre.

That's how it ends. Bolton just rolled over us today, especially in the 2nd half. We had no fight left in us for the final 20 minutes. Valois and Hammond manage 8's out of this one.

Loss, 4-2, drop 2 spots to 13th
Shots/on target: Trotters 18/9, Posh 12/6
Poss: 56-44, Trotters
A: 24,094

Champions League, Match Day 4
Group A
Chelsea 0:3 Inter
Fenerbahce 1:0 PSV

Group B
CSKA Moscow 3:1 Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Sporting 1:1 Barcelona

Group C
Brondby 0:3 Porto
Dinamo Bucharest 0:2 Werder Bremen

Group D
Lyon 2:0 Wisla
Olympiakos 0:0 Tottenham

Group E
FC Kobenhavn 0:0 Milan
Trabzonspor 0:0 Paris

Group F
Panathinaikos 0:0 Real Madrid
Roma 2:1 Arsenal

Group G
Man Utd. 0:2 Ajax
Valencia 1:3 Leverkusen

Group H
Benfica 0:0 Bayern Munich
Ferencvaros 1:1 Celtic

Valois is voted third in the October Player of the Month voting. Jim Johansen picks up third in the October Young Player of the Month voting, while Elvis Hammond picks up the second best goal of the month for his first strike in this last game at Bolton.

Butter · 03-18-2005, 08:58 AM

We host the league leaders today, as Blackburn Rovers come to town. I'd love 3 points, but I'll take 1. Monkhouse is exhausted after the last match, so Shaw starts there today. Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Nov. 4, Match 16
5-5-5, 13th pl., 20 pts.
v. Blackburn Rovers (10-3-2, 1st pl., 33 pts.)
First meeting
Fav: Rovers, 5:4

Blackburn R. have yielded just 9 goals this year, and we didn't fare any better. Our only highlight of the first half was a 25 yard off target shot by Valois. Rovers managed several chances around the box, but didn't really trouble Myhre too much. We come out of the dressing room scoreless for the final 45.

61'- Devlin with a cross of a throw-in by Campo, and Traore meets it strongly, but it just grazes the bar.

63'- Blackburn with a free kick at the top of the arc... Myhre gets over and pushes it away! Great save!

68'- A deep throw-in for Rovers... Traore heads it out to Shaw, who runs over a player to get at it... and it's a penalty? That was a good yard outside the area, and Shaw was obstructed! A nonsense call, and Rovers get a chance from 12 yards. Myhre guesses right, but can't save it, 1-0 Rovers.

74'- Aaritalo on for Pritchard, Eriksson in for Hammond, as Shaw moves up front, and we go with a 3-4-3.

90+'- Eriksson with dreams of an equalizer, as he crosses across the six with seconds to play, but Brad Freidel gathers it up, and the final whistle goes.

Another tough loss to a top squad... but these are really Premiership level clubs we're playing here. Blackburn and Bolton especially. Too bad a completely bogus penalty call had to decide this one. 7's across the board for us.

Loss, 0-1, remain in 13th
Shots/on target: Posh 4/0, Rovers 12/2
Poss: 57-43, Rovers
A: 11,806

The dreams of promotion are slowly going by the boards here...

Butter · 03-18-2005, 08:59 AM

We get 2 nice weeks off before having to face Nottingham Forest. Forest were unbeaten until recently, but are now struggling to get back into the playoff zone.
Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Monkhouse
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Nov. 18, Match 17
5-5-6, 13th pl., 20 pts.
v. Nott'm Forest (8-5-3, 7th pl., 29 pts.)
Last meeting: Posh 0:1 Forest (7/11/05, Friendly)
Fav: Forest, 5:4

4'- We get unlucky, as a 20 yard strike that is going wide strikes Dakinah and sneaks inside the post, totally surprising everyone. 1-0, Forest.

14'- Jesus, another deflection, as a free kick from the arc looks to strike either Pritchard or Dakinah, and it goes in. 2-0.

30'- Our first chance, as Hammond is free after a Traore steal... he gets into the right of the box and crosses for Valois, whose fierce volley is turned over by the Forest keeper, very nice save.

35'- Devlin with a cross into the box... then another... then a third after the first two are headed right back to him... the last one is terrific, falling right to the far post where Valois is waiting to touch it into the net. 2-1, and we're on our way back.

Devlin's limping about again at the break, and Shaw comes in for him, while Monkhouse moves to the right.

We can't put anything together right now. The attack just isn't working against these tough defenses.

We bring on Eriksson for Traore, and throw 8 people forward towards the end. In the 87th, Valois crosses to Eriksson, who gets a good header in but can't quite keep it down, and that's it. Another narrow loss. Seems like we're just one player away or one good play away from winning these matches. Valois did earn a 9 in this one, but Myhre picked up a 5, though I can't really fault him for either goal.

Loss, 1-2, down 2 spots to 15th
Shots/on target: Posh 10/6, Forest 12/2
Poss: 51-49, Posh
A: 14,649

Devlin is out 2 weeks with a groin strain, which is bad because we're hitting a run of mid-week games here AND the FA Cup is going to start up for us before too long.

Butter · 03-21-2005, 10:07 AM

Champions League, Match Day 5
Group E
FC Kobenhavn 1:1 Trabzonspor
Milan 1:1 Paris

Group F
Panathinaikos 1:0 Roma
Real Madrid 1:4 Arsenal

Group G
Ajax 3:2 Leverkusen
Man Utd. 2:0 Valencia

Group H
Celtic 2:1 Bayern Munich
Ferencvaros 1:1 Benfica

Group A
Chelsea 3:0 Fenerbahce
Inter 4:0 PSV

Group B
Barcelona 4:0 Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Sporting 5:0 CSKA Moscow

Group C
Brondby 1:2 Dinamo Bucharest
Porto 3:1 Werder Bremen

Group D
Lyon 1:1 Olympiakos
Wisla 0:2 Tottenham

Another road game, and these are all killers at this level. If I could somehow manage 46 home games, that'd be nice. It would take bribery and shenanigans of many different kinds. Myhre is sulking a bit after taking a recent pounding, so we'll stick Kruse in goal today. Other changes as well for this mid-week game, mostly for fatigue's sake. We go with a defensive mindset to try and help us out, and a more direct style of passing, to take advantage of the good heading abilities of both Ferdinand and Aaritalo.
Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Plummer, Traore, Burton, Dakinah
DM: Navarro
Mid: Eriksson, Fox
AM: Shaw
Str: Ferdinand, Aaritalo

Nov. 21, Match 18 - From Hillsborough, Sheffield
5-5-7, 15th pl., 20 pts.
@ Sheffield Wednesday (6-3-8, 13th pl., 21 pts.)
Series: Owls lead 2-0-0
Fav: Owls, Evens

2'- Well, that didn't take long... a free kick at 1:05 from about 30 yards to the right, and it's crossed right onto a head and in past Kruse. Great. 1-0, Owls.

15'- 2 good chances in short order, but Aaritalo is dispossessed at the edge of the area, and an open shot by Paul Shaw is way high.

18'- Another goal for the Owls, and this whole play the backups thing looks like a really bad idea.

The rest of the half goes fairly quickly, with no real chances either way. We up our attacking mindset, and push our defenders up toward midfield to try to employ the offside trap.

49'- Navarro with a steal, he sends it ahead to Shaw, who has space in the middle... the 2 central defenders close on Shaw, and he squares it for Ferdinand, who shoots from 15 yards... goal! Ferdinand's 1st of the year gives us a lifeline!

55'- Plummer with a poor play allows a man in on Kruse... he lays it off for an easy chance, but the footy gods turn his shot about 40 yards up, and it's way too high.

57'- An Owl free kick is struck well, but hits the foot of the post and goes wide.

73'- Martin on for an ineffective Fox... Johansen in for Plummer, as we go with the 3-4-3.

82'- Good chance from Navarro after Shaw finds him, but he skies it.

86'- We go with a standard late computer tactic, the 2-3-5, as Valois enters for Dakinah... We put Eriksson and Shaw up front alongside Ferdinand, Aaritalo, and Johansen, with Valois, Navarro, and Martin across the midfield. Long balls forward.

89'- Owls with a breakaway after a poor free kick by Traore, and they have only Eriksson to beat, who is back for some reason.... but Eriksson with a good challenge at the last second, and Kruse beats it away to Navarro, who starts the counterattack... Navarro to Aaritalo... We have 2 men offside, but it's played to Johansen, who is not offside... the passive offside call works to our advantage as Johansen is clean through on goal! He's got Valois to his right, and the keeper is hedging between the 2 players... and while he's working that out, Johansen slips it through into the net! 2-2!

We put some people back in place after netting the point to prevent giving it back to the Owls, and we hold on for the 4 stoppage minutes to take a point. Mika Aaritalo is named MoM, earning a 9 up front with an assist and 7 key passes. Kruse, Traore, Burton, and Navarro manage 8's as well.

Draw, 2-2, up 1 spot to 14th
Shots/on target: Owls 7/3, Posh 7/2
Poss: 58-42, Owls
A: 15,337

Butter · 03-21-2005, 10:09 AM

GRADI SWITCHES TARGET

A report on a football website reveals that Crewe Alexandra boss Dario Gradi is to turn his attention towards Peterborough United attacking midfielder Andy Monkhouse.

Monkhouse has become Gradi's main target after he cooled his interest in Swindon left winger Brian Howard.

My first transfer speculation... hmmm...how to respond. I go with just saying I'll only sell him for the right price. Not much I can do really, Monkhouse has a $1.7 million minimum fee release clause, meaning if anyone offers me that much for him, I HAVE to let him go if he can agree to a contract with the bidder. No one has been willing to offer more than $1.2 million so far, though. Mostly Cardiff.

We host formerly top of the table Charlton today, they're back to 4th place, but it'll still be a tough game. Kruse stays in goal... he was horrible in the opening 20 minutes of the last one, but he improved greatly later on, and his morale is superb compared to Myhre's "very poor". Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Monkhouse
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Nov. 25, Match 19
5-6-7, 14th pl., 21 pts.
v. Charlton Athletic (10-5-3, 4th pl., 35 pts.)
First meeting
Fav: Addicks, 5:4

The pitch is nearly frozen today, as it's 23 degrees F out. There is visible ice on the grass, since our budget doesn't exactly cover undersoil heating. I'm surprised this fixture wasn't postponed.

2'- Good chance for the Addicks, but Kruse with a nice save to tip it over off a 6 yard angled shot.

5'- Valois with a corner, it's cleared back to Sarr... to Valois again, open on the left, but the box is congested, so he sends it up top to Campo... Ivan Campo with a shot from 18 yards, it hits a leg but deflects right to Hammond inside the six, who half-volleys it home! 1-0, Posh!

10'- Valois gets a deflection off a free kick, and finds Hammond ahead... Hammond skips past one challenge and is in free, but his slotted shot goes wide.

21'- Sarr with a good challenge at the top of the box to prevent a breakaway, but the slide tackled ball goes right to an Addicks' midfielder, whose shot goes well high luckily.

We dominate the rest of the half, and take our one goal lead to the dressing room. Johansen is dog tired despite not playing most of our last match. He'll stay on for a while anyway.

60'- A nice cross is headed onto the crossbar by Charlton, and cleared by Campo... unfortunately, the ball ends up in a striker's hands from 20 yards, and he knocks a terrific bending shot into the upper right corner... no chance for Kruse, it's 1-1.

63'- Campo with a 20 yard free kick... too high.

65'- Hammond is onside after a good ball from Dakinah... Hammond beats a man and shoots... TOO HIGH!

74'- Eriksson on for an ineffective Shaw... Aaritalo in for a tired Johansen.

90'+- No chances until stoppage time, as Campo with an interception in midfield, and a good ball forward to Valois... Jean-Louis with 2 yards on his man, but a tough angle... Aaritalo's open in the middle, but Valois tries to shoot it himself, and it's into the side netting.

The final whistle goes, and we get another point. Valois picks up MoM for his 8 rating, he had 4 key passes and an assist, though one more key pass could've earned us 3 points. Dakinah and Kruse also net 8's today.

Draw, 1-1, up 1 spot to 13th
Shots/on target: Posh 16/3, Addicks 7/4
Poss: 51-49, Addicks
A: 11,087

The story comes through that I'm willing to sell Monkhouse for the right price... hopefully it won't affect our play too much. I know guys don't like it when you sell supposedly "essential" players. Monkhouse hasn't been tearing it up like he did last year, averaging just a 7 and scoring once with 1 assist in 10 starts. Looking at his attributes, I probably should just sell him while the price is right... He's 26 and not likely to get better... he's a good finisher and blazing fast, but he lacks technique and passing skill, not good for a midfielder. Oh well, either way I'll be happy.

Monkhouse catches wind of the story, and says he would be happy to discuss terms with another club, but only if the offer were a sizable improvement over his current one, since he would be happy also to stay with us.

Butter · 03-21-2005, 10:09 AM

Kruse and Aaritalo are picked in the Team of the Week.

Navarro goes down with a groin injury, and will be out 2 weeks... luckily, we're deep at DMC.

Mika Aaritalo finishes third in the November Young Player of the Month voting.

And as December strikes, we finally bring in a young Swedish goalkeeper we signed back in June, Peter Karlsson joins our burgeoning young Swedish player ranks... we already have a load of keepers, he's just one more to add to the fire, a very talented 21 year old, that lacks a bit in physical ability.

Our lineup for our trip to West Ham... Myhre won't quit sulking, so Kruse goes in once more:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Monkhouse
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Dec. 2, Match 20 - From Upton Park, London
5-7-7, 13th pl., 22 pts.
@ West Ham United (10-5-4, 8th pl., 35 pts.)
Last meeting: Posh 2:2 Hammers (3/2/05, Fifth Round FA Cup Replay, Posh advanced 3-1 on PK's)
Fav: Hammers, 4:5

2'- Striker Bobby Zamora with an easy chance off a deflected cross, and he converts it... 1-0, West Ham.

4'- Johansen is in free after a lucky series of bounces, but he tries to get too fancy and lets the defense converge and take the ball away.

13'- Valois with a terrific nod down for Monkhouse, and Andy attacks the right side of goal, but his shot is into the side of the net.

The rest of the half sees us get lots of possession around the West Ham box, but no shots on target. Monkhouse is limping about in midfield, so Campo switches out right, and Fox moves in to DMC, replacing Monkhouse.

66'- Good chance as Valois finds Hammond, who has a crack to shoot through from 15 yards, and does so, but the keeper deflects it... almost goes in anyway, but it skips inches wide.

70'- No idea how we survive this series, but a cross comes in to about 3 yards, where a Hammer player takes possession, and actually holds the ball for a second, before turning and shooting right into Kruse... the ball deflects wide, and Kruse tries to corral it but another shot bounces off his shoulder and zips across the goal mouth to another Hammer at the back post, who tries to stuff it in, but Traore clears it off the line with his head to preserve the 1-0 score.

73'- Aaritalo in for Pritchard, and Fox moves up to midfield as we go to an attacking 3-4-3 to try and nab the equalizer.

81'- Kruse picks up a deflection, and fires it quickly out to Aaritalo in midfield, who heads for Fox... Fox to Valois, who has space on the left... Jean-Louis gets it to Aaritalo in the middle again, to Shaw, to Johansen who has room in the box... Jim tries to get it back to Shaw, but 5 Hammers converge on him.... the whistle goes and the referee points at the spot! Shaw earns a PK and it'll be Johansen to try and equalize... he does! 1-1!

Apparently, we're no good at opening the scoring, but we're pretty kick-ass at equalizing.

Each team with a shot in the final 10 minutes, but the result holds. Dakinah earns our only 8... good to know that we can still get a point while not really putting forth a very good effort.

Draw, 1-1, remain in 13th
Shots/on target: Hammers 15/5, Posh 10/3
Poss: 54-46, Hammers
A: 25,091

This season is starting to remind me of the one from 2 years ago, as we could manage nothing but draws as we narrowly escaped relegation. We've got several teams between us and relegation, but only about 9 points in all.

Butter · 03-21-2005, 10:10 AM

The draw for the FA Cup Third Round is held... Arsenal is the first team name to pop up... and the second is non-league Radcliffe Boro. Ouch.

We get a decent draw, drawing league-mates Wigan to London Road on the first Saturday of the New Year.

Champions League, Match Day 6
Group A
-Fenerbahce needs a miracle... that is, beating Inter and having Chelsea lose to PSV, who've managed just 1 point in 5 matches so far.
Fenerbahce 1:2 Inter
PSV 0:2 Chelsea
Advancing: Chelsea, Inter

Group B
-Sporting pretty much has CSKA Moscow over a barrel, with a 3 point lead and an 11 goal diff. lead for 2nd place.
CSKA Moscow 1:2 Barcelona
Lokomotiv Plovdiv 0:1 Sporting
Advancing: Barcelona, Sporting Lisbon

Group C
-Same goes for Werder Bremen vs. Dinamo Bucharest, though Bremen's GD lead is only 6.
Dinamo Bucharest 0:3 Porto
Werder Bremen 2:0 Brondby
Advancing: Porto, Werder Bremen

Group D
-This group's a bit more interesting, with no one having clinched so far, but Tottenham on 11 points, and Lyon and Olympiakos on 8. Olympiakos has winless Wisla at home, but Lyon has to go to White Hart Lane.
Olympiakos 1:1 Wisla
Tottenham 3:1 Lyon
Advancing: Tottenham, Olympiakos

Group E
-Paris with a 2 point lead on Copenhagen, so either of them could go through... and they meet each other in Paris.
Paris 3:0 FC Kobenhavn
Trabzonspor 1:1 Milan
Advancing: Milan, Paris

Group F
-Arsenal has the inside track on going through, but all 4 teams are still alive. Current standings are Arsenal 9, Real Madrid 8, Roma 6, Panathinaikos 5. Roma and Real Madrid meet at Olimpico... if Roma win, they're through.
Arsenal 1:1 Panathinaikos
Roma 2:2 Real Madrid
Advancing, Arsenal, Real Madrid

Group G
-Another group where everyone is still alive: Man U 10, Leverkusen 7, Ajax 7, Valencia 4.
Leverkusen 0:3 Man Utd.
Valencia 2:2 Ajax
Advancing: Manchester United, Ajax

Group H
-Celtic has clinched a spot, but Benfica, Ferencvaros, and Bayern Munich are all within a point of each other. Benfica gets to host Celtic, while the other 2 try and knock each other out.
Benfica 0:0 Celtic
Bayern Munich 3:0 Ferencvaros
Advancing: Celtic, Bayern Munich

Lineup for our next home match against Brighton:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
DM: Campo
Mid: Valois, Devlin
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Dec. 9, Match 21
5-8-7, 13th pl., 23 pts.
v. Brighton and Hove Albion (3-9-8, 20th pl., 18 pts.)
First meeting
Fav: Posh, 5:4

9'- Hammond takes the Dakinah throw-in, and advances... he plays it square to Valois, who shoots from 20 yards... it hits a defender and goes in! Great start, 1-0 Posh!

14'- Valois with a corner, to Johansen, who hits a fierce half-volley that's well saved.

Not much other action to speak of... Brighton has mustered little offense. Monkhouse in for Devlin, who's tired and not performing particularly well.

59'- Beautiful attack, as Kruse sends it long to Johansen, who nods it ahead to Hammond... Hammond is free on the attack against 2 Seagull defenders... he shoots from about 25 yards before they can close him down, but it's well over.

68'- Good breakaway for Brighton, as they had 2 on 2, but Kruse is able to save the nice strike from 8 yards out.

80'- Valois to Hammond on a counter attack... Hammond shoots at the charging keeper, and it's pushed wide... but Jim Johansen is there to charge it down and tap it home! 2-0!

Fox on for Johansen, and Myhre in for Kruse as we try to send some good vibes Myhre's way.

The time ticks away, and we take our first win in our last 7 matches! Jim Johansen earns MoM, with his goal to seal it and an 8 rating. Valois, Traore, Myhre, and Kruse also pick up 8's. Myhre didn't make one save and picked up an 8. Odd.

Win, 2-0, remain in 13th place
Shots/on target: Posh 13/8, Seagulls 9/3
Poss: 50-50
A: 13,626

Asian/Euro Cup - From Yokohama, Japan
Seongnam (KOR) 0:2 Tottenham
-Freddy Kanoute with 2 goals, as Spurs are easy winners over the Korean champions.

Butter · 03-21-2005, 10:11 AM

I now notice that for the first time in a while, no one "wants" Andy Monkhouse. Guess I missed my chance to cash out on the guy.

A mid-week game at Crewe follows, and some lineup alterations according to fitness.
GK: Myhre
Def: Plummer, Sarr, Traore, Burton
DM: Fox
Mid: Eriksson, Monkhouse
AM: Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Dec. 12, Match 22 - From The Alexandra Stadium, Crewe
6-8-7, 13th pl., 26 pts.
@ Crewe Alexandra (4-5-12, 21st pl., 17 pts.)
First meeting
Fav: Posh, 5:4

30'- First good chance for us, as Hammond is dispossessed on the left, but the ball rolls to Johansen, who has an open goal to shoot at, but also 3 Railwaymen on his back... and the ball is tackled out for a corner.

32'- Myhre with a brilliant 80 yard ball to Johansen, who gets it right inside the arc, and goes around the keeper, but can't get enough space to shoot before losing the ball.

38'- A 30 yard free kick for Crewe, and they score. Myhre tried to save it, but couldn't reach it. 1-0, Railwaymen.

We up the attack at the break, to nearly an all-out assault.

53'- Shaw quickly takes a free kick, and Hammond is all alone at 10 yards, and somehow misses.

Crewe put together some attacks that we have to scramble away, but we've got nothin'. So, Aaritalo, Campo, and Ferdinand come on. We go to a 2-3-5 for the final 15+ minutes.

81'- Fox with a good ball for Johansen, who is played onside by an out of position defender... Johansen right in front of goal, shoots hard and high and scores! Johansen's 10th of the year, and we're level at 1!

We stay in that formation to try and pick up all 3 points, and it creates mass chaos... chances all over the place... but ultimately no goals. Sure was fun to watch though! I'd go to that formation full-time if I didn't think I'd get pretty well picked apart and lose 7-4 mostly.

Sarr earns MoM with an 8 thanks to several key interventions late in the match. Myhre, Burton, Traore, Fox, and Johansen also pick up 8's in this thriller.

Draw, 1-1, remain in 13th
Shots/on target: Railwaymen 14/5, Posh 13/5
Poss: 55-45, Railwaymen
A: 8,561

Butter · 03-21-2005, 10:12 AM

Next up, Gillingham visits London Road. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
Mid: Campo (DM), Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse (AM)
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Dec. 16, Match 23
6-9-7, 13th pl., 27 pts.
v. Gillingham (6-7-9, 14th pl., 25 pts.)
First meeting
Fav: Posh, 6:4

6'- Johansen with a good through ball to Hammond... Hammond shoots... it hits the far post, and rolls all the way across the goalmouth, parallel to the goal line, but it doesn't go in and is cleared.

25'- Devlin with a free kick from 25 yards, and he blazes it just over the bar.

33'- Gills first chance is a long distance shot that Myhre can't get to, but it hits the crossbar and Traore clears it.

44'- Valois to Monkhouse, who slips it to Hammond... Hammond between 2 defenders, and he slots it home! 1-0 on Elvis Hammond's 5th league tally of the season.

No changes at the break.

48'- Another long Gillingham shot, and Myhre has to fist it away, as it nearly sneaks in the back post.

Gills apply a lot of pressure, but all of their shots are wide or high.

78'- Fox in for Devlin, Eriksson for Johansen, as we go to a 4-5-1 with 2 DM's.

82'- Gills with a great chance, a swift cross in headed down but Myhre with a great reaction save to keep it 1-0.

A lot of frenetic action late, mostly us sending the ball far down the pitch, but we hang on for the tight 1-0 win. Thomas Myhre the well-deserved man of the match, making at least 3 great saves. He picks up a 9, everyone else a 7.

Win, 1-0, up 1 spot to 12th
Shots/on target: Posh 14/3, Gills 14/6
Poss: 53-47, Gills
A: 13,466

Jean-Louis Valois gets an automatic one match ban for picking up his 5th yellow card in this match.

Butter · 03-21-2005, 10:12 AM

We start back through the league a second time with a visit from 4th place Hull. We drew with Hull in our first Championship game. I keep plugging Monkhouse in there hoping he'll snap back to form, but it's not really happening, and in the meantime Paul Shaw has cooled way off from his great start to the season. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
Mid: Campo (DM), Eriksson, Devlin, Monkhouse
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Dec. 23, Match 24
7-9-7, 12th pl., 30 pts.
v. Hull (13-6-4, 4th pl., 45 pts.)
Series: Even, 3 draws
Fav: Posh, 6:4

One thing I've learned about playing Hull is it's like pulling teeth... they grind it out... and you better convert your chances. They're one of the toughest defensive teams around. They employ the offside trap very effectively.

Hammond is caught offside 3 times in the first half hour. Hull have no chances to speak of, though.

35'- Campo with a great through ball to Hammond, who catches his marker napping a bit... he's in on the keeper, and slots it home! 1-0!

41'- Another thing I've learned about Hull is they're great at equalizing... a corner kick comes in to an unmarked striker at 8 yards, and he hits it hard... but Myhre tips it wide, and Pritchard hoofs it off the line.

No changes at the half.

55'- Hull with a nice cross, and a header is tipped onto the post by Myhre, and cleared by Sarr.

61'- A poor ball to the keeper caroms off a defender and right to Jim Johansen... Johansen holds off a defender while running at the keeper... he shoots from 15 yards... GOAL! A 2-0 lead over Hull is like 5-0 over anyone else!

81'- Fox on for Hammond, Shaw for a gimpy Devlin. The 4-5-1 appears again.

The time winds down on another win! Thomas Myhre with his 2nd straight MoM honor, earning an 8. Dakinah and Campo also pick up 8's. Good all-around effort to get the lead and stay ahead.

Win, 2-0, remain in 12th
Shots/on target: Posh 8/5, Tigers 14/5
Poss: 51-49, Tigers
A: 15,279

Ivan Campo is selected for the Team of the Week thanks to his performance here.

Butter · 03-21-2005, 10:13 AM

Ipswich offers me $750k and 30% of the next sale for Jim Johansen. I decline. Ipswich currently leads League One.

A short week, as we visit Cardiff on Boxing Day. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Campo, Dakinah, Traore, Sarr
Mid: Fox (DM), Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse (AM)
Str: Johansen, Shaw

Dec. 26, Match 25 - From St. David Stadium, Cardiff
8-9-7, 12th pl., 33 pts.
@ Cardiff (10-9-5, 9th pl., 39 pts.)
Last meeting: Draw, 1-1
Fav: Bluebirds, Evens

4'- A favorable bounce for Shaw inside the arc, and he hits with the outside of the boot, but just into the side netting.

8'- A steal in midfield... Fox plays it through to Shaw, who is just onside... Shaw chips the keeper from 20 yards, and scores! 1-0, Posh!

23'- Johansen with a steal, up to Valois... Valois to Monkhouse who is point blank with the keeper! Stoned! But the ball wiggles over to Shaw, who taps it in! 2-0, Posh on a great midfield series.

38'- Campo with a free kick from about 40 yards... to Valois... they play the one-two, and Valois has space down the left... he crosses to the middle... Shaw is there with a diving header... YES! Shaw with a hat-trick, and we lead by 3!

We take Devlin out at the half for Eriksson... Monkhouse to the right wing.

61'- Johansen breaks free, but has it slide tackled from behind... and it goes in! An own goal puts us up 4!

Cardiff grab one back in the 66th, but that's pretty much it. A great win!

Shaw the natural MoM, with his 2nd hat trick of the season! He rates a 10, as do Fox and Valois. Monkhouse a 9, and nearly everyone else an 8. What a victory!

Win, 1-4, up 1 spot to 11th
Shots/on target: Bluebirds 9/3, Posh 8/4
Poss: 55-45, Cardiff
A: 18,775

Butter · 03-23-2005, 09:29 AM

I get a question from the media after our big win over Cardiff:

Our local paper, the Peterborough Evening Telegraph, wants to know:

Jim Johansen is being labelled as one of the best young players of his generation. Do you believe that you will be able to stop the big clubs poaching him?

"POACH AWAY!" I think to myself, but then I end up responding by saying I want Jim to stay with us and hope he feels the same. Though I sure wouldn't mind a multi-million dollar transfer fee at some point in the future.

We're nearly at the end of the year, and we close 2006 with a tough trip to Derby County. Lamine Traore is away on international duty for Burkina Faso, so Burton starts in his place. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Sarr, Burton, Dakinah
Mid: Campo (DM), Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse (AM)
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Dec. 30, Match 26 - From Pride Park, Derby
9-9-7, 11th pl., 36 pts.
@ Derby County (13-4-8, 8th pl., 43 pts.)
Last meeting: Posh 0:2 Derby (8/8/06)
Fav: Rams, 6:4

1'- Pritchard with a long ball down the left off the opening kickoff, and Valois centers for Johansen, who hits a half-volley but it's just high... nearly a score after just 12 seconds.

5'- Devlin with a free kick from about 10 yards off the end line on the left... he crosses for Monkhouse who heads it, but it's cleared off the line nicely and out.

10'- A midfielder beats Burton with speed and fires at Myhre from 5 yards... but he is able to push it away. Burton's lack of speed showed there.

15'- Another good chance, as Pritchard is caught upfield, and Burton is out of position on a through ball... the same midfielder tries a cross this time, but Myhre is aware, and deflects the ensuing header wide. Dakinah clears.

21'- Myhre with a long ball to Hammond, who is clear... Hammond is in free, but his angled shot is deflected onto the post and out for a corner.

35'- Rams with a 20-25 yard free kick, and it's off the crossbar! The rebound comes to a Ram striker, but Pritchard tackles it away! Great play by Luke Pritchard to save a goal!

No changes at the half... Derby is outplaying us, but we're holding on.

47'- Good play by Derby, they've got a man in on the right, and he crosses back to support... a strong header is saved by Myhre, but there was a Derby foul on the play anyway.

49'- Another chance for Derby, but Dakinah tackles it away on the left of the box... Monkhouse picks it up about 25 yards from our end line... he advances a bit, Hammond and Johansen have both gotten off a bit too early and would be onside if he passed it... so he keeps going... and going... the Ram defense is not closing him down and he's clean through! Monkhouse in on the keeper... finally has to hold off a challenge at 10 yards while trying to maneuver around the keeper... his shot to the near post is tipped and held by the keeper, but a great individual move by Monkhouse... probably the longest individual run I've ever seen.

51'- Burton with a steal to Valois... Valois advances across midfield, to Monkhouse in the center... Andy with a through ball to Hammond! Elvis has it... he strikes a shot and it's in! A nice low ball beats the keeper, and we take the lead!

55'- Dakinah is injured and forced to leave. Plummer in for him, he goes to central defense and Sarr switches to right back.

Derby with a 10 minute series of intense pressure, including about 6 corner kicks... but Myhre with at least 2 brilliant saves and 3 more standard ones to keep it 1-0.

75'- Fox in for Johansen as we switch to a 4-5-1 and try to slow the fierce Derby attack.

77'- A ragged series of midfield play ends with the ball bobbling to Devlin unmarked on the right. Devlin crosses to a flashing Hammond at the near side of the box... Elvis receives, turns, and lets loose a pacey shot, and it beats the keeper to the far post! 2-0, Posh! Hammond's 10th of the year should seal this one up.

87'- A hanging outswinging corner from the right for Derby, and Myhre is called for a push to give Derby a PK.

89'- Valois with a centering cross that Hammond nearly converts for a hat trick.

Derby with one more decent chance, but Myhre clutches the cross, and we are able to hold the ball long enough to take all 3 points! Elvis Hammond with his best game of the year, rating a 10, with a brace and MoM honors. Sarr picks up a 9, and nearly everyone else picks up an 8 in this good team effort.

Win, 1-2, up 2 spots to 9th
Shots/on target: Rams 15/10, Posh 18/11
Poss: 55-45, Rams
A: 27,058

Dakinah will just be out a few days with a damaged shoulder.

Butter · 03-23-2005, 09:29 AM

2007 begins with the board still delighted with my performance... and it's Bosman season!

Valois, Shaw, and Hammond are picked in the Team of the Week... and I'm second in the Dec. '06 manager of the month voting.

The world football awards are given out... Ruud van Nistelrooy wins the World Footballer of the Year prize. Thierry Henry wins World Player of the Year. Ryan Giggs' corpse wins European Footballer of the Year. Samuel Eto'o wins European Striker of the Year.

Only a 1 day layoff as we play Reading on the first day of the New Year. The Royals have cooled way off after winning their first 5 league matches this season. Everyone is dog-tired, so lots of changes in the formation today. We even bring a kid up from the reserves to start. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Traore, Cave, Plummer, Sarr
Mid: Navarro (DM), Eriksson, Martin, Shaw (AM)
Str: Aaritalo, Ferdinand

Jan. 1, 2007, Match 27
10-9-7, 9th pl., 39 pts.
v. Reading (11-4-11, 11th pl., 35 pts.)
Last meeting: Royals 4:2 Posh (8/12/06)
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Not much going on in the first half, as each team gets one solid chance that the keeper takes care of, and there's not much other action to speak of.

Ferdinand is tiring and rating a 5 at the half... probably shouldn't have re-signed him this year, but oh well live and learn.

63'- Ferdinand out, Johansen in... Les left the game at least twice with injury... he's just not the same as he was last year.

85'- Aaritalo is laboring as well... he's played ok, but his fatigue is at 53. Guess he's not used to being out there for a full 90 lately. Monkhouse in, and Shaw moves to striker.

We nab 2 late chances, but both are long range strikes that are harmless. We end scoreless. Reading's keeper gets MoM, as he was the only player who had to do any actual work in this one.

Draw, 0-0, drop 1 spot to 10th
Shots/on target: Posh 6/4, Royals 5/0
Poss: 58-42, Royals
A: 15,302

The attendance at this lackluster match is a record high for the club, just 12 short of our listed capacity.

Next up, a scheduling quirk as we face Wigan in the FA Cup on Saturday... then Wigan again on the following Saturday in League play, both at home.

Butter · 03-23-2005, 09:31 AM

As I get set to sign some new players, I notice that we are over $3.5 million in the black now. We're doing unbelievably well, mostly due to our bump up in TV revenue this year, and increased gate receipts. We've already made more in ticket sales this season than we did in the entire slate last year.

As far as players leaving, Ferdinand, Plummer, and Shaw are the only key players we have going out of contract this coming June. All are going to be let go. Strikers Steve Basham and Derek Holmes, and attacker Eoin Jess are currently in our reserves and will be leaving as well, along with a couple of defensemen who will not be kept. All tolled, that will be a salary savings of $768,000 in 9 players leaving... and we're currently slightly under our salary budget, so that's not a bad amount to be able to spend, although we're still limited in who we can offer contracts to, since our board won't allow me to offer any contracts worth more than about $350k per season... I've tried to circumvent that with signing bonuses and the like, but it hasn't yet worked.

I am targeting more defensive depth, and midfielders... along with a good striker, if one can be had for the price I can pay.

A lot of players are coming up for contracts next year, so I have to keep that in mind as well during the signings if I intend to keep Hammond and Valois around. Valois is aging, so I'm still undecided on him, frankly. He is the classiest player we have, by a long shot, but he'll be closing in on 35 when his contract is up next year.

Ipswich offers us $750k and 40% of the next sale for Johansen... this looks familiar. I decline.

Well, back to the footy... we're in the midst of a 10 game unbeaten streak in league play... all of which is getting my hopes up of gaining a playoff spot. Even if we did get a playoff spot and somehow managed to win the playoffs this season, we'd get smacked down mighty quick back to the Championship.

Lineup for Wigan, part 1:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Burton, Sarr
Mid: Campo (DM), Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse (AM)
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Jan. 6, FA Cup Third Round
v. Wigan Athletic (17th in Championship)
Last meeting: Wigan 0:0 Posh (8/19/06)
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Not much action early, we get a couple of balls into the box that are cleared, and Wigan can't even penetrate our midfield.

28'- Johansen swings it to Hammond in the middle, then over to Valois on the left who is unmarked... Jean-Louis attacks the keeper, and hits it to the far post and in! 1-0, Posh!

37'- Burton with a fierce free kick from about 23 yards... it hits the wall and deflects to the edge of the box, where Valois attempts to chase it down but is pushed over... it's a penalty! The commentator notes that it was surely a dive, but we get a spot kick and a chance to double the lead! Lamine Traore is the choice to take it.... SAVED! Right into the center of goal, and saved easily.

45'- Myhre saves a close in shot fairly easily, then sends it 75 yards to Jim Johansen... Johansen beats the keeper, but took a long time doing it and can't get his shot past the 2 defenders stationed on the line.

Halftime, and we're beating Wigan fairly soundly. No changes, though Luke Pritchard is gimping around.

64'- Wigan with a legitimate chance, as a striker gets open in the arc and charges Myhre... Myhre tips the shot away, then falls on the rebound. Good goalkeeping.

76'- Devlin with a corner kick for Campo... it's headed back to Devlin, who heads it back into the congested middle... where Elvis Hammond climbs up and heads it in the net! 2-0, Posh on a strange goal... but I'll take it if it means more FA Cup play!

Dakinah, Shaw, and Fox on for Devlin, Pritchard, and Johansen as we go to a 4-5-1.

81'- Dakinah steals a corner and outlets to Valois... Valois holds the ball for a couple of seconds, then plays it long to Hammond, who started his run on our end to avoid the trap! Hammond with a good 10 yards on the nearest defender, but he settles for a 12 yard drive that is wide.

That's it! We advance to the Fourth Round! Luke Pritchard named MoM, with an 8... Myhre, Campo, and Valois with 8's also.

Win, 2-0, advance to Fourth Round
Shots/on target: Posh 15/5, Wigan 11/3
Poss: 51-49, Posh
A: 13,211

We win $90k for the victory.

Butter · 03-23-2005, 09:31 AM

I notice that Jim Johansen is down a bit, saying he feels the pressure of public expectation. I try to pump him up a bit, praising his performance this season in the press. Well, that didn't help, since the fans respond by saying that his performance of late has been poor, and criticizing me for praising him. Whoops.

The draw for the FA Cup Fourth Round is held, and we get another home game, this time we'll face the winner of the replay between Premiership team Birmingham City and our league mates Everton. Not a bad draw.

Bad news for us, as Andy Monkhouse strains his back during training, and will likely miss the remainder of the month. Yuk. Then the next day, Thomas Myhre twists a knee and will miss about the same amount of time. Blech.

We put Aaritalo in the lineup and give Johansen a game off, as we face Wigan again. Kruse in goal makes me nervous anymore, hopefully he'll be ok as he'll be out there for a few weeks at least.

Lineup for Wigan, part 2:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
Mid: Campo (DM), Valois, Devlin, Shaw (AM)
Str: Aaritalo, Hammond

Jan. 13, Match 28
10-10-7, 10th pl., 40 pts.
v. Wigan (6-10-11, 17th pl., 28 pts.)
Series: Posh lead 1-1-0
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Well, at least the bookies are consistent.

2'- Great start for us, as Dakinah with the free kick... it's headed all the way back to Kofi, but he sends it to Aaritalo this time, who heads across to Valois... Valois with a cross into the six... across the six... Devlin attacking on the right fires in the half-volley... GOAL! Devlin puts us up early with a nice goal, 1-0!

23'- Wigan with a good chance, a quick shot off a low corner kick, but Dakinah blasts it off the line and well downfield.

28'- A Wigan player is furious over a foul call, and gets one card for the foul, then another for dissent and we're up a man for the final hour.

38'- Devlin gets another Valois cross at the back post, but his shot is deflected this time... right to Traore, who hits a good low shot that looks marked for the net, but a foot gets in to deflect it out for a corner.

39'- A similar play, this time it's a corner kick that is headed out to Traore, who shoots from about 30 yards, but this time the shot looks to be going wide, then hits a foot and goes in. 2-0, Posh on the fluke goal!

No changes at the break.

Aaritalo with a couple of long distance shots in the first 20 minutes of the second half, but Wigan can't find any offense with their shorthanded side.

72'- Fox, Ferdinand, and Eriksson on for Campo, Aaritalo, and Valois.

79'- Shaw with an outswinging corner, it finds the head of Sarr, who heads it home! Both Sarr and Traore with their first Posh goals today, and we lead by 3 now. That's how it ends.

Valois wins another MoM, with a perfect 10. He made 11 forward runs today. Traore, Sarr, and Shaw pick up 8's as well. Kruse wasn't troubled at all in goal today.

Win, 3-0, up 1 spot to 9th
Shots/on target: Posh 15/7, Wigan 1/1
Poss: 61-39, Posh
A: 13,673

Chas in Cinti · 03-24-2005, 10:02 AM

Your story has been great so far... I really like the fact that the reader can tell you're getting better at coaching/tactics/evaluating talent as time goes by as well as your players getting better...

Will be reading!

Regards,
Chas

Butter · 03-24-2005, 10:13 AM

Thanks a lot, Chas. Appreciate the comment.

Butter · 03-24-2005, 10:14 AM

Now, Jim Johansen fractures his jaw in training, and will miss 3 weeks of action. They're testing me, aren't they?

Luke Pritchard finally gets around to whining about his cheap contract, so I'll probably have to raise his wages to keep his performance up.

Birmingham tops Everton 1-0 at Goodison Park, so we'll face another Premiership team in Cup action this week. Too bad Everton couldn't pull it off, as we've passed them in the Championship standings now. This is going to be a tough win to pull off with several regulars out due to injury. Campo is also out due to fatigue. We decide to play a more standard tactic instead of our usual attack, and use the counter attack to our advantage. I also designate Aaritalo as a target man and play direct passing to him, hoping to pop a goal to Hammond at some point.

Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah
Mid: Fox, Valois, Devlin, Shaw
Str: Aaritalo, Hammond

Jan. 20, FA Cup Fourth Round
v. Birmingham City (14th in Premiership)
Fav: Birmingham, 4:5

25'- First chance for either side, it's Birmingham's Jesper Gronkjaer who has a shot from 8 yards but it's right into Kruse's chest.

45'- Gronkjaer with a long ball to striker David Johnson, but luckily the flag goes up after he's broken clear.

We're not playing poorly at the half, but haven't really troubled the Blues (who are actually wearing red today because of our home blue kit). No changes yet, but we might up the attack a bit later, as I don't really desire to play a replay at a Premiership park if I can avoid it.

54'- A good save by Kruse sparks a breakaway, and Hammond eventually gets into the box with the ball and the whistle goes... but it's Devlin holding back Gronkjaer, who was trying to get at Hammond.

73'- Valois with an impressive move to keep control amidst 3 Birmingham defenders, but his 25 yard panic strike goes harmlessly wide.

78'- Ferdinand and Eriksson on for a tiring Hammond and Aaritalo, and we increase our attack.

Doesn't matter. Birmingham pretty much played for a replay the final half-hour, rarely pushing forward.

Lukas Kruse with the MoM, making a couple of decent saves and earning an 8, but it's hard to pick out a player of the match from a game so devoid of action. Dakinah also picks up an 8, and everyone else rates a 7.

Draw, 0-0, replay
Shots/on target: Posh 6/2, Blues 11/5
Poss: 52-48, Blues
A: 15,298

At least we got a good crowd for this, likely our last home FA Cup game of the season, unless we can find a way past Birmingham on the road.

I'm informed that our gate receipts of $550k for this match were a record high.

Tobias Eriksson sprained his wrist during his brief substitute stint, and will miss about a week.

Butter · 03-24-2005, 10:15 AM

The replay will be in 11 days, on the last day of the month.

We reach terms on our first Bosman signing, D/DM Talal El Karkouri from Charlton Athletic agrees to terms with us. He is a 30 year old Moroccan, who has not been in Charlton's first team this year. El Karkouri possesses sensational technique, and lacks a bit only in his mental game, but still is a step above most of our current players. He will join the squad on July 1.

The Fifth Round FA Cup draw is held, and if we can somehow make it past the Blues, we'll get to host the Reds... Liverpool would be coming to London Road. But that's a big if.

Luke Pritchard wants a new contract, and he wants $280k a year to play left back for us. He's good, but not irreplaceable. I offer about $120k a season and a 2 year extension on his contract. He is only 20 years old, but set to leave after next season.

Next up, a visit to Burnley. Another revenge game for Valois, hopefully.
Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Traore, Burton, Dakinah, Sarr
Mid: Campo, Valois, Devlin, Shaw
Str: Ferdinand, Hammond

Jan. 23, Match 29
11-10-7, 9th pl., 43 pts.
@ Burnley (10-7-11, 13th pl., 37 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-0-1
Fav: Posh, 6:4

8'- Devlin shoots from 20 yards after a nice build-up, but it's wide.

21'- Burnley with some good pressure, but Kruse saves a shot aimed at the near post.

25'- Sarr heads it away to Hammond, to Ferdinand, to Hammond, to Valois, to Shaw... then Hammond is played through... he has 2 defenders closing him, but he slots a shot to the near post from 18 yards... and scores! Hammond's team leading 12th of the year puts us on top again, 1-0!

27'- Burnley with a terrific pass to an open man about 8 yards off the near post, and his wicked shot is saved by Kruse nicely. The ensuing corner is hit to Robbie Blake, who heads it in from 8 yards... 1-1.

The Clarets do a good job keeping us out of the box... we're taking a lot of long shots, and not connecting. It's 1-1 at the break, and we keep the starting XI on the pitch.

56'- We break down Burnley's organization at the back, as a nice series of midfield possession ends with a through ball by Shaw, who drew his man out of central defense and made room for Hammond's run... Hammond with loads of space, gets the keeper to commit then taps it past him for his second of the match. 2-1, Posh.

65'- A breakdown by the defense, as a cross is sent to the left of the box, and no one's home, especially not Sarr... luckily Kruse saves his ass with a terrific reflex save on a 6 yard strike by Burnley.

73'- Another defensive breakdown, as Burton watches a ball go right past him onto the foot of a Burnley striker, who has space against Kruse, but Lukas with a magical last-second tip wide to save the equalizer.

Pritchard on for a slightly injured Ferdinand, as we go to a 5-4-1. We also reorganize the players a bit, considering we're letting a lot of players through right now.

79'- Apparently someone told Sagi Burton to take a smoke break, as Robbie Blake is completely unmarked receiving a diagonal pass in the box... Blake shoots from about 10 yards, but Kruse with another magnificent save... sadly he couldn't hold it, and the rebound is tapped in. 2-2.

Aaritalo on for Burton, as he comes out and we switch back to normal tactics.

84'- Long ball for Dakinah, and Aaritalo heads it down for Devlin... then after a few passes, it ends up back with Aaritalo, who has space against the keeper... he tries to go around him, but is a bit too slow about it and can't beat him with his shot, it's a corner kick.

88'- A nice intervention by Pritchard to take it away from Blake in the box... then we end up with a chance as Aaritalo ends up beating his man, but again his hard shot is right at the keeper.

Both teams frantically send balls downfield to try and equalize, but we end up drawn. Paul Shaw with a terrific game in midfield, earning a 10 and MoM. Kruse with a 9, and Dakinah, Burton, Traore, and Hammond pick up 8's. Not a good point, as we should've had all 3 from this one.

Draw, 2-2, drop 1 spot to 10th
Shots/on target: Clarets 13/8, Posh 15/7
Poss: 55-45, Clarets
A: 19,902

We remain a good 9 points back of the final playoff spot, we're seemingly unable to gain ground on the top 7, all of whom have 52 points or more.

Butter · 03-24-2005, 10:16 AM

Sarr earns a match off for picking up his 5th yellow of the season against Burnley.

We're now in the middle of a team record 14 game unbeaten streak. Quite a feat considering the start we had to the season. We now have 11 draws, 2nd in the league only to near-bottom Brighton, who have 14 draws, but just 4 wins, while we have 11 wins.

We have a tough row to hoe now, as we have multiple injuries and are facing multiple mid-week games thanks to the FA Cup. Call-ups from the reserves are likely in order. I settle on bringing up Derek Holmes to fill out our bench, as Traore is out on int'l duty, Sarr is out suspended, and Eriksson, Johansen, Myhre, Plummer, and Monkhouse are still out injured, so I didn't even have enough first-teamers to fill the bench.

And now we play Sheffield United, a team that kind of kick-started us with some trash talk earlier this year... as they've slid down the table their manager has been keeping his mouth shut. Their defense is horrendous, allowing 54 goals in 29 matches, worst in the league. Their offense is good, but only 39 goals against 54 won't win you many.
Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Campo, Burton, Dakinah
Mid: Fox, Valois, Devlin, Shaw
Str: Aaritalo, Hammond

Jan. 27, Match 30
11-11-7, 10th pl., 44 pts.
v. Sheffield United (11-5-13, 14th pl., 38 pts.)
Series: Blades lead 2-0-1
Fav: Posh, 6:4

The Blades have the better of play early, narrowly missing the target with 2 shots.

21'- Valois with a corner, inswinging to Fox at the near post... Fox with time to turn with the ball, then shoot from about 8 yards... it deflects off a foot and goes in! Fox scores to put us up a goal early.

26'- Valois with a long range shot that also takes a deflection, but right to Blade keeper Paddy Kenny.

31'- Sheffield with a dangerous chance, a low cross is tapped goalward, but Kruse deflects it out.

34'- Recent Everton transfer Marcus Bent is giving Luke Pritchard fits, beating him for about the 3rd time today with speed, but missing a point blank shot as Kruse gets down well to save it.

36'- Burton with a free kick from the center circle... he hits it up to the edge of the box, where Aaritalo nods it down for Shaw... Shaw takes it on the bounce and shoots... GOAL! Nestled into the far post, Shaw scores and puts us up 2-0!

We go in with a comfortable halftime lead. No changes.

59'- Shaw fires from 25 yards, and scores! How can we get rid of this guy? That's his 12th of the season, 2nd best on the squad... what's even better is all of Shaw's goals are league goals. He has the ability to completely take over games with his skill at times. Which is what he's done here, leading us out 3-0 now.

66'- We burn our subs, removing Valois, Devlin, and Hammond for Navarro, Martin, and Holmes.

81'- A long series of possession in the box, including 3 corners for Sheffield United, amounts to nothing. No goals for you today!

90'- OK, maybe one... but only off a corner from a tight-angled shot.

Paul Shaw wins another MoM, dominating the attack today with his 2 goals with an 8 rating. Campo, Pritchard, and Kruse earn 8's. Lukas Kruse making quite a push to get his starting job back, he's been sensational of late replacing the injured Thomas Myhre. Holmes only got a couple of touches in his first league action since August.

Win, 3-1, up 1 spot to 9th
Shots/on target: Posh 11/5, Blades 13/5
Poss: 53-47, Blades
A: 15,286

After the game, Holmes naturally complains to the media about not being part of the first team. You're out of contract anyway after this season, buddy.

Butter · 03-24-2005, 10:16 AM

Shaw is picked in the Team of the Week.

Injuries continue to hit, as Kofi Dakinah now is out a month with strained knee ligaments. Must be time to hire another physio. I place an ad and wait to see what the applicants look like.

Everyone seems to finally be getting healthy, aside from Dakinah, and our squad is slowly mutating back to normal, but not before we play Birmingham. Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Campo, Sarr
Mid: Fox, Valois, Devlin, Shaw
Str: Aaritalo, Hammond

Jan. 31, FA Cup Fourth Round - Replay - From St. Andrews, Birmingham
@ Birmingham City (14th in Premiership)
Fav: Blues, 4:6

5'- Emile Heskey injures Devlin, and he has to leave. I don't have anyone that really fits in that hole, so I bring on Sagi Burton and put Ivan Campo on the right.

17'- Midfielder Julian Gray with a 20 yard free kick for the Blues... it hits the wall but goes right at Kruse, luckily.

32'- After completely dominating play, the Blues make the breakthrough, as midfielder Darren Carter strikes a long one from 25 yards that goes in off the right post. 1-0, Blues.

40'- Gary with a cross to Heskey, and he heads it in. 2-0.

We are outshot in the first half, 14-0. Not good. No changes for the second half. Let's just not lose 6-0.

53'- Holmes on for Pritchard, as we try to force the action with a 3-4-3, moving Fox up to the center circle.

63'- A deep cross to midfielder Damien Johnson, and he is unmarked and slots it past Kruse for Birmingham's third.

74'- Eriksson replaces a tired Shaw.

89'- Campo gets a header from Eriksson, then crosses to a flashing Holmes, who has room from 15 yards, and nestles it inside the far post. Good strike by Holmes.... but too late to save us.

The final whistle goes and ends our FA Cup stay. Nobody rates higher than a 7, as Damien Johnson is named MoM for the Blues.

Loss, 3-1, out of FA Cup
Shots/on target: Blues 19/13, Posh 2/2
Poss: 61-39, Blues
A: 21,189

Hopefully, this match won't kill our morale in the league, where we're still slightly alive for a playoff spot.

Devlin is ruled out just 5 days for a stubbed toe. A stubbed toe? Get your ass out there man!

Butter · 03-24-2005, 10:17 AM

February starts, and we're shut out of the awards voting completely.

At least the board is still delighted with me. And why wouldn't they be? They're sitting on just over $5 million thanks to my management of the club. Many of the other clubs in the league have at least one, if not more, players with a salary above $1 million, while my most expensive player is Ivan Campo, at $360k per year, with no one else even close to him.

Hopefully, we can return to form against a struggling Millwall squad. Derek Holmes gets a start, as Aaritalo is pretty tired, Johansen is still hurt, and Les Ferdinand is just old. Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Campo, Sarr
Mid: Navarro, Valois, Monkhouse, Shaw
Str: Holmes, Hammond

Feb. 3, Match 31 - From The Den, London
12-11-7, 9th pl., 47 pts.
@ Millwall (5-10-15, 22nd pl., 25 pts.)
Last meeting: Posh 3:0 Lions (9/9/06)
Fav: Posh, 6:4

12'- Navarro with an interception in our half, and a long ball to Hammond... Hammond nods it for Valois, to Shaw in the center, back to Hammond making a forward run... Hammond plays it ahead to Holmes making a good diagonal run into the arc... he takes one dribble and slots it to the keeper's right, and it's in! Derek Holmes is proving me wrong, scoring our last 2 goals! 1-0, Posh.

29'- After some more possession, another chance as the Millwall backline look totally disorganized as Shaw slides a ball to Holmes on the left of the box... Holmes is unmarked at the edge of the area, then attacks the keeper, and slots it home inside the near post! Derek Holmes with his second goal of the match gives us a 2-0 lead! The commentary notes "This Peterborough team are looking unbeatable at present!"

We continue to bombard the Lions, and Holmes gets another chance that is saved, while Hammond and Monkhouse also have open shots saved nicely. Millwall's defense is just terrible. We lead 2-0, and don't even think about removing the pressure yet.

56'- Kruse with a long ball to Valois, who heads it to Navarro in the center circle... Alan spots Hammond, and finds his run... Elvis shoots far post after a dribble and scores! 3-0!

74'- As though things weren't bad enough for Millwall, a defender gets a second yellow card and an early bath. Eriksson, Aaritalo, and Fox on for Monkhouse, Valois, and Hammond.

83'- Holmes almost gets a hat trick with a diving header off a cross by Eriksson, but it just goes wide.

Derek Holmes with the MoM honor, storming back to the first team after a lengthy absence with a 9 rating and the brace. Hammond also picks up a 9, and Sarr, Pritchard, Navarro, Monkhouse, and Shaw all pick up 8's. Total domination would be the easiest way to describe this.

Win, 0-3, remain in 9th
Shots/on target: Lions 2/1, Posh 23/11
Poss: 52-48, Posh
A: 7,284

We're now 7 points off the pace for 6th, held currently by Fulham, but just 2 points behind West Ham for 7th spot.

Butter · 03-24-2005, 10:17 AM

Both Hammond and Holmes are named to the Team of the Week. So, after spending 5 months with the reserve squad, Derek Holmes scores 3 goals in his first 2 games for the senior squad. How can I keep him out of the lineup? I have to play him to see if I want to re-sign it.

We make another Bosman signing, this time it's Crewe Alexandra's Kenny Lunt, an attacking midfielder who can play at all positions. He's got good but not unbelievably great numbers, but should ease the loss of Paul Shaw during the offseason, as well as providing some depth at all midfield positions, since he can play both wings and in the center with ease. He is rating a 7.23 for Crewe with 5 goals and 5 assists this year in 26 appearances, as Crewe struggle near relegation. Lunt wanted something like $360k per year, but I got him for about $220k per season through 2010. He is 27, so should be right about at the peak of his career.

We get 6 respondents to our ad for a physio, all employed at lower league competition. They all want the same salary too, $28k. So, it comes down to who I have to pay the least to work out of their contract, and the winner is: Jon Whitney, a 36 year old physio with Walsall, who would cost me $10k. He agrees to our offer of $28k, and we've got our 3rd physio.

Another road game, this time at mid-table Preston North End. Thomas Myhre returns to the net for us today. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Campo, Burton, Sarr
Mid: Fox, Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse
Str: Holmes, Hammond

Feb. 10, Match 32 - From Deepdale, Preston
13-11-7, 9th pl., 50 pts.
@ Preston North End (9-7-15, 16th pl., 34 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-0-1
Fav: Lilywhites, 6:4

16'- Devlin with a foul early on, then here in the 16th minute he's called for a deliberate handball, and we've got to muddle through the final 75 minutes of this one a man down. Swell. So Monkhouse goes to the right wing, and David Fox moves up to midfield for a 4-3-2 look.

20'- It doesn't take Preston long to take advantage, as a cross from deep in the corner goes all the way across the box, eludes Myhre, and finds a head at the back post for a 1-0 PNE lead.

We get a couple of decent shots, but saves on long range efforts from Monkhouse and Hammond keep us behind 1-0 at the half. I'll take a point out of this one, if I can get it. Shaw on for Fox, who is slightly injured at the break. We instruct Shaw to push up quite a bit from the center.

49'- Good combination play as Holmes and Hammond play the one-two, and a great fingertip save denies Hammond the equalizer.

56'- After some more nice play, Valois beats his man, then slips it to Holmes on the left of the box... Derek plays it square to Paul Shaw in the arc, who strikes it home from 20 yards! Great strike by Shaw to put us back on level terms.

58'- We're bombarding Preston with chances, as another good ball from the back, Sarr finds Hammond free on the right... Elvis to Shaw in the arc, who slips it through to Valois... Jean-Louis strikes, but hits the far post and it bounces right back to the keeper!

75'- Sarr with an interception, up to Monkhouse... Andy to Paul Shaw... Shaw to Holmes, who plays it to Hammond... Hammond beats the last man, then shoots low against the keeper... and scores! Just inside the near post, Hammond's 15th of the year puts us ahead 2-1! Preston look like the team a man down as we've dominated the 2nd half.

85'- Preston in a 4-2-4 now, and almost get the equalizer as a midfielder beats the last 2 defenders, but misses the shot against Myhre.

87'- Plummer on for Holmes as we go to a 5-4-... 0?

90'- A flukey bounce of an attempted clearance sends a Lilywhite striker onside against Kruse, but a good save deflects the ball wide, where 5 Posh defenders converge on it and heave it downfield.

The final whistle blows after a panicky clearance by Burton, and we take all 3 points! I figured we were set for our first league defeat in quite a while, but not only did we equalize, we get max. points. Sagi Burton wins MoM with an 8 in his center-back position. Nearly everyone else nets an 8 as a great team effort pulls us back to win the game.

Win, 1-2, up 1 spot to 8th
Shots/on target: Lilywhites 8/3, Posh 13/10
Poss: 53-47, PNE
A: 18,033

We're now just 4 points behind 6th place, as Fulham draw a blank at home to lowly Millwall, losing 1-0.

Devlin and Shaw reach their yellow card limit, and will miss the next match... not to mention Devlin's automatic one match ban for his red card, so he'll be out 2 games.

Butter · 03-24-2005, 10:18 AM

Sarr and Ivan Campo are picked in the Team of the Week.

Surprisingly, Derek Holmes notes that he is now content with his role, realizing that the manager (me) would allow him to force his way onto the first team if his performance merits it.

Now we get to host Everton, a team that has slipped down the table a bit to 10th place. Jim Johansen finally returns from his fractured jaw. Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Traore, Plummer, Burton, Sarr
Mid: Fox, Valois, Monkhouse, Eriksson
Str: Johansen, Hammond

Feb. 13, Match 33
14-11-7, 8th pl., 53 pts.
v. Everton (13-10-9, 10th pl., 49 pts.)
Series: Toffees lead 1-1-0
Fav: Toffees, 5:4

11'- Andrew Fowler is played onside thanks to a great ball from the back... he's 5 yards in the clear... Myhre forces an early shot and deflects it wide.

And that's your first half action. A grand total of 1 shot from both sides combined. So, let's hope we can manufacture a bit more in the second half.

60'- Valois slides it to Johansen, who is in onside... Johansen attacks the goal, but tries to cross to Monkhouse, and it's headed out for a corner.

74'- Valois and Eriksson play the one-two, then Jean-Louis switches play to the right, where Monkhouse benefits from Everton's bunching on the left, as they were shutting down Valois, Johansen, and Eriksson, but forgot about Andy... Andy with space on the right, advances to about 12 yards, then shoots... and scores! He slots it in between the keeper and the near post, and we take the lead!

Campo in for Hammond, as we go to a deliberate 4-5-1 to try and hold the goal advantage.

Navarro and Martin on for Valois and Monkhouse, as we try the fresh legs approach.

90'- We're just about a minute from the end, and Everton score the equalizer off a 35 yard free kick that takes a strange bounce, then is headed between 2 strikers and finally in past Myhre. Rats.

Oh well, we take the point disappointedly, and hope for the chance to make it up when we play Fulham next. Valois wins MoM with an 8. Sarr also picks up an 8.

Draw, 1-1, remain in 8th
Shots/on target: Posh 4/2, Toffees 6/2
Poss: 52-48, Toffees
A: 15,294

We're now 6 points behind 6th place, but there are 3 teams on 60 points, 4th through 6th place... Blackburn, Fulham, and Nottingham Forest.

Butter · 03-24-2005, 10:19 AM

Lukas Kruse is the latest Posh player to whine about his contract in the media. Can't say I'm inclined to give him what he wants, as I don't really think he's the man to lead us into the Premiership.

We host Fulham in a huge match for us, and for Fulham as well. I almost hate to bring it up, but we've now gone 16 league matches without losing. Is this the one to do us in? Or can we make the streak half the season long? Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Burton, Sarr
Mid: Campo, Valois, Monkhouse, Shaw
Str: Holmes, Hammond

Feb. 17, Match 34
14-12-7, 8th pl., 54 pts.
v. Fulham (18-6-9, 5th pl., 60 pts.)
Last meeting: Cottagers 2:2 Posh
Fav: Cottagers, 6:4

12'- Brian McBride to Luis Boa Morte... Boa Morte crosses to striker Leon Knight, who hits it on the half volley from 6 yards, and scores. 1-0, Fulham.

19'- Valois' free kick is headed away, right to Ivan Campo, who shoots from 30 yards and almost scores! Great fingertip save to tip it over saves Fulham.

22'- Boa Morte with another cross, this time midfielder Claus Jensen heads it at goal, where Myhre tips it wide, but right to McBride, who finishes. 2-0, Fulham.

Carlos Bocanegra nearly scores from 25 yards, and Valois skims the bar with a 25 yard free kick. 2-0 down at the break, and Traore, Burton, and Monkhouse are all pulling 5's at the break. We'll see if we have any magic left in the second half.

49'- Myhre with a good save off a Jensen free kick, and he gets it out to Monkhouse near midfield in space... Monkhouse to Hammond, who's broken free... his shot is stopped by the post! And cleared.

66'- Hammond knocks a good ball to Holmes down the left... Holmes crosses short to Valois, whose header is horrifically wide.

Eriksson on for Burton, and we go to a 3-3-4, and play long balls to our men in deep.

73'- Fulham with another goal on a shot that Myhre couldn't hold, and the rebound is tapped in. It's all over, 3-0.

75'- Shaw steals the ball from Boa Morte, then gets it to Monkhouse who crosses to Ivan Campo... his header's off the crossbar, but Holmes is perfectly positioned for the tap-in! 3-1.

We bring Johansen and Aaritalo on and try to score a 2-3-5.

82'- Leon Knight finishes it off with another goal against our tiny back line, and it's 4-1.

Luis Boa Morte ran us ragged all day, earning a 10 and MoM honors. No one rated more than a 7 for us, and there were quite a few 6's to be had.

Loss, 1-4, remain in 8th
Shots/on target: Posh 9/6, Cottagers 18/9
Poss: 51-49, Cottagers
A: 15,306

Our first loss in 17 league matches! What a great run, but we stay 6 points back of 6th, as Blackburn loses to keep us within shouting distance of the playoffs. Fulham moves up to 4th with their big win.

Lamine Traore picks up his 5th yellow in this one, and will miss our next match.

Butter · 03-25-2005, 07:58 AM

Champions League, First Knockout Round, Leg 1
Arsenal 0:0 Paris
Barcelona 1:2 Chelsea
Celtic 1:1 Ajax
Bayern Munich 0:1 Manchester Utd.
Olympiakos 0:1 Porto
Real Madrid 1:0 AC Milan
Sporting Lisbon 0:3 Inter Milan
Werder Bremen 1:1 Tottenham H.

Sagi Burton turns up with an injured ankle, so Traore is suspended, Burton and Dakinah out injured for our next match... our defense is getting thin. Luckily, Ivan Campo can play at the back, and has played well there this season. We travel to face Rotherham next. With Thomas Myhre's morale down again, and Kruse unhappy over his contract, we decide to start Kruse... but just barely. Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Campo, Plummer, Sarr
Mid: Navarro, Valois, Monkhouse, Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

I also note that 3 teams are after Paul Shaw, since he's out of contract at the end of the season. I also note that Les Ferdinand is unhappy with his reduced role, and he's "counting the days to retirement". Hey, it's not my fault you're too old. It's just my fault I re-signed you.

Feb. 24, Match 35 - From Millmoor, Rotherham
14-12-8, 9th pl., 54 pts.
@ Rotherham (9-6-19, 18th pl., 33 pts.)
Last meeting: Posh 1:0 Millers (9/30/06)
Fav: Posh, 5:4

Former Posh striker Callum Willock is in the lineup for Rotherham, and he's been tearing it up of late... 9 goals in 18 league appearances. I know he wasn't starting for them earlier in the year, but he is now. His technique is awful, but he'll beat you with his speed every time. Hopefully, I can count on his right foot to be errant today.

1'- We almost score off the kickoff, as it's played back to Pritchard, who hits Valois in full stride on the left, Valois crosses to Monkhouse, and a good save by Rotherham on the Monkhouse header.

19'- After a couple of errant Miller chances, we get a break, Valois to Hammond, who shoots from 25 yards... long distance not normally his strength, but this half-volley finds the net! 1-0, Posh on a poor play by the Miller keeper, who looked like he had a bead on it, but couldn't keep it out.

31'- Misplay by Kruse, he comes out to punch at a cross, but it ticks off his hands and rolls along the goalmouth... and out of play fortunately.

33'- We get a bust out, 5 on 4, but Hammond can't finish... in the ensuing scramble, Valois gets cleated and has to leave briefly due to injury. He comes back on moments later and nearly scores on a scorching volley from 25 yards that whizzes high.

45'- Callum Willock with a header on a lazy cross, but it's too high.

Play is fairly even right now, though our chances seemed a bit more dangerous than Rotherham's. No changes yet, but Valois' stamina is down a bit thanks to the knock he took in the first half.

61'- A free kick on the left of the box, and it hits the crossbar, bounces to a Miller striker, who is stoned by Kruse! Good goalkeeping there.

67'- Campo with a steal in midfield, to Navarro, played short to Monkhouse... Andy with a magnificent ball dropped behind the defense for Hammond, who receives it at 18 yards, then takes 2 dribbles and shoots hard to the upper left... it's in! Elvis' 2nd of the game, and we've got this one in hand! Callum Willock comes out for Rotherham, rating a 4. Ha-ha!

81'- Holmes, Myhre, and Devlin on for Hammond, Kruse, and Monkhouse. We insert Myhre to try and boost his morale a bit.

No more attacking from Rotherham, and we take the points. Elvis Hammond wins MoM with his 10 rating and 2 goals. Lots of folks with an 8, including the entire backline, Kruse, and Monkhouse. Valois picks up a 9.

Win, 0-2, up 2 spots to 7th
Shots/on target: Millers 12/3, Posh 13/6
Poss: 52-48, Millers
A: 9,048

We sit now just 4 points behind 6th place Blackburn Rovers, who have a +6 GD advantage on us. Rovers could only muster a 1-1 draw at home to Reading.

Butter · 03-25-2005, 07:59 AM

League Cup Final - From Wembley Stadium
Sunderland 1:2 Manchester United
-Wayne Rooney opened the scoring in the 4th minute for the Red Devils, but Sunderland replied less than 10 minutes later, off a beautifully taken set piece from midfielder Patrik Berger. Sadly for the Black Cats, the game was decided in the 33rd, when Rooney was tugged down in the box trying to get to a rebound, and former Fiorentina striker Fabrizio Miccoli converted the PK to give Man U. the win.

Campo, Hammond, and Valois are all picked in the Team of the Week.

Elvis Hammond is named Player of the Month of February. I finish second in Manager of the Month voting.

Myhre is now suffering from a slight training injury that will keep him out of our next match. Navarro also picked up a groin strain in training, and will be out for a couple of weeks. I decide to sit Shaw and Johansen, even though Devlin's been struggling on the right and I should probably stick Monkhouse there and play Shaw in the middle. Lineup:
GK: Kruse
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Campo, Sarr
Mid: Fox, Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse
Str: Holmes, Hammond

March 3, Match 36
Televised - From Jaguar Arena, Coventry
15-12-8, 7th pl., 57 pts.
@ Coventry (8-9-18, 19th pl., 33 pts.)
Last meeting: Posh 2:0 Sky Blues (10/21/06)
Fav: Sky Blues, Evens

Coventry start the match looking determined, but our defense is able to frustrate them by blocking their shots and keeping them out of the area.

17'- Sarr with a steal, plays a long through ball to Hammond... it gets tackled away from Elvis, but Monkhouse is there to attack the ball, and slot it home from 15 yards! Monkhouse with a good goal to put us ahead. Just his 3rd of the year.

23'- Valois gets free on the left, but he chunks his 8 yard shot right to the keeper.

31'- Nice cross and good finish by Coventry on a fairly standard offensive play from the left... Kruse couldn't do anything with that one, 1-1.

The half ends that way... Devlin is struggling again with a 5... he's had 2 5's in his last 3 outings. I sit him again here, and insert Shaw into the center of attack, with Monkhouse onto the right wing.

Coventry continue to pile on the pressure into the 2nd half.

62'- Another good cross and a fairly weak header finds its way in, 2-1, Coventry. Not a good display by Kruse here, and we find ourselves behind, a rarity of late.

70'- Johansen in for Fox, and we move Campo up to midfield and play a 3-4-3.

81'- Eriksson on for Pritchard, and it's the ol' 2-3-5 to try and equalize.

88'- A free kick from about 45 yards, and it's slid through... the Coventry attacker beats Kruse and taps it home for the win, 3-1.

Not a good effort here for TV. Kruse and Monkhouse manage 8's, but our defense was terrible pretty much throughout. No wonder Coventry were favored.

Loss, 3-1, drop 1 spot to 8th place
Shots/on target: Sky Blues 18/10, Posh 10/6
Poss: 58-42, Sky Blues
A: 15,985

We drop 6 points back of the playoff zone now, but still have several games to play against top opponents.

Butter · 03-25-2005, 08:00 AM

We sign a young French attacking midfielder, 17 year old Yannis Salibur who caught our eye last season, but was on a youth contract with lower level French squad Red Star 93... he was released and now joins us for cheap, $10k per season, including a 10% per year wage rise for 5 years... that's right, through 2012. He has impressive mental attributes, and is still developing physically... and his technique needs work. But in a couple of years, this kid could make us a lot of money.

These home games become absolutely critical, as of our 10 remaining games, 3 of them are road games against 3 of the top 5 clubs in the table, Charlton, Blackburn R., and Nott'm Forest. We host relegation struggler Plymouth Argyle today.
Lineup:
GK: Myhre
Def: Pritchard, Traore, Burton, Sarr
Mid: Campo, Valois, Monkhouse, Shaw
Str: Johansen, Hammond

March 6, Match 37
15-12-9, 8th pl., 57 pts.
v. Plymouth Argyle (6-12-18, 24th pl., 30 pts.)
Series: Posh lead 3-0-0
Fav: Posh, 4:5

Argyle do a very good job defending in numbers to keep themselves out of danger early.

36'- Hammond is free on the right... he attacks the keeper, gets inside the six, then cuts it back for Shaw, who gets under his shot. Goal kick.

43'- Campo with a volley off a Valois corner, saved well.

No changes for the second half... we've had the ball over 60%, but not converted. This is always a recipe for trouble.

52'- A weak Sarr clearance ends up on the foot of a midfielder, who crosses to the center, then a half-volley shot from 18 yards beats Myhre to the far post, 1-0 Argyle. DAMN!

63'- Holmes in for Traore, and we go to a 3-4-3.

80'- We bring on Eriksson for Pritchard, and go to a 2-3-5 for the final 10 minutes.

90'- Best chance comes in the second minute of stoppage, as Campo dives onto a Valois cross, but hits it wide.

And we lose. Our offense looked absolutely inept out there today. Bad touches aplenty, more than enough to go around. Myhre gets an 8, and that's our only rating above 7.

Loss, 0-1, drop 2 spots to 10th
Shots/on target: Posh 14/3, Argyle 2/1
Poss: 58-42, Posh
A: 9,764

Our playoff chances pretty much ended with this one. The only way we can manage it now is pretty much to take all the points from the 3 big upcoming road games, and as well as we've played, we're hitting a bad run of form right now, and I don't have much confidence to do anything but finish well, and in the top 10 and start looking toward next season. We're still just 6 points back of 6th, but now would have to leapfrog 4 teams to get back in the playoffs, all of whom have an easier schedule than we do.

03-14-2005, 12:34 PM	#7
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Our final 3 friendlies should really help prepare us for the season. I've screwed around enough with the lineup, and not much is going to change. Faulkner may get a bit better of a look at striker during the year, but we plan to play our starters for most of this next match, and all of our final match against Chelsea. Unfortunately, it looks like Traore is going to miss the entire pre-season, and Sarr doesn't arrive until just after our match with Chelsea, so I'm still thin at the defensive positions until they arrive. I'm somewhat concerned that Lukas Kruse is not quite up to Championship quality. So I make a few offers around to loan in a keeper for the year to take the pressure off. I don't want to HAVE to replace Kruse, but I want some options. I notice an aging Edwin van der Sar is on the market, and would probably be signable... but I pass for now. July 23, Friendly #4 v. AS Monaco (France - Ligue 1) Monaco is a club who has been contending for Champions League spots in recent years... so this is a top-flight European team we have at London Road. We start the same lineup as we did vs. Port Vale. My faith in Kruse is not reinforced as he is credited (debited?) with an own goal off an 8th minute Monaco header in the box. We fight back immediately, with Monkhouse earning a PK off a Ferdinand cross in the 11th minute, and Hammond converting it. And again, Kruse with a mistake off a 23rd minute corner, as the corner swings directly into the net, past a watching Lukas Kruse. 2-1, Monaco. Hammond is injured in the 33rd minute... it appears minor, but I put in Aaritalo just in case. Campo and Devlin are struggling at the break, but I leave them out there. I bring on the subs around minute 70, and they create 3 pretty decent chances, but Aaritalo misses 2 clean chances, being stoned on a breakaway once, and missing the top corner on a good cross another time. We finish with a loss, but performed reasonably well. Monaco seemed to have about half their first team on the field against us. Only Lukas Kruse finishes with a 6, everyone else who played rated a 7. Loss, 1-2 A: 15,165 We are able to convince former Southampton wunderkind Leandre Griffit to visit us on trial for 2 weeks to assess his skill. I tried to loan him out 2 years ago, but he snubbed us. I should do the same to the guy, but if he can help me, I'll sign him... as long as he doesn't go crazy with the wage request. Southampton hire German legend Jurgen Klinsmann to take over, as they fired Steve Wigley during the offseason. Southampton is slowly trying to build themselves into a consistent European contender, but faltered late last year under Wigley and fired him in the offseason. July 26, Friendly #5 @ Bangor (Northern Ireland) We play as many backups as we can, to rest the regulars to play pretty much the entire final pre-season match. Lineup: GK: Masalin Def: St. Ledger, Cave, Landgren, Carr DM: Fox Mid: Eriksson, Griffit AM: Martin Str: Johansen, Faulkner A fairly lackluster first half turned in. Everyone stays on, and in the 65th minute, Leandre Griffit with a good steal and pass ahead to Johansen, who fakes the keeper out and slots it home. Johansen strikes again in the 70th, after doing some nice work on a poor corner kick by Fox... Johansen poked it away from a defender, then slid it around the keeper and another defender before powering it home. We put it away in the 3rd minute of stoppage as Griffit with a terrific cross right to the head of Faulkner who has an easy finish. Leandre Griffit wants me to sign him, earning the man of the match and an 8 with his 2 assists. Masalin, Johansen, Cave, and Faulkner also pick up 8's. Don't want to get too excited about the backup squad here, as it was an inferior opponent. Win, 0-3 A: 1,352 After the match, I ask Griffit what he wants to sign with us. He wants $340k per year for 3 seasons. No freaking way, Leandre. I already have a crapload of salary tied up in the midfield. I try $180k, and up the signing bonus from $28k to $40k, also increasing the number of years on the contract to 4. He snubs that completely, and I bump up the salary a bit, and the signing bonus. And with the final friendly, comes our final lineup unveiling: GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Burton, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Monkhouse Str: Ferdinand, Hammond Lamine Traore and Sarr will probably squeeze in the lineup for Plummer and Burton once they arrive... and after that playing time will be based on performance, with everyone playing some matches early in the season. Fox and Navarro will have to split time as Campo's backup... and Campo hasn't exactly impressed in the preseason, so more playing time may be in the offing for the 2 of them. And Jim Johansen is pretty much a goal away from being named our third striker, as Aaritalo has struggled to find the net in the preseason. July 29, Friendly #6 v. Chelsea (English Premier League) The Blues are starting their first teamers against us, so this should be an excellent challenge. I don't alter our tactics prior to game time, preferring to see how we stack up with one of the Big 4. Doesn't take long, as in the 5th minute Adrian Mutu crosses to recently acquired Michael Ballack, who nods it in past Kruse. Mutu scores himself off a free kick in the 8th minute. Yuk. Plummer with a steal in the 17th right to the foot of Mutu, who scores his second. 3-0 after barely 15 minutes. Gudjohnsen scores in the 18th minute and makes it an embarrassing 4-0. Shaw comes in for Monkhouse, who is rating a 4. Masalin also on for Kruse, who is embarrassing himself... and me. Chelsea pretty much pulls all the way back and just try to hold the ball in midfield the rest of the way. We put in the subs around the 60th... why hurt anybody in this mess? An embarrassing mistake by Chelsea in the 70th, as Kofi Dakinah plays a long ball off a free kick from our own half... and it takes a hop off Lucio's foot and goes in. A goal directly off a 75 yard free kick... I'll take it. Monkhouse and Ferdinand both pick up 4's, and Kruse and several others rate 5's. A horrible performance all around. I suppose that'll teach me to try and play an attacking style against a Premiership foe. We held the ball less than 40% for the match. Loss, 1-4 A: 15,240 Not the good tune-up I was hoping for, really. Just a big whitewash. Hopefully it won't get the lads down too badly, as we've got a season to play. Leandre Griffit rejects our latest contract offer. I like the kid... so I make one more offer that would make him the 2nd highest paid player on the team at $240k per season. Sarr finally joins us... and he will be making $220k per year. Ouch. But he is a good looking player, so hopefully this outlay of cash I'm making will pay off in the table. Sadly, both our loan efforts for a keeper and the chance to sign van der Sar dry up, and we're stuck with Kruse and Masalin in net for the year. __________________ My listening habits

03-15-2005, 10:07 AM	#8
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	ENGLISH CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS FROM TOTALBET.COM Coventry have been made 7-4 favorites to gain promotion from the English Championship this season. The rest of the main contenders are priced at: Charlton, Blackburn - 2:1 Nott'm Forest - 5:2 Everton, Fulham - 3:1 Coming in at 40-1 it seems clear that the bookmakers have you tipped as an outside chance for promotion this campaign. Whether you make it or not will ultimately depend on how your side fares against the top teams in the division. Hmmm, that was unexpected. I thoroughly expected to be picked for demotion. Maybe the bookies like our roster, I don't know. We'll see if we can live up to it. Sarr arrives unfit and promptly injures his wrist in practice, which will keep him out a week. Good start there. The League Cup draw arrives, and we draw favorably, a home game to League 1 Watford. Our schedule starts out fairly easily, but then we hit almost all the league favorites right in a row in late September through October. So, if we have problems early, it's not likely that we'll be able to recover very quickly when we face the likes of Everton, Fulham, and Blackburn. We get to ease into the season a bit, drawing our first match on the road at Hull. Hull barely survived the drop to League One last year, but they dominated League One two years ago on their way to promotion, though we fared well against their defensive formation. This season, I'll be giving you my lineup and the opponent's, as there are more likely to be familiar names amongst them now. Aug. 5, Match 1 - from The Circle, Hull @ Hull (finished 21st in Champ. last season) Series: Even, 0-2-0 Fav: Tigers, 6:4 Lineups: Peterborough United GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Traore, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Monkhouse Str: Ferdinand, Hammond Subs: GK Masalin, DC Burton, Str Johansen, DM Navarro, AM Eriksson Hull City, 4-4-2 formation GK: Boaz Myhill Def: Wayne Quinn, Leon Cort, Marc Joseph, Ryan Taylor Mid: Stuart Elliott, Tom Beattie, Alan Quinn, Nick Barmby Str: Delroy Facey, Jason Euell 5'- Valois with a nice cross that's punched away right to Ivan Campo, who lets loose from 20 yards but it sails high. 7'- Valois with 2 30-yard attempts within a minute of each other, one was saved, the other just wide. 12'- Devlin with a steal in midfield, finds Ferdinand, who lays it into the path of Valois... Valois with several short dribbles is in on the keeper, but his shot is easily saved, tipped over the end line for a corner. 20'- Hull's first attacking move is a Facey cross to Barmby, but Plummer heads it away... they switch the play to the other side but Elliott's attempted cross is grabbed by Kruse. 30'- Facey with an angle at the right post... he passes to Euell, a great pass, but Kruse with a nice diving save to just tip Euell's shot around the bar. 39'- Euell with a 25 yard shot struck with power, but it's miles high. Kruse with the quick restart, great long ball down the center to Monkhouse... Monkhouse is behind the defense! The keeper charges him, but he gets him to ground early, then taps it around him for our first Championship goal! Monkhouse starting again in great form, with our first goal of the year. 43'- Devlin with a terrific corner kick to an advancing Traore, who hits it on the half volley just wide. 45'- Two scary chances for Hull late, Cort with a good corner to Wayne Quinn's head, but Kruse with a spectacular acrobatic save to keep it out... then about a half minute later, Euell is onside and takes a good shot, but Kruse tips it and it rolls along the goal line... all the way across... and Facey is there for the tap in but he manages to hit it into the side netting somehow. WHEW! Valois the only player who is rating less than a 7, with a 6 at the half. No changes for now. 52'- Facey is played on by Elliott... Facey all the way down the left past the challenge of Traore, then he crosses into the six for Euell, who climbs above Pritchard and heads it in. 1-1. Not a good defensive play. This is Euell's debut for Hull after signing in the offseason from Charlton Athletic. 65'- Elliott with a pass to Alan Quinn, who has space at 12 yards, but mis-hits his shot way wide. 72'- Johansen on for a tiring Ferdinand. 82'- Dakinah with a great ball to Hammond, who beats the keeper and scores from a tight angle... but the flag was up when the pass was made. Rats. 90'+- At the death, Traore with a great ball for Devlin, who runs it down, then crosses for Johansen, but Myhill is there to take charge of the cross. We end drawn, not a bad result for our first league road game. We actually dominated from a chances standpoint, but Hull dominated ball possession, keeping it in our defensive third for 30% of the match. Chris Plummer with a surprise MoM honor, rating a 9 in central defense. He won all 12 headers attempted, 9 of them key. He also won 6/7 tackles and made 6 interceptions. Dakinah, Pritchard, and Monkhouse picked up 8's, while Valois underwhelmed with a 6. Draw, 1-1, start in 15th Shots/on target: Tigers 10/4, Posh 17/10 Poss: 57-43, Tigers A: 22,711 Sadly, Elvis Hammond twisted his ankle early in this game... and I didn't sub for him. He is due to be out for 2 weeks. __________________ My listening habits

03-15-2005, 10:44 AM	#9
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Community Shield, from Wembley Arsenal 1:1 Chelsea -Joe Cole evened this match at 1 at the stroke of halftime, and Rob Styles sent off 2 men in the 2nd half to back both teams into a bunker. Arsenal ends up winning 5-4 on PK's as Patrick Vieira converted the decisive PK. Our next match is a home lockup with Derby County. We start many of the 2nd team, to preserve our legs as much as possible. Derek Holmes gets a pity start today to see if he can help us. Aug. 8, Match 2 - from London Road, Peterborough 0-1-0, 15th pl., 1 pt. v. Derby County (1-0-0, 5th pl., 3 pts. - beat Millwall 2-0) Series: First meeting in at least 3 years Fav: Rams, 6:4 Lineups: Peterborough Utd. GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Burton, Plummer, Dakinah DM: Navarro Mid: Eriksson, Martin AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Holmes Derby County, standard 3-5-2 formation GK: Lee Grant Def: Gerry Taggart, Pablo Mills, Simon Walton Mid: Morten Bisgaard, Nathan Doyle, Adam Bolder, Tom Huddlestone, Marco Reich Str: Tommy Smith, Grzegorz Rasiak Rasiak scored both goals in Derby's win over Millwall, and 25 last season. Huddlestone, Doyle, and Walton are all under 20 years old and starting in their first season for the Rams. 2'- Rasiak with a 30 yard strike off a pass from Smith, and Kruse gets a finger to it, but can't keep it out. Not a good start, 1-0 Rams. Derby just seem to be playing at a different speed than us. 12'- Johansen is free down the left, and draws the keeper out... he tries to cross to Derek Holmes, but the ball is tipped, and Holmes can't take the volley cleanly... and the chance is stopped. 20'- Bisgaard with a 25 yard free kick that skips off the top of the bar and out. 27'- Martin is free, but help arrives quickly, and his attempted cross is grabbed by Grant. 30'- Tobias Eriksson is forced to leave thanks to a Marco Reich challenge. Monkhouse comes on. Derby dominate the first half, and we created just the one off target shot all half. Holmes and Johansen don't seem to be the problem... I'm not sure what the problem is. No changes yet for half 2. 47'- Rasiak and Bisgaard both miss good chances inside the box. 60'- Plummer misplays a goal kick into a breakaway for Bolder, but he misses his shot high. 64'- Martin with a cross for Plummer, who heads it well over. Aaritalo on for Burton, and we switch to a 3-4-3... we up the tempo and send long balls to Aaritalo. 73'- Substitute midfielder Ben Wilkinson receives a nice pass from Huddlestone, and pretty much walks in on the keeper... he fires top corner and buries it. 2-0. Derby pretty much pack it in the rest of the way and take the points. Kruse with particularly poor performance today, rating a 5. But I can't say our offense helped, creating virtually no chances. Maybe Derby will be this hot all year, and I won't feel so bad about this one. Or maybe I've learned a lesson about substitution patterns and fresh legs for the season. Loss, 0-2, drop to 20th Shots/on target: Posh 4/1, Derby 17/8 Poss: 51-49, Rams A: 11,149 Eriksson has strained a groin (his own, thankfully), and will be out 2 weeks. __________________ My listening habits

03-15-2005, 11:28 AM	#10
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	We sign a young midfielder thanks to a scouting trip... 17 year old Jonas Gustavsson from Sweden, who can play all 3 midfield positions signs for just $6k per year for 4 seasons. He has some good physical attributes, but is spotty with the technique. He goes immediately to the reserves. Paul Devlin goes out with a chest injury for a few days as our bad luck continues. The march of death through the Championship continues as we travel to first place Reading. No games are a cinch at this level, as I'm quickly finding out. Aug. 12, Match 3 - From Madejski Stadium, Reading 0-1-1, 20th pl., 1 pt. @ Reading (2-0-0, 1st pl., 6 pts.) Series: First meeting Fav: Royals, 5:4 Lineups: Peterborough GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Traore, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Monkhouse AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Ferdinand Reading, attacking 4-4-2 GK: Marcus Hahnemann Def: Nicky Shorey, Peter Castle, Curtis Osano, Graeme Murty Mid: Bobby Convey, Steve Sidwell, Andy Hughes, Glen Little Str: Dave Kitson, Danny Dichio The Royals with 2 US players in Hahnemann and Convey. Hahnemann had a shaky season in '04-'05, but settled down a bit last year, and has 2 shutouts so far this year. 1'- Valois heads a goal kick all the way forward to Johansen, who is free on Hahnemann. Johansen's tough angle shot is deflected out for a corner, though. 4'- Kruse with a good grab of a cross, and he outlets it to Ferdinand, who nods it to Monkhouse... Andy with a centering pass to Johansen, who slips a ball through to Shaw... Shaw and the keeper on a 50-50 ball, and Paul Shaw wins it, tucking it into the corner! 1-0, Posh! Not much happens for a while, but Reading earn 2 cards trying to hold Ferdinand and Shaw back. 33'- Traore with a free kick in the center circle. He sends one ahead to Ferdinand at the top of the box... 2 defenders and the keeper attempt to converge, but Ferdinand flicks it on with his head to Johansen, who is played onside by a defender on the right, and has an open goal to shoot at, and he converts! 2-0, Posh! What a play by Ferdinand and Johansen! 41'- Kitson to Convey, who has all sorts of space... Bobby Convey with a good pass to Dichio, who dives onto it and heads it in past Kruse. 2-1. Reading with a couple of more nice crosses to Dichio, who gets his head to them both but puts them over. The Royals are pressing hard for the equalizer already. No changes to the squad for half 2. 61'- Convey with a pacey cross to Sidwell, who is able to gather it and score from 8 yards. CRAP! 2-2. Kruse is having another poor game. 65'- Convey receives a short corner, then puts a ball into the six that Kitson heads in. 3-2, Reading. 82'- Navarro on for Plummer, Aaritalo for Ferdinand. Shaw moves up front, and we go to a 3-4-3 again, with Campo moving up to midfield. 88'- Traore clears a Convey cross, but right to sub Dean Morgan, who strikes it past Kruse to stick the dagger in a bit further. 4-2. Well, we had a great first 35 minutes, and it all went to hell shortly thereafter. Another crap game from our defense, and Kruse in particular. He picks up a 5, and Chris Plummer also picks up a 5. I guess it's back to defensive tactics on the road for a while after this debacle. Loss, 4-2, drop to 21st Shots/on target: Royals 17/5, Posh 9/6 Poss: 54-46, Royals A: 19,781 We may have to consider a slight tactics adjustment if things don't improve, especially on the road. We only yielded one goal to Hull, but they typically play a defensive style anyway, so that doesn't move me. A goalkeeper signing is again also a possibility to stop the bleeding if Kruse doesn't improve. __________________ My listening habits

03-16-2005, 07:17 AM	#11
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Not a great start for us, 2 points in 4 games. I'm confident of our attack, though... Johansen has played well. Hammond has been injured the last 2 matches, and Shaw has been great in the center. Seems as if our attacking midfielder is more well-positioned to pick up goals than the strikers are. Shaw and Monkhouse have 3 of our 4 goals, while Johansen has the other. Next up, a trip to Wigan. Hammond, Eriksson, and Valois still aren't fit, but Sarr moves into the sub rotation, and will probably be fit enough to start our next match. We back our tactics down to slightly defensive, and counter-attacking, and using Aaritalo as a target man. Aug. 19, Match 5 - From JJB Stadium, Wigan 0-2-2, 21st pl., 2 pts. @ Wigan Athletic (2-1-1, 9th pl., 7 pts.) Series: First meeting Fav: Latics, 5:4 ---------- Lineups: Peterborough Utd. GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Traore, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Monkhouse, Devlin AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Aaritalo Wigan Athletic, 4-4-2 standard GK: John Filan Def: Leighton Baines, Emerson Thome, David Marek Rozehnal, David Wright Mid: Lee McCulloch, Stephen Clemence, Liam Miller, Gary Teale Str: David Graham, Chris Reski 18 year old Chris Reski gets his first start up front, as regular striker Jason Roberts is out injured. ---------- A fairly plodding game after a half hour, with no clear chances, then: 31'- Kruse receives a back pass and screws around with it... he is dispossessed by Reski, who shoots at an open net from 15 yards, and manages to miss. Wow. A tentative first half both ways, with only 1 on target shot requiring a save, and that was a 30 yarder that Kruse had no problem with. 4 chances for the Latics, 3 for us. No changes for the 2nd half. 66'- Aaritalo is played onside by Johansen... but his shot is stoned by Filan. 71'- Navarro in for Shaw, Sarr in for Pritchard... Traore moves to left fullback. 84'- Sarr with a good spot of Navarro... Navarro unmarked shoots from 20 yards... off the crossbar and into Filan's arms! The final whistle goes... pretty good performance by the lads. We easily could've won this one 1-0. But a road point is big. Wigan keeper John Filan with the MoM. Aaritalo, Campo, Traore, and Pritchard pick up 8's for us. Draw, 0-0, up 1 spot to 20th Shots/on target: Latics 8/1, Posh 10/4 Poss: 51-49, Wigan A: 10,107 No injuries in the post-game for once! Nee-ha! __________________ My listening habits

03-11-2005, 01:48 PM	#2
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Offseason, June 2006 We sign another young Scandinavian goalkeeper, this time it's 20 year old Peter Karlsson with Swedish side Norrkoping. He has masterful reflexes, but still needs some technical work... but will join us for just $8k over 4 seasons, so you can't beat that. Lamine Traore, the Burkinabe (had to look that up) central defender currently toiling for Belgian side Anderlecht gets his work permit! He'll join us on July 1. He is a terrific player and I'm quite excited to have him coming to the squad. He joins us for $170k, plus a 15% wage rise each year for the next 4 seasons. He will be out of training until mid-July due to a broken shoulder suffered in late May. We also get notice that the golden child of American soccer, Freddy Adu, has been released from his DC United contract. Drool I imagine there will be several suitors for his services, but we hope to be the first ones in with our $280k per season contract offer. He rejects that, and we up it to our maximum, $320k with a $70k signing bonus. Inter and Valencia quickly follow us into the bidding, and he eventually signs with Inter for just $56k per year, but his value is nearly $10 million. I get a new notice I've never seen before: Eoin Jess has been awarded the Gold FA Coaching badge, the attacking midfielder has stated to you that he hopes he can make use of his qualifications in the near future. Then, the same day: PETERBOROUGH'S JESS SETS DATE FOR RETIREMENT ...Eoin Jess has announced his retirement at the end of the season. He has struggled to break into the first team of late, and feels that it is probably time he called it a day. I get the same notice for Dean Edward Martin. Is that the end of next season... or now? I don't know. A check of their "future plans" notes that both mean on June 27, 2007. I offer Jess a coach's contract for next season, with an additional $28k attached to it. Andy Legg, Steve Yates, and reserve midfielder David Farrell also set a June, '07 retirement date a few days later. All of whom I wasn't re-signing anyway, so they might be retiring earlier than they think. Our main defensive midfielder from last season, Alexis Nicolas, is transferred from Chelsea to League One Blackpool for over $1M. So much for loaning him in again. Preston North End offer me $900k for Andy Monkhouse. Now he has a minimum fee release clause of $1.7 million. So, I split the difference and ask for $1.35 million... + 10% of his next sale. The year officially flips (it's a game thing... sometime in mid-June, the processing takes extra long and you know then that the cut-off for the next game year is starting, where everyone's stats get moved to "last year", and that sort of thing). Jean-Louis Valois has been voted Peterborough's Player of the Year by supporters. -We sold last year's Fans' Player of the Year, Callum Willock, pretty shortly into last season. Good move there. Peterborough are given $1.1 million for Championship TV rights for the forthcoming season. -More than I expected. Sadly, the board decide not to give me any of that money for the transfer budget, so I still only have $70k despite our budget surplus jumping to over $1.6 million, and our wage budget now being $340k under budget. At some point, also, the board have cut me from "delighted" in their eyes, to merely "very pleased". Both the club and the fans expect us to "battle bravely against relegation" this year. Les Ferdinand also announces his retirement from the game, and he has also earned certification as a coach. Preston offer us the $1.35 million, but remove the 10% clause and allow no more negotiation. I decide that I can hold out for the full $1.7 million if someone wants him badly enough, so I decline. Dean Marney and Phillippe Senderos, of Spurs and Arsenal respectively, decline loan offers to play for us. __________________ My listening habits

03-11-2005, 01:49 PM	#3
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	World Cup 2006 recap Group Play Group A Portugal 7, Jamaica 3, South Korea 2, Ireland 2 Group B Holland 4, Spain 4, Morocco 4, South Africa 4 Group C Italy 7, France 5, Turkey 3, Canada 1 Group D Argentina 9, Ecuador 6, Belgium 1, Slovakia 1 Group E Germany 7, England 5, Croatia 4, Uzbekistan 0 Group F Czech Rep. 6, Mexico 4, Chile 4, Cote d'Ivoire 3 Group G USA 9, Jordan 4, Denmark 4, Senegal 0 Group H Brazil 5, Saudi Arabia 4, Angola 4, Paraguay 2 Second Round Portugal 0:1 Spain Holland 3:1 Jamaica Argentina 1:0 France Italy 2:0 Ecuador, in extra time Czech Republic 2:0 England Germany 2:1 Mexico Jordan 0:2 Brazil Saudi Arabia 2:1 USA, in extra time Quarterfinals Holland 1:1 Italy, Holland win 4-2 on PK's Spain 2:1 Argentina Czech Republic 2:0 Saudi Arabia, in extra time Germany 0:1 Brazil Semifinals Spain 0:0 Czech Republic, Spain win 4-3 on PK's Holland 0:2 Brazil Third Place Game Czech Republic 1:0 Holland Final, from Olympiastadion, Berlin Spain 1:1 Brazil -A taut defensive game climaxed the 2006 World Cup. This Cup was full of surprises, including the advance of Jordan, Jamaica, and Saudi Arabia to the knockout stages, not to mention KSA's upset of the US in round 2, winning on a goal with just 1 minute of extra time to play. In this match, Inter's fabulous striker Adriano beat Real Madrid's Iker Casillas to the near post in the 30th minute with a terrific strike that looked like it might hold up. But in the 2nd half's 6th minute, Arsenal's Jose Antonio Reyes was upended on a set piece and the penalty was given. Deportivo's Albert Luque struck the ball well and in to even the match at 1. The rest of the match was played on pins and needles, neither side wanting to give an inch. The extra 30 minutes decided nothing, so the match went to penalties. When the first 5 penalties ended even at 3, we needed to go to the 7th PK before Emerson converted the sudden death goal to give Brazil yet another World Cup title. Unsurprisingly, Germany head man Jurgen Klinsmann was sacked after Germany's poor showing on their home field here. __________________ My listening habits Last edited by Butter : 03-11-2005 at 01:49 PM.

03-11-2005, 01:50 PM	#4
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	And thus begins the signing: -First signing of July is 19 year old forward Alexis Kubilskis, a Belgian signed on a free transfer from Nott'm Forest. He will take $8k per year to play for our reserves for a year or 2. He is signed to a 3 year deal. Mostly signed for a potential future transfer fee. -Next, we pick up 22 year old defensive midfielder David Fox. We signed Fox on a Bosman last year, but it turned out we were due to pay Man U $1.5 million for the transfer for some reason. So we dropped the bid and just waited for his contract to expire. Fox still has some technique to learn, but is terrific mentally and physically. He signs for $100k per season, plus a 5% wage rise per year, until 2010. -Our third signing is a huge one, 32 year old defender/defensive midfielder Ivan Campo signs with us. He comes over from Bolton where he made $1 million last year. He'll pick up a measly $360k for the next 2 years for us. PETERBOROUGH FANS WELCOME IVAN CAMPO SIGNING ...The 32 year old midfielder is already proving a big favorite with the club's supporters and many young fans are already queueing up to have Ivan Campo's name printed on the back of their replica shirts. That about does it, not as many signings as last year, but then we don't need quite as much. I would kind of like to sign another striker, but I'm not going to overpay for one. __________________ My listening habits

03-11-2005, 08:53 PM	#5
SirFozzie Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: The State of Insanity	ahhhh.. yer still Posh Scum __________________ Check out Foz's New Video Game Site, An 8-bit Mind in an 8GB world! http://an8bitmind.com

03-14-2005, 12:33 PM	#6
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Our friendly list is finalized, and looks like this: @ St. Mirren (SCO) v. Man Utd. Reserves @ Port Vale (L2) v. Monaco (FRA) @ Bangor (NIR) v. Chelsea (EPL) And with that, our first friendly is upon us. We plan to stick with the same formation as last year, a 4-4-2 diamond, with 2 wingers pressing far forward in attack, an attacking midfielder supporting the strikers, and a defensive midfielder supporting the defense, but pushing ahead when needed. Our 2 central defenders have backward arrows to play deep. We use an attacking mentality, mixed passing that leans toward the short side, and a slow tempo. Our defensive line plays a bit further up than normal, and our entire team plays fairly narrowly down the field, using wing runs only when they present themselves. Our lineups will switch around a lot in the preseason, but here's our lineup in this one: GK: Masalin Def (Left to Right): Pritchard, Plummer, Cave, Dakinah DM: Navarro Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Monkhouse Str: Aaritalo, Johansen July 10, Friendly #1 @ St. Mirren (Scottish Premier League) We drew with St. Mirren 1-1 2 years ago in the preseason. Valois takes a knock in the 10th minute, and comes off for Kubilskis. The match was fairly even in the first 15 minutes, but we dominated the final half hour of the first half, but couldn't dent the scoresheet. Both Johansen and Kubilskis were particularly good, Johansen with at least 3 narrow misses. Subs on in the 2nd half. Paul Shaw plays a through ball to Derek Holmes 4' into the 2nd half, and Holmes slots it home. Derek making the most of his time in the lineup. Shaw scores on a 20 yard strike from Tobias Eriksson in the 65th to make it 2-0. In the 79th, Jon Masalin with maybe the most impressive series of stops I've seen from any of our keepers in 2+ years, stopping 3 powerful St. Mirren shots within 10 seconds of each other, and grabbing another cross to end the danger. Jon Masalin with a well-deserved MoM award, rates a 9. Pritchard and Eriksson pick up 8's, and everyone else gets a 7 in a good effort. We outshot St. Mirren 19-13, and outpossessed them 53-47. Win, 0-2 A: 2,219 Paul Shaw picks up a late knock, a calf strain that will sideline him for 2 weeks. Valois' injury is not serious, thank goodness. We get notice of our first TV game that I'm aware of, as our late-September league tussle against Fulham at Craven Cottage is moved to Sunday afternoon for TV. July 16, Friendly #2 v. Man Utd. Reserves Lineup: GK: Kruse Def: Cave, Landgren, Burton, Carr DM: Campo Mid: Eriksson, Martin AM: Jess Str: Johansen, Holmes We make a good defensive play in the 22nd minute that Sagi Burton heads into our own net. Martin had stolen it cleanly and probably played it into a bad place, but I can't honestly say the own goal helped matters. Cave yields a penalty in defense in the 35th minute, but Kruse saves it. Subs in at the half, as our offense was pretty horrible in the first half, yielding one clean chance that Johansen headed over the bar. In the 50th, a good counter creates a goal, as reserve striker James Faulkner takes the pass from Aaritalo and converts the free chance with a 15 yard strike over the keeper's hands. In the 67th, Kubilskis with a good steal, to Devlin, who finds Faulkner who converts again. We yield another penalty in the 70th, off a bad tackle from Charlie Daniels (a reserve midfielder). Man U with a nice header in in the 80th minute, but Faulkner appears to pick up a hat trick in the 85th, but it's called back as he was offside. That's how it ends. Man U had more chances than us, but an own goal and a PK were 2 of their 3 goals, so we certainly could've won this one. Faulkner was particularly impressive, and he'll get a better look during the preseason now. Faulkner had our only 8, and most others had a 7 rating. Loss, 2-3 A: 395 DMC David Fox picked up a thigh strain late in this one, and will miss about a week of training. July 19, Friendly #3 @ Port Vale (League 2) Lineup: GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Plummer, Burton, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Monkhouse Str: Ferdinand, Hammond We don't play well in this one. Port Vale score right before the interval to lead 1-0. In the 80th Jess scores an odd goal to make it 1-1, but Vale with a quality cross and header in in the 89th to win it. No one really distinguished themselves in this one. Azinovic picks up our only 8 as the sub keeper. Loss, 2-1 A: 7,391 __________________ My listening habits

03-16-2005, 08:18 AM	#12
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	MK Dons offer us $6k and 40% of the next sale of Tom Penford... a disgruntled reserve midfielder who was a prominent player for us 2 years ago. His salary is $100k, way too much for a reserve, so we accept, despite the fact that we paid $10k for him. Penford agrees to a contract with MK of League Two, and we say goodbye. Campo is selected in the Team of the Week, our first such honor. A huge blow as Andy Monkhouse is due to be out 2 months with a torn groin muscle. As if this season weren't already going badly enough. Ugh. Monkhouse is one of our top players, and our most versatile. He'll be missed. Next up, we get a breather from league play with our first round League Cup match against Watford. Our scout mentions that Watford's attack is weak. We'll see. Goalkeeper Thomas Myhre agrees to a contract with us... Kruse hasn't been bad, but he is averaging a 6.2 through our 5 league matches, not exactly awe-inspiring. Myhre out-rates him in every keeper category, as well as most mental and physical ones. He is a bit expensive, but if he can keep out 10 more goals than Kruse this year, he'll be worth it. Myhre is signed for just 2 years, as he is 32 years old, but will pull down $180k per year and will likely become our starter in goal. Aug. 23, League Cup First Round v. Watford (13th in League One) Series: Posh lead 2-0-0 Fav: Posh, Evens ---------- Lineups: Peterborough United GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Burton DM: Navarro Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Hammond Watford, 4-1-2-1-2 direct GK: Andy Marshall Def: John Hayward, Dom Blizzard, Andy Todd, Cameron Mawer Mid: Brynjar Gunnarsson, Anthony McNamee, Paul Martin, George James Str: Billy Paynter, Bruce Dyer We made a brief run at Blizzard during the Bosman period last year, but he ended up re-signing with Watford. Probably just as well, as he's never really performed for the Hornets. ---------- 1'- Devlin with a chance off a free kick, but his 15 yard shot is well high. 3'- Paynter with a header over the bar. 11'- Dyer gets a pass from Paynter in the middle, but Burton tackles it away... Watford keep possession, then Paynter is open off a pass from Dyer, and he strikes it home inside the post from 12 yards. Not good defense on that one, Paynter was unmarked. But it was a good strike, ricocheting off the inside of the post and going in. 1-0, Hornets. 25'- Valois is sent through by Pritchard, but his shot is weak and saved easily. 43'- Johansen has a good chance, but has it tackled away... right to Valois who sends it wide of the target. We managed a few chances in the half, but nothing anywhere remotely close to a goal. We keep the same players on for half 2. 59'- McNamee with a cross, and Dyer challenges Kruse, but Lukas handles it well. 71'- McNamee again to Dyer inside the six, and this time Kruse has to save it, and does very well to tip it over for a corner. Campo on for a limping Devlin, Navarro moves up to midfield as we turn up the attack to try and grab the equalizer. 84'- Finally, a chance, as Valois is free down the left... totally unmarked after a nod on from Johansen... his cross to Hammond is pinpoint, and the finish is clinical! 1-1! 89'- Blizzard with a shot from 20 yards... hits the crossbar! It rolls back toward Bruce Dyer... Pritchard tries to tackle it away, but the referee points at the spot! Pritchard with a poor challenge there, and the penalty is given. Sarr with a yellow for dissent in the aftermath, and Pritchard lucky not to get sent off as he kicks a guy while waiting for the PK to get set up. Substitute striker Heidar Helguson to take it... and he gets his foot way under it and sends it well over! We're going to extra time! Fox in for a tiring Navarro in extra time. 92'- Campo to Hammond, who backheels it to Fox... lovely pass and Fox is free... Fox slots it to the right of the keeper, and it's in! David Fox with the goal in the 2nd minute of extra time to give us the lead! 100'- Todd steals the corner kick and shoots it long to Dyer... Dyer is 1-v-4, but persists, and beats Pritchard... Dyer is into the box... then Watford with a great series of passes in and around the box, ending up on the foot of the man who started it, Andy Todd... Todd shoots from 18 yards and it's in! Great football from Watford to equalize in extra time. Les Ferdinand on for Traore, and we go to a 3 man back to try and nab the winner. 109'- Johansen on the edge of the area, sends it across for Fox, who is unmarked near the back post... David Fox with the header but it's just wide! Great chance there. 114'- Helguson is wide open and walks in on Kruse, but sends his shot too high. We're going to PK's! What a game this has been. Ferdinand steps up for us first... and it's saved... Todd scores easily for Watford to give them a 1-0 lead. Johansen hits the post and misses! Luckily, sub Lloyd Doyley misses the target completely for Watford. Hammond steps up... and scores! Helguson for Watford... and he puts it into orbit! 1-1! Sagi Burton goes fourth... and he makes no mistake, right into the upper corner! Gunnarsson steps up for the Hornets... and he's not close! Watford not even giving themselves a chance, and we lead 2-1 going into the final round. David Fox can end it for us.... and he does! David Fox with a goal in extra time, and now the clinching PK in an impressive performance for the Posh! Sarr, Valois, and Hammond nab 8's, as Andy Todd nabs the MoM for Watford. But we're moving on. Win, 2-2 (3-2 on PK's), move on to round 2 Shots/on target: Posh 9/2, Hornets 19/6 Poss: 53-47, Hornets A: 4,110 We win $36,000 for our victory, which is nice, because we just blew a chunk of change on that Myhre signing. __________________ My listening habits

03-16-2005, 09:09 AM	#13
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	The bad part about that victory was going to extra time, and we have a game with just 2 days rest in-between. European Super Cup - From Stade Louis II, Monaco Tottenham 3:1 Arsenal -This meeting of the winners of the Champions League and Euro Cup ends surprisingly, as Spurs make short work of the Gunners. Henry earns a penalty in the opening minutes and converts, but from there it's all Jermain Defoe. Defoe scores twice in the next 40 minutes, and Robbie Keane puts it away with a breakaway goal in the 82nd to give Spurs the surprising victory. I get a report on our next opponent, Burnley, and it mentions that their defense is slow. I don't think I've ever seen that before. Hopefully that will work to our advantage. My strikers aren't particularly fast, but Valois is good down the wing... which is our normal mode of attack anyway. The Second Round draw of the League Cup is made, and we get to travel to Manchester City. Swell. Looking over our fixture list, it's been picked as a featured TV game for the Cup as well, so it'll be our first TV match in quite some time... and it's right before our trip to Fulham, which is also a TV matchup. Aug. 26, Match 6 0-3-2, 20th pl., 3 pts. v. Burnley (1-2-2, 14th pl., 5 pts.) Last meeting: Posh 3:1 Burnley ('04-'05 FA Cup Third Round) Fav: Posh, 6:4 ---------- Lineups: Peterborough Utd. GK: Myhre Def: Plummer, Traore, Campo, Dakinah DM: Fox Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Martin Str: Ferdinand, Aaritalo Burnley, attacking 4-4-2 GK: Danny Coyne Def: Zak Whitbread, Neil Guthrie, John McGreal, Michael Duff Mid: Matt O'Neill, Chris McCann, Micah Hyde, Aaron Lennon Str: Ian Moore, Robbie Blake -Valois is a former Claret regular who came over to us at the beginning of last season. Robbie Blake already with 4 league goals for Burnley, and yes, Zak Whitbread is an American playing in England. ---------- 4'- Valois with a nice pass to Ferdinand, who shoots first time from 12 yards, but right at Coyne. Burnley pretty well dominate the remainder of the half, with Blake firing in a few chances at Myhre, but usually without much panic caused. We stick with things for the second half, and hope to make a breakthrough of some kind here. 48'- Valois with a shot from 15 yards that strikes the crossbar... and Whitbread kicks it out for a corner. 57'- Ian Moore is onside down the right... he fires a nice shot across the goalmouth, but it just goes out. 62'- Blake with a cross, Hyde tries to head it in, but it hits the crossbar and Traore clears it away. Sarr in for a tiring Fox, and Campo moves up to defensive midfield. Eriksson on for Martin. 74'- Ferdinand is exhausted, Johansen on for him. 77'- Duff with a free kick at around 45 yards. He sends it into the box for Blake... Dakinah sticks a toe in, but Blake goes around him, then blasts a point blank shot past Myhre, who probably should've come out for the ball a tad sooner. 1-0, Clarets. 83'- McGreal leaves injured for Burnley, and they've used their 3 subs, so we're a man up for the final 10 minutes or so. We try desperately to up the attack, moving Dakinah to midfield, pushing he and Campo forward... nothing really works. Johansen is dispossessed in the box in the 93rd to end our last push. Myhre and Valois earn our only 8's, but it is the Burnley keeper who wins the man of the match. 6 matches without a win now, and it's getting kinda depressing. Loss, 0-1, down 1 spot to 21st Shots/on target: Posh 8/6, Clarets 14/6 Poss: 50-50 A: 8,622 We're trying desperately to sign a top notch striker now, but it's not working for us. We just can't offer the kind of salary anyone is looking for, as the board is allowing a maximum of $340k per year for anyone, and usually a half-million dollar offer is a minimum for a top flight goal scorer. I'll keep trying. __________________ My listening habits

03-17-2005, 09:01 AM	#14
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	"We will beat Peterborough," SAYS MOLBY Sheffield United manager Jan Molby has added fuel to the fire in the build-up to their relegation battle on Tuesday by telling Peterborough manager Butter that his Sheffield United team are very confident of beating his side. I respond with: BUTTER DOUBTS MOLBY'S ABILITY TO SAVE SHEFF UTD After reading Jan Molby's comments that Sheff Utd. are confident of beating Peterborough in their forthcoming clash, Butter reacted angrily. At a press conference this afternoon, the Peterborough boss announced that he does not feel Jan Molby is capable of saving Sheffield United from relegation. Traore and Devlin both liked my comments regarding Sheffield United. The other players didn't seem to care much about the whole thing. Sheffield's roster is a mess though... 3 players are unsure whether they can avoid the drop, 3 of them are determined to prove me wrong, and still another thinks they can win most games without much effort. Interesting. Myhre and Traore are called up to their respective international teams in a week or so. We'll see what happens at Sheffield. I like doing the lineup summaries for the other team, but it's just taking me too long, so I'm stopping them now. We'll just go back to giving you the Posh lineup. GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Hammond Aug. 29, Match 7 - from Bramall Lane, Sheffield 0-3-3, 21st pl., 3 pts. @ Sheffield United (4-0-2, 7th pl., 12 pts.) Series: Even, 1-0-1 Fav: Blades, 5:4 6'- Bad start, as Ivan Campo is called for a penalty for barging over a player who was trying to reach a cross. FUCK! Jack Lester, a Blade striker steps up to take it... Myhre saves it! A rebound is shot, but hits the defense... then is headed back goalward, but strikes the crossbar and is cleared... sort of... Sarr is called for a foul just outside the box. The wall deflects the 18 yard, 1 inch free kick out for a corner. What a defensive series to keep the sheet clean! We spend a good period attacking, but several shots are off target, including a close in header from Shaw off a Valois cross in the 26th. 35'- Sarr with the ball at around 20 yards, he has a go... it deflects off a leg, hits the post and rolls across the goal line... and is cleared. The teams are teasing their supporters today! It remains 0-0. This match is pretty even as we head in for the break. Devlin and Valois are getting tired. But we can't take them out... hopefully we can dent the scoresheet after halftime. 46'- Lester with an easy chance against Myhre, but he misses the target. 48'- Shaw wins a ball in midfield, then finds Johansen unmarked at 15 yards... he shoots.... high! Damn! 71'- Lester has a run down the left... he beats the challenge of Sarr, then skips over Myhre and taps it in. 1-0, Blades. Dammit, we just have no luck at all! Not a good play, but we can't put together any good plays lately. Aaritalo in for Pritchard, and Fox in for a tiring Devlin... we move to a 3-4-3, and push Campo up to midfield. It doesn't matter. We can't score, yet again. Dakinah and Valois pick up our only 8's. Loss, 1-0, down 1 spot to 22nd Shots/on target: Blades 12/4, Posh 9/3 Poss: 57-43, Blades A: 27,200 Sheffield moves up to 4th, while we drop into the relegation zone, one of just 3 teams still without a victory. __________________ My listening habits

03-17-2005, 09:02 AM	#15
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Devlin suffers a strained wrist in training, and will be out about a week. We have lots of time before our next match, so that's ok. We sign another young Swedish player, this time it's striker Fredrik Holster. Holster is just 18, and not too far off from being a good player. We sign him for $8k per season for 4 years, and stick him in the reserves. What a rough month that was... the only win we managed was in penalty kicks against a team from the next lowest league. Hopefully, we can pick it up in September. Our attack must improve... somehow. The board is still very pleased with me, but that could change in a hurry if we don't get out of the relegation zone. Paul Shaw picks up the third best goal of the month for his chip shot against Cardiff. We sign a good Bulgarian striker who is out of contract, but work permit issues prevent him from playing for us. Cardiff approach us again about Monkhouse, offering $1.2 million, and 20% of his next sale. I turn it down. Valois is picked in the team of the week for the Championship, thanks to his performance against Sheffield Utd. And we sign another Scandinavian player, yet another striker, as 19 year old Finnish player Jami Puustinen signs for $24k per season for 4 years to play mostly for our reserves. Another relegation battle, as Millwall comes to London Road. Traore is out on international duty for Burkina Faso, and Monkhouse is still out injured. Devlin is also out still with his wrist problem, so Navarro will start on the right. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Sarr, Campo, Dakinah DM: Fox Mid: Valois, Navarro AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Hammond Sept. 9, Match 8 0-3-4, 22nd pl., 3 pts. v. Millwall (0-2-5, 23rd pl., 2 pts.) Series: First meeting Fav: Lions, 6:4 15'- Valois lines up a 20 yard free kick from in front... and he scores! Valois with his first goal of the year! Good start for us. 23'- Johansen with a header from a pass by Valois, but it goes well wide. 45'- Millwall with a powerful shot on the right of the box, but Myhre tips it aside. Good save. No changes at the half. Can we win one? 47'- A good series of passes ends up with Valois striking it fiercely from 10 yards, but the keeper pushes it aside. Nice play! 58'- Valois with a good spot of Johansen... He's free... the keeper charges at him, Johansen shoots from about 20 yards, but he just misses the post. Good chance, not a bad effort. The ensuing goal kick is stolen by Valois, who finds a wide open Paul Shaw... The keeper tried to chase the ball down, but took a bad angle, and Shaw with an easy chance against the surprised keeper scores it! Great midfield play by Valois, and Shaw with his 3rd of the year! 2-0! 64'- Valois steals another goal kick, and this time plays Johansen through... Johansen with a tougher chance from the left, the keeper comes at home... Jim slots it home inside the near post! 3-0! Valois is having a stormer! 69'- Aaritalo in for Johansen, Eriksson on for Valois. 79'- Sagi Burton in for Elvis Hammond, as we fall back on a 5-4-1. The final whistle goes, and we get our first Championship win! Valois with a well-deserved MoM and a 10 rating, with a goal and 2 assists. Johansen, Myhre, Dakinah, and Fox all pick up 8's in the win. Win, 3-0, up 3 spots to 19th Shots/on target: Posh 10/5, Lions 6/2 Poss: 57-43, Posh A: 8,275 The board praises me publicly after the win, and moves instantly to delighted status. A nice surprise to augment our first victory. __________________ My listening habits

03-17-2005, 09:03 AM	#16
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Brighton get trounced in a televised Sunday game by Charlton Athletic, and we pass them on goal difference into 18th. We sign yet another quality youngster, as 17 year old Dutch midfielder Felix Hermsen agrees to join us for $6k per season for 4 years. Another good young reservist. Champions League, Group Stage, Match Day 1 Group A Fenerbahce 1:1 Chelsea PSV 0:3 Inter Group B CSKA Moscow 1:1 Sporting Lisbon (POR) Lokomotiv Plovdiv (BUL) 0:3 Barcelona Group C Dinamo Bucharest 3:1 Brondby (DEN) Werder Bremen 1:3 Porto Group D Olympiakos 2:0 Lyon Tottenham 2:0 Wisla Group E Paris 0:2 AC Milan Trabzonspor (TUR) 1:1 FC Kobenhavn (DEN) Group F Arsenal 1:2 Real Madrid Roma 1:0 Panathinaikos Group G Leverkusen 2:0 Ajax Valencia 1:2 Man Utd. Group H Benfica 1:0 Ferencvaros (HUN) Bayern Munich 0:0 Celtic Another week off and hopefully another win against fellow bottom-mate Preston North End. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Hammond Sept. 16, Match 9 1-3-4, 18th pl., 6 pts. v. Preston North End (2-1-5, 17th pl., 7 pts.) Last meeting: Posh 0:1 Lilywhites (2005 League Cup First Round) Fav: Posh, 6:4 2'- Good cross into the middle for Preston, and attacking midfielder John Eustace strikes it on the half volley from 15 yards, and puts it home. Myhre with a great attempt to try and keep the ball out, but it just goes off his fingertips and in. 5'- Doesn't take long for an answer, as Campo with a steal to Hammond... Hammond with a long ball onto the run of Valois, who is free on the keeper... Valois turns left, then shoots to the far post and scores! 1-1. 13'- A cross into the box for Preston, and Sarr backs into the recipient and is called for a foul in the box... penalty. Not a clear penalty, but it doesn't really matter, they're all worth an easy chance. Lilywhite striker David Healy steps up... and Myhre saves it again! Deflected wide and cleared by Sarr. We remain even! 16'- Shaw with a terrific chip into the box for Johansen, who fires a shot point blank at the keeper, but his leg cannons it out and clear. 20'- Traore with a steal passes to Johansen... We pass the ball down the field, then Johansen lays one square to Shaw... Shaw runs up to it and strikes it from 25 yards... it goes in! A fierce bending shot from 25 yards puts us up 2-1, as Shaw has his 4th of the year! Eustace with 2 shots from the top of the box in the final 10 minutes of the half, both placed wide. No changes at the half for us, as we try to earn our 2nd straight victory. 48'- Eustace with a long distance header, well placed, but it's off the post and cleared by Traore. 53'- Dakinah with a deep throw-in... Hammond flicks it on for Johansen, who is tackled from behind near the spot... and the referee points at the spot! A PK for us finally! Johansen to take it... he misses! Way over the bar. The goal kick is taken, and Preston with a good build up, but Pritchard with a steal. To Valois, who slides it ahead to Johansen. Johansen leaves it for Valois, who centers to Devlin... Devlin nods it down to Shaw, who is wide open... Shaw into the box and he shoots... GOAL! Shaw slips it inside the left post, and we take a 2 goal lead! Shaw with his 5th of the year already, and the London Road faithful are in euphoria! 70'- Sarr with a steal, to Devlin. Devlin down the right a bit, then passes to Hammond... Hammond lays it to Shaw, who is open from 25 yards, and that's in his range. He strikes it... GOAL! Shaw with his hat trick, on a wicked shot to the upper corner out of reach for the keeper! Unbelievable game by Paul Shaw, as he has single-handedly put us ahead 4-1! Fox, Burton, and Eriksson on for Devlin, Johansen, and Paul Shaw, who gets a standing ovation from the crowd. We go to a 5-4-1 for the remainder. 81'- A young Preston striker just whips our back line, running past them all and scoring a good goal past Myhre to the far post. But that's it. We grab 3 more points and land firmly mid-table! Paul Shaw with the MoM honors, as he rates a 10 and scores a hat trick. Valois rates a 9, and Hammond, Campo, and Devlin pick up 8's. A great performance all the way around today! Win, 4-2, up 2 spots to 16th Shots/on target: Posh 19/12, Lilywhites 15/5 Poss: 52-48, Posh A: 9,934 We're now 3 points behind 15th place Everton as there seems to be a clear dividing line between the contenders and the rest of the group. Luckily we're 5 points clear of relegation now, as we're finally playing well going into the tough 2 match stretch at Man. City and at Fulham. __________________ My listening habits

03-17-2005, 09:04 AM	#17
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Devlin, Valois, and Shaw all pick up Team of the Week honors. We get our first TV match since I've been manager next, at Manchester City in round 2 of the League Cup. I decide to try our regular attacking tactics, fearing that otherwise we'll be shut out of the attacking end altogether. I play as many regulars as possible, as everyone is seeming fairly fit early on. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Fox Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Shaw Str: Ferdinand, Hammond Sept. 20, League Cup Second Round Televised from City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester @ Manchester City (4th in Premiership) First meeting Fav: Citizens, 1:2 5'- Jon Macken is free in the box after turning past Sarr... he shoots at Myhre he beats it away, but it comes right back to Macken, who finishes. 1-0, Blues. 16'- Farinos with a free kick for Man City, and Myhre with a great effort to tip it away... Anelka pounces on the rebound, but he was offside. Man City keep up relentless pressure until halftime. The ball was in our defensive third about 50% of the half, controlled by Man City 42% of that time, and over 60% total. No changes at the half... All I can do is hope for a couple of breakthroughs in the 2nd half. 59'- Fox with a shot from 20 yards that whizzes past the post. 65'- I was only half paying attention honestly, but Paul Devlin is red-carded for something by that champion of the red card, Rob Styles. Johansen in for Ferdinand, Campo in for Fox, and we go to a flat, standard 4-3-2, with Shaw moving back to central midfield, and Campo playing right wing. 79'- A cross is headed clear by Traore to Hammond. Hammond to Johansen, and now Shaw, Campo, and Valois are forward in support and we've got a 5 on 4. Campo, to Shaw who plays it forward to Johansen... Johansen on the edge of the area beats a man, then plays it square for Hammond. Elvis circles around his man, then shoots for the top corner, and scores it! Hammond with a wonderful strike to cap a great move, and we've equalized! Can't imagine we can keep them out for another 41 minutes, but I'm gonna try. We almost manage to get it to the full 30 minutes of extra time, but with about 30 seconds to go, Shaun Wright-Phillips finds Anelka just onside, he beats Sarr and is able to get it past Myhre for the game-winner. We played as hard as we could, and almost created some more chances a man down, but kept having it dispossessed near the box, or being called for offside. Not a bad effort at all against a team that is tearing up the Premiership right now. Thomas Myhre is named MoM for surviving the onslaught, rating a 9 in goal. Dakinah and Pritchard also pick up 8's in defense. Even with the shot count, I think the defense played pretty well. Loss, 2-1, out of League Cup Shots/on target: Citizens 27/15, Posh 6/1 Poss: 62-38, Citizens A: 27,308 Devlin gets the automatic match ban for his red card, so we'll be missing him against Fulham in 4 days. Jim Johansen picked up a strained wrist late in the match as well, so he'll be out about a week. __________________ My listening habits

03-17-2005, 09:05 AM	#19
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	I feel like we're finally back on track. We outplayed Man City in the 2nd half of that game, just came up short on a refereeing decision and on defense... and we drew with a Premiership quality team in Fulham, on the road. I think we're on track now. We sign yet another young Dutch player, this time it's 20 year old D/DM RC Gideon de Graaf signing for 4 years and $8k per. Our reserves are starting to look good. And this guy is already in double digits in the big 3 defending skills, heading, marking, and tackling. Also has good speed. Champions League, Match Day 2 Group E FC Kobenhavn 0:0 Paris Milan 2:0 Trabzonspor Group F Panathinaikos 1:3 Arsenal Real Madrid 3:1 Roma Group G Ajax 0:1 Valencia Man Utd. 1:0 Leverkusen Group H Celtic 1:1 Benfica Ferencvaros 2:0 Bayern Munich Group A Chelsea 1:0 PSV Inter 2:0 Fenerbahce Group B Barcelona 0:0 CSKA Moscow Sporting 3:0 Lokomotiv Plovdiv Group C Brondby 1:2 Werder Bremen Porto 5:1 Dinamo Bucharest Group D Lyon 0:0 Tottenham Wisla 0:1 Olympiakos Doncaster offers me $2k and some cruddy 20 year old midfielder for 17 year old Andreas Landgren. I pass. Another relegation battle, as we host struggling Rotherham. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Fox Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Hammond Sept. 30, Match 11 2-4-4, 16th pl., 10 pts. v. Rotherham (1-2-7, 22nd pl., 5 pts.) First meeting Fav: Posh, 5:4 12'- A corner kick is flighted in by Devlin... Fox heads it down, but it comes off the crossbar, back to Shaw, who also tries to head it, but the Millers keeper tips it over. 17'- Devlin with a magic ball down the right to Hammond... Hammond is behind the defense... he charges at the keeper, gets to about 10 yards, then shoots far post, and scores! Elvis scores his 3rd of the year, and we take the 1-0 lead! Rotherham manage a couple of long range shots, but nothing too troubling as we hit the break. We got outplayed in the final half of the first 45', let's see if we can make the goal hold up. 61'- Valois is played onside, but his shot goes sailing over. 68'- Former Posh player Callum Willock enters as a sub for the Millers. Willock was our top scorer in '04-'05, but we sold him to Rotherham for $100k early in the '05-'06 season, a decision I've never regretted. 73'- Willock sets up a decent chance for Paolo Vernazza, a Rotherham striker, but Myhre with a good save. 79'- Burton on for a tiring Pritchard, and Navarro in for Johansen, as we put 2 defensive midfielders into the game to try and salt it away. 87'- Vernazza again for Rotherham, he tries from 15 yards, and it hits Sarr, but Myhre with great reflexes to recover and tip it away at the last moment. 90'- Good ol' Willock, foils a good Rotherham move by being fractionally offside. Thanks, Callum! The Millers with a corner at the death, but Dakinah heads clear to Navarro, who holds it until the whistle goes for our 3rd straight league win! Paul Devlin picks up a 10 and MoM honors, with his assist and 7 key passes. Only Valois, Johansen, and Traore don't manage to get 8's among the starters. A very good effort putting us ever closer to the top half of the table. Win, 1-0, remain in 16th Shots/on target: Posh 17/7, Millers 12/3 Poss: 53-47, Posh A: 11,273 The news notes that Gillingham record their first win of the season to climb out of the relegation zone... The Gills were expected to contend for a playoff spot this year, but find themselves in 20th about 1/4 of the way through the season. __________________ My listening habits

03-17-2005, 09:06 AM	#20
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	October begins with the board delighted with my performance, and satisfied with our league position. The fans also remain delighted with my work. Jean-Louis Valois is named player of the month of September! Valois had a slow start, as did the team, but his quality is showing now. Paul Shaw also picks up goal of the month honors for his 25 yard belt against Preston. I am 2nd in manager of the month voting. Paul Shaw is among the league leaders in scoring so far, a great surprise as I nearly didn't re-sign the guy. He has been filling in splendidly for Andy Monkhouse, and this'll make it almost hard to bring Andy back when he returns in a couple of weeks. Devlin is selected in the team of the week. Kofi Dakinah makes some noise as the first of our underpriced players to publicly wonder about getting a new contract. Dakinah has been a rock at right fullback, averaging nearly a 7.4 this season over there. He makes just $44k currently. We offer him a raise of 100%, while extending the contract 2 years on this 26 year old Denmark fullback. He rejects it, wanting $150k for 3 more seasons. I go $110k and a $10k signing bonus through 2010, that also includes a 10% pay cut if we get relegated. He agrees to that, and I lock him up for an extra 2 years. In a shocking result, England beat Bosnia and Herzegovina 9-0 at Wembley in Euro 2008 qualifying. Steven Gerrard had 5 goals in the match. Elvis Hammond strains a groin in practice and will miss 2 weeks. Monkhouse returns to the lineup as we travel to Liverpool to face Everton... a team that embarrassed us last year in the FA Cup. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Monkhouse Str: Shaw, Johansen Oct. 14, Match 12 - From Goodison Park, Liverpool 3-4-4, 16th pl., 13 pts. @ Everton (5-3-3, 10th pl., 18 pts.) Last meeting: Toffees 4:2 Posh (1/7/06 - FA Cup Third Round) Fav: Toffees, 5:4 Not much action early, both sides feeling each other out. We're playing much better than we did last year, that's for sure. 26'- Pritchard with a deep throw-in on the left, to Campo... Campo back to Pritchard, who spots Johansen making a run about 8 yards deep in the box... he's played onside by a defender marking Shaw... Johansen dribbles at the keeper, then unleashes a rifle shot to the far post and scores! Jim Johansen with a wicked strike to put us up 1-0! 35'- Tim Cahill with a fierce shot from 15 yards for Everton, but Myhre tips it off the crossbar, and Dakinah clears. Everton with a boatload of possession in the first half, but Myhre doing a good job making them earn goals. We keep the same 11 for the 2nd half. 67'- Campo mishits a free kick, but gets the ball back and tries a 35 yard chip shot, that misses about a foot wide. 77'- Valois with a great ball for Johansen, who is under pressure from behind and just dribbles it out of play instead of winding up and shooting. Fox on for Johansen as we again go to a 4-5-1 to try and salt the game away. 87'- Sadly, our goals are not achieved as young striker David Vaughan is played onside and skips over a Dakinah tackle before crossing to an open Cahill who touches it in. 1-1. Ferdinand on for Devlin, Eriksson for Monkhouse... Campo moves to the right wing. 91'- Good play in the midfield, as Valois is cut off for a cross, so he sends it to the top of the box to David Fox, who shoots from 20 yards and hits the crossbar! Shaw is dispossessed going for the rebound. And so it ends. We earned at least 2 points, but will go home with just 1. Sarr earns MoM with his 8 in a good defensive effort, winning 14 of 15 headers. Myhre, Dakinah, and Pritchard also pick up 8's. Draw, 1-1, up 1 spot to 15th Shots/on target: Toffees 16/6, Posh 11/6 Poss: Toffees, 56-44 A: 30,551 __________________ My listening habits

03-18-2005, 08:57 AM	#21
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Champions League, Match Day 3 Group E Milan 3:0 FC Kobenhavn Paris 1:0 Trabzonspor Group F Arsenal 2:1 Roma Real Madrid 1:1 Panathinaikos Group G Ajax 2:2 Man Utd. Leverkusen 1:1 Valencia Group H Celtic 3:0 Ferencvaros Bayern Munich 2:0 Benfica Group A Inter 1:0 Chelsea PSV 2:2 Fenerbahce Group B Barcelona 3:0 Sporting Lokomotiv Plovdiv 3:0 CSKA Moscow Group C Porto 0:1 Brondby Werder Bremen 3:1 Dinamo Bucharest Group D Tottenham 2:0 Olympiakos Wisla 0:1 Lyon I take a look at the balance sheet, and notice we've made some serious bread this year. We're over $2.2 million in the black, thanks mostly to a vast increase in ticket sales, including about double the regular number of season tickets sold. As such, I request an increase in the transfer budget. I am declined. Swansea offers me $200k for Andreas Landgren... normally, I'd consider it. But I don't need the money... well, I do for the transfer budget, but I'm hoping that someday the board will loosen up their purse strings a bit and let me go out and buy somebody if I want. The board has told me in the past that any money I make selling players I can have for a transfer budget, but otherwise forget it. Maybe I'll give them an ultimatum one day... like if we're free and clear for promotion to the Premiership or something. Not now, though. I decline the offer for Landgren. Next up, another game against a bottom feeder, as Coventry attempts to move back up. They were favored for promotion this year, but have just been awful so far. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Monkhouse Str: Johansen, Ferdinand Oct. 21, Match 13 3-5-4, 15th pl., 14 pts. v. Coventry City (1-5-6, 22nd pl., 8 pts.) First meeting Fav: Sky Blues, 5:4 Coventry with a couple of attacking moves through the first 20 minutes, but both shots are not close. 30'- Pritchard with a back pass to Myhre, who sends a great ball back to Pritchard near midfield... Pritchard to Valois, who plays it square to Monkhouse... Andy has a go from 20 yards, but it's saved. 35'- Campo with a steal in midfield, then a great ball into the path of Johansen... Johansen has his man beat, and attacks the left side of the box... the keeper comes out to meet him, but Jim Johansen shoots far post... GOAL! Johansen's 4th of the year, and it's a 1-0 lead! 45'- A free kick from 25 yards for Ivan Campo... it's just wide. The goalie with a goal kick, but Valois steals it... Valois ahead to Johansen, who is in the same spot he was when he scored the goal... but this time, he lays it to Monkhouse, who shoots... the keeper deflects it right back to Andy, who tries to turn, but is yanked down... penalty! Monkhouse earns a PK with a nice move in the box! Johansen steps up to take it... he converts! A 2-0 lead at the stroke of halftime thanks to Monkhouse and Johansen! Johansen's 5th of the year puts us up 2. Devlin is limping around, so he comes out for Shaw. Monkhouse moves to the right wing. 57'- Valois takes a corner, and Shaw heads it off the post, and it's cleared. 72'- Fox in for Ferdinand, as we switch to 2 DM's and a 4-5-1. Monkhouse with one last off target shot for good measure, as we thoroughly dominate the Sky Blues today. They didn't force Myhre to make one save. Ivan Campo with a super game, earning the MoM and an 8 in midfield. Sarr, Valois, and Johansen also pick up 8's for their efforts. Win, 2-0, up 2 spots to 13th Shots/on target: Posh 12/6, Sky Blues 5/0 Poss: 54-46, Posh A: 12,295 Looking over a few things after the game, I notice that at some point my reputation has progressed to "national"... this up from the "local" I had progressed to early last year, which followed my initial "obscure" reputation. Maybe a big club will ask me to take over someday. I'll probably turn them down, but respect is always nice. __________________ My listening habits

03-18-2005, 08:58 AM	#23
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Sarr, Campo, and Valois are picked yet again for the Team of the Week. A tough task against a hot Bolton squad lies ahead. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Fox Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Monkhouse Str: Johansen, Hammond Oct. 31, Match 15 - From Reebok Stadium, Bolton 5-5-4, 11th pl., 20 pts. @ Bolton Wanderers (7-6-1, 5th pl., 27 pts.) First meeting Fav: Trotters, 6:4 2'- Bolton with a dangerous play, a wide open cross to the middle, where 2 Trotters wait for it, but Traore heads it away. Valois tracks it down, and finds Johansen... who plays it back to Valois... then a great ball to Hammond down the middle... Elvis with one man to beat, and he beats him... then he strikes it near post and scores! Elvis Hammond with a great move, and a wicked strike to put us on the board quickly! 1-0, Posh! Bolton continue to apply heavy pressure, and we're barely escaping some dangerous stuff. 15'- Bolton defenseman Ricardo Gardner with a corner kick, right to striker Kevin Davies at the near post, who turns on the ball well and scores. 1-1. The pressure by Bolton eases a bit, thank goodness. 22'- Valois with a free kick on the edge of the box, but he grazes the bar. 31'- Good move by Hammond, and he centers to Monkhouse, but the weak volley is untroubling to Bolton. 36'- Valois with a clean steal in midfield, and he draws a defender, then lays it ahead to Johansen... Johansen into the box, he plays a short cross to Hammond, who volleys it home! Elvis with his 5th of the year to put us up again, 2-1! 40'- Johansen with a great cross to Hammond, who smashes it at the top corner with his head, but just misses. Johansen and Hammond are teaming up great today. 43'- A pass goes right by Pritchard across the top of the box, who apparently forgets his role in the squad, and Kevin Davies receives the pass and finishes to the far post. 2-2. Horrible defending there, especially by Pritchard. This is quite a barnburner of a game at the break. We make no changes, and hold on for the ride. I'd take a point out of this one. 60'- Jay Jay Okocha with a powerful strike off another Gardner corner, but Myhre with the reflex save... then the ball is crossed in again and another header goes just wide of the post. Whew! 61'- Valois with a steal, and he finds Hammond... to Monkhouse, who plays it long to Johansen... Johansen attacking the left side again, but this time his shot is saved and the ball is cleared before Hammond can get to the rebound. 64'- Valois with another good ball to Johansen... Johansen up the left of the box again, lays it back to Hammond... his powerful shot is deflected wide, right to Johansen, who passes back to Monkhouse with an easy finish... but Johansen was offside on the Hammond rebound. Crud. 68'- Bolton with a counterattack off a poor free kick by Fox... They get it all the way to the end line, then make 2 splendid passes, and an unmarked Neil Barrett strikes it just inside the right post past a diving Myhre. 3-2, Bolton. Navarro on for Fox, Shaw for Monkhouse and Eriksson for Pritchard, as we go to a 3-5-2, with both Shaw and Eriksson lurking atop the area. 84'- Bolton cap things off with another goal against the weakened defense, this time a strike from the left past a weary-looking Myhre. That's how it ends. Bolton just rolled over us today, especially in the 2nd half. We had no fight left in us for the final 20 minutes. Valois and Hammond manage 8's out of this one. Loss, 4-2, drop 2 spots to 13th Shots/on target: Trotters 18/9, Posh 12/6 Poss: 56-44, Trotters A: 24,094 Champions League, Match Day 4 Group A Chelsea 0:3 Inter Fenerbahce 1:0 PSV Group B CSKA Moscow 3:1 Lokomotiv Plovdiv Sporting 1:1 Barcelona Group C Brondby 0:3 Porto Dinamo Bucharest 0:2 Werder Bremen Group D Lyon 2:0 Wisla Olympiakos 0:0 Tottenham Group E FC Kobenhavn 0:0 Milan Trabzonspor 0:0 Paris Group F Panathinaikos 0:0 Real Madrid Roma 2:1 Arsenal Group G Man Utd. 0:2 Ajax Valencia 1:3 Leverkusen Group H Benfica 0:0 Bayern Munich Ferencvaros 1:1 Celtic Valois is voted third in the October Player of the Month voting. Jim Johansen picks up third in the October Young Player of the Month voting, while Elvis Hammond picks up the second best goal of the month for his first strike in this last game at Bolton. __________________ My listening habits

03-18-2005, 08:59 AM	#25
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	We get 2 nice weeks off before having to face Nottingham Forest. Forest were unbeaten until recently, but are now struggling to get back into the playoff zone. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Monkhouse Str: Johansen, Hammond Nov. 18, Match 17 5-5-6, 13th pl., 20 pts. v. Nott'm Forest (8-5-3, 7th pl., 29 pts.) Last meeting: Posh 0:1 Forest (7/11/05, Friendly) Fav: Forest, 5:4 4'- We get unlucky, as a 20 yard strike that is going wide strikes Dakinah and sneaks inside the post, totally surprising everyone. 1-0, Forest. 14'- Jesus, another deflection, as a free kick from the arc looks to strike either Pritchard or Dakinah, and it goes in. 2-0. 30'- Our first chance, as Hammond is free after a Traore steal... he gets into the right of the box and crosses for Valois, whose fierce volley is turned over by the Forest keeper, very nice save. 35'- Devlin with a cross into the box... then another... then a third after the first two are headed right back to him... the last one is terrific, falling right to the far post where Valois is waiting to touch it into the net. 2-1, and we're on our way back. Devlin's limping about again at the break, and Shaw comes in for him, while Monkhouse moves to the right. We can't put anything together right now. The attack just isn't working against these tough defenses. We bring on Eriksson for Traore, and throw 8 people forward towards the end. In the 87th, Valois crosses to Eriksson, who gets a good header in but can't quite keep it down, and that's it. Another narrow loss. Seems like we're just one player away or one good play away from winning these matches. Valois did earn a 9 in this one, but Myhre picked up a 5, though I can't really fault him for either goal. Loss, 1-2, down 2 spots to 15th Shots/on target: Posh 10/6, Forest 12/2 Poss: 51-49, Posh A: 14,649 Devlin is out 2 weeks with a groin strain, which is bad because we're hitting a run of mid-week games here AND the FA Cup is going to start up for us before too long. __________________ My listening habits

03-21-2005, 10:07 AM	#26
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Champions League, Match Day 5 Group E FC Kobenhavn 1:1 Trabzonspor Milan 1:1 Paris Group F Panathinaikos 1:0 Roma Real Madrid 1:4 Arsenal Group G Ajax 3:2 Leverkusen Man Utd. 2:0 Valencia Group H Celtic 2:1 Bayern Munich Ferencvaros 1:1 Benfica Group A Chelsea 3:0 Fenerbahce Inter 4:0 PSV Group B Barcelona 4:0 Lokomotiv Plovdiv Sporting 5:0 CSKA Moscow Group C Brondby 1:2 Dinamo Bucharest Porto 3:1 Werder Bremen Group D Lyon 1:1 Olympiakos Wisla 0:2 Tottenham Another road game, and these are all killers at this level. If I could somehow manage 46 home games, that'd be nice. It would take bribery and shenanigans of many different kinds. Myhre is sulking a bit after taking a recent pounding, so we'll stick Kruse in goal today. Other changes as well for this mid-week game, mostly for fatigue's sake. We go with a defensive mindset to try and help us out, and a more direct style of passing, to take advantage of the good heading abilities of both Ferdinand and Aaritalo. Lineup: GK: Kruse Def: Plummer, Traore, Burton, Dakinah DM: Navarro Mid: Eriksson, Fox AM: Shaw Str: Ferdinand, Aaritalo Nov. 21, Match 18 - From Hillsborough, Sheffield 5-5-7, 15th pl., 20 pts. @ Sheffield Wednesday (6-3-8, 13th pl., 21 pts.) Series: Owls lead 2-0-0 Fav: Owls, Evens 2'- Well, that didn't take long... a free kick at 1:05 from about 30 yards to the right, and it's crossed right onto a head and in past Kruse. Great. 1-0, Owls. 15'- 2 good chances in short order, but Aaritalo is dispossessed at the edge of the area, and an open shot by Paul Shaw is way high. 18'- Another goal for the Owls, and this whole play the backups thing looks like a really bad idea. The rest of the half goes fairly quickly, with no real chances either way. We up our attacking mindset, and push our defenders up toward midfield to try to employ the offside trap. 49'- Navarro with a steal, he sends it ahead to Shaw, who has space in the middle... the 2 central defenders close on Shaw, and he squares it for Ferdinand, who shoots from 15 yards... goal! Ferdinand's 1st of the year gives us a lifeline! 55'- Plummer with a poor play allows a man in on Kruse... he lays it off for an easy chance, but the footy gods turn his shot about 40 yards up, and it's way too high. 57'- An Owl free kick is struck well, but hits the foot of the post and goes wide. 73'- Martin on for an ineffective Fox... Johansen in for Plummer, as we go with the 3-4-3. 82'- Good chance from Navarro after Shaw finds him, but he skies it. 86'- We go with a standard late computer tactic, the 2-3-5, as Valois enters for Dakinah... We put Eriksson and Shaw up front alongside Ferdinand, Aaritalo, and Johansen, with Valois, Navarro, and Martin across the midfield. Long balls forward. 89'- Owls with a breakaway after a poor free kick by Traore, and they have only Eriksson to beat, who is back for some reason.... but Eriksson with a good challenge at the last second, and Kruse beats it away to Navarro, who starts the counterattack... Navarro to Aaritalo... We have 2 men offside, but it's played to Johansen, who is not offside... the passive offside call works to our advantage as Johansen is clean through on goal! He's got Valois to his right, and the keeper is hedging between the 2 players... and while he's working that out, Johansen slips it through into the net! 2-2! We put some people back in place after netting the point to prevent giving it back to the Owls, and we hold on for the 4 stoppage minutes to take a point. Mika Aaritalo is named MoM, earning a 9 up front with an assist and 7 key passes. Kruse, Traore, Burton, and Navarro manage 8's as well. Draw, 2-2, up 1 spot to 14th Shots/on target: Owls 7/3, Posh 7/2 Poss: 58-42, Owls A: 15,337 __________________ My listening habits

03-21-2005, 10:09 AM	#27
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	GRADI SWITCHES TARGET A report on a football website reveals that Crewe Alexandra boss Dario Gradi is to turn his attention towards Peterborough United attacking midfielder Andy Monkhouse. Monkhouse has become Gradi's main target after he cooled his interest in Swindon left winger Brian Howard. My first transfer speculation... hmmm...how to respond. I go with just saying I'll only sell him for the right price. Not much I can do really, Monkhouse has a $1.7 million minimum fee release clause, meaning if anyone offers me that much for him, I HAVE to let him go if he can agree to a contract with the bidder. No one has been willing to offer more than $1.2 million so far, though. Mostly Cardiff. We host formerly top of the table Charlton today, they're back to 4th place, but it'll still be a tough game. Kruse stays in goal... he was horrible in the opening 20 minutes of the last one, but he improved greatly later on, and his morale is superb compared to Myhre's "very poor". Lineup: GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Monkhouse AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Hammond Nov. 25, Match 19 5-6-7, 14th pl., 21 pts. v. Charlton Athletic (10-5-3, 4th pl., 35 pts.) First meeting Fav: Addicks, 5:4 The pitch is nearly frozen today, as it's 23 degrees F out. There is visible ice on the grass, since our budget doesn't exactly cover undersoil heating. I'm surprised this fixture wasn't postponed. 2'- Good chance for the Addicks, but Kruse with a nice save to tip it over off a 6 yard angled shot. 5'- Valois with a corner, it's cleared back to Sarr... to Valois again, open on the left, but the box is congested, so he sends it up top to Campo... Ivan Campo with a shot from 18 yards, it hits a leg but deflects right to Hammond inside the six, who half-volleys it home! 1-0, Posh! 10'- Valois gets a deflection off a free kick, and finds Hammond ahead... Hammond skips past one challenge and is in free, but his slotted shot goes wide. 21'- Sarr with a good challenge at the top of the box to prevent a breakaway, but the slide tackled ball goes right to an Addicks' midfielder, whose shot goes well high luckily. We dominate the rest of the half, and take our one goal lead to the dressing room. Johansen is dog tired despite not playing most of our last match. He'll stay on for a while anyway. 60'- A nice cross is headed onto the crossbar by Charlton, and cleared by Campo... unfortunately, the ball ends up in a striker's hands from 20 yards, and he knocks a terrific bending shot into the upper right corner... no chance for Kruse, it's 1-1. 63'- Campo with a 20 yard free kick... too high. 65'- Hammond is onside after a good ball from Dakinah... Hammond beats a man and shoots... TOO HIGH! 74'- Eriksson on for an ineffective Shaw... Aaritalo in for a tired Johansen. 90'+- No chances until stoppage time, as Campo with an interception in midfield, and a good ball forward to Valois... Jean-Louis with 2 yards on his man, but a tough angle... Aaritalo's open in the middle, but Valois tries to shoot it himself, and it's into the side netting. The final whistle goes, and we get another point. Valois picks up MoM for his 8 rating, he had 4 key passes and an assist, though one more key pass could've earned us 3 points. Dakinah and Kruse also net 8's today. Draw, 1-1, up 1 spot to 13th Shots/on target: Posh 16/3, Addicks 7/4 Poss: 51-49, Addicks A: 11,087 The story comes through that I'm willing to sell Monkhouse for the right price... hopefully it won't affect our play too much. I know guys don't like it when you sell supposedly "essential" players. Monkhouse hasn't been tearing it up like he did last year, averaging just a 7 and scoring once with 1 assist in 10 starts. Looking at his attributes, I probably should just sell him while the price is right... He's 26 and not likely to get better... he's a good finisher and blazing fast, but he lacks technique and passing skill, not good for a midfielder. Oh well, either way I'll be happy. Monkhouse catches wind of the story, and says he would be happy to discuss terms with another club, but only if the offer were a sizable improvement over his current one, since he would be happy also to stay with us. __________________ My listening habits

03-21-2005, 10:10 AM	#29
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	The draw for the FA Cup Third Round is held... Arsenal is the first team name to pop up... and the second is non-league Radcliffe Boro. Ouch. We get a decent draw, drawing league-mates Wigan to London Road on the first Saturday of the New Year. Champions League, Match Day 6 Group A -Fenerbahce needs a miracle... that is, beating Inter and having Chelsea lose to PSV, who've managed just 1 point in 5 matches so far. Fenerbahce 1:2 Inter PSV 0:2 Chelsea Advancing: Chelsea, Inter Group B -Sporting pretty much has CSKA Moscow over a barrel, with a 3 point lead and an 11 goal diff. lead for 2nd place. CSKA Moscow 1:2 Barcelona Lokomotiv Plovdiv 0:1 Sporting Advancing: Barcelona, Sporting Lisbon Group C -Same goes for Werder Bremen vs. Dinamo Bucharest, though Bremen's GD lead is only 6. Dinamo Bucharest 0:3 Porto Werder Bremen 2:0 Brondby Advancing: Porto, Werder Bremen Group D -This group's a bit more interesting, with no one having clinched so far, but Tottenham on 11 points, and Lyon and Olympiakos on 8. Olympiakos has winless Wisla at home, but Lyon has to go to White Hart Lane. Olympiakos 1:1 Wisla Tottenham 3:1 Lyon Advancing: Tottenham, Olympiakos Group E -Paris with a 2 point lead on Copenhagen, so either of them could go through... and they meet each other in Paris. Paris 3:0 FC Kobenhavn Trabzonspor 1:1 Milan Advancing: Milan, Paris Group F -Arsenal has the inside track on going through, but all 4 teams are still alive. Current standings are Arsenal 9, Real Madrid 8, Roma 6, Panathinaikos 5. Roma and Real Madrid meet at Olimpico... if Roma win, they're through. Arsenal 1:1 Panathinaikos Roma 2:2 Real Madrid Advancing, Arsenal, Real Madrid Group G -Another group where everyone is still alive: Man U 10, Leverkusen 7, Ajax 7, Valencia 4. Leverkusen 0:3 Man Utd. Valencia 2:2 Ajax Advancing: Manchester United, Ajax Group H -Celtic has clinched a spot, but Benfica, Ferencvaros, and Bayern Munich are all within a point of each other. Benfica gets to host Celtic, while the other 2 try and knock each other out. Benfica 0:0 Celtic Bayern Munich 3:0 Ferencvaros Advancing: Celtic, Bayern Munich Lineup for our next home match against Brighton: GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah DM: Campo Mid: Valois, Devlin AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Hammond Dec. 9, Match 21 5-8-7, 13th pl., 23 pts. v. Brighton and Hove Albion (3-9-8, 20th pl., 18 pts.) First meeting Fav: Posh, 5:4 9'- Hammond takes the Dakinah throw-in, and advances... he plays it square to Valois, who shoots from 20 yards... it hits a defender and goes in! Great start, 1-0 Posh! 14'- Valois with a corner, to Johansen, who hits a fierce half-volley that's well saved. Not much other action to speak of... Brighton has mustered little offense. Monkhouse in for Devlin, who's tired and not performing particularly well. 59'- Beautiful attack, as Kruse sends it long to Johansen, who nods it ahead to Hammond... Hammond is free on the attack against 2 Seagull defenders... he shoots from about 25 yards before they can close him down, but it's well over. 68'- Good breakaway for Brighton, as they had 2 on 2, but Kruse is able to save the nice strike from 8 yards out. 80'- Valois to Hammond on a counter attack... Hammond shoots at the charging keeper, and it's pushed wide... but Jim Johansen is there to charge it down and tap it home! 2-0! Fox on for Johansen, and Myhre in for Kruse as we try to send some good vibes Myhre's way. The time ticks away, and we take our first win in our last 7 matches! Jim Johansen earns MoM, with his goal to seal it and an 8 rating. Valois, Traore, Myhre, and Kruse also pick up 8's. Myhre didn't make one save and picked up an 8. Odd. Win, 2-0, remain in 13th place Shots/on target: Posh 13/8, Seagulls 9/3 Poss: 50-50 A: 13,626 Asian/Euro Cup - From Yokohama, Japan Seongnam (KOR) 0:2 Tottenham -Freddy Kanoute with 2 goals, as Spurs are easy winners over the Korean champions. __________________ My listening habits

03-21-2005, 10:11 AM	#30
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	I now notice that for the first time in a while, no one "wants" Andy Monkhouse. Guess I missed my chance to cash out on the guy. A mid-week game at Crewe follows, and some lineup alterations according to fitness. GK: Myhre Def: Plummer, Sarr, Traore, Burton DM: Fox Mid: Eriksson, Monkhouse AM: Shaw Str: Johansen, Hammond Dec. 12, Match 22 - From The Alexandra Stadium, Crewe 6-8-7, 13th pl., 26 pts. @ Crewe Alexandra (4-5-12, 21st pl., 17 pts.) First meeting Fav: Posh, 5:4 30'- First good chance for us, as Hammond is dispossessed on the left, but the ball rolls to Johansen, who has an open goal to shoot at, but also 3 Railwaymen on his back... and the ball is tackled out for a corner. 32'- Myhre with a brilliant 80 yard ball to Johansen, who gets it right inside the arc, and goes around the keeper, but can't get enough space to shoot before losing the ball. 38'- A 30 yard free kick for Crewe, and they score. Myhre tried to save it, but couldn't reach it. 1-0, Railwaymen. We up the attack at the break, to nearly an all-out assault. 53'- Shaw quickly takes a free kick, and Hammond is all alone at 10 yards, and somehow misses. Crewe put together some attacks that we have to scramble away, but we've got nothin'. So, Aaritalo, Campo, and Ferdinand come on. We go to a 2-3-5 for the final 15+ minutes. 81'- Fox with a good ball for Johansen, who is played onside by an out of position defender... Johansen right in front of goal, shoots hard and high and scores! Johansen's 10th of the year, and we're level at 1! We stay in that formation to try and pick up all 3 points, and it creates mass chaos... chances all over the place... but ultimately no goals. Sure was fun to watch though! I'd go to that formation full-time if I didn't think I'd get pretty well picked apart and lose 7-4 mostly. Sarr earns MoM with an 8 thanks to several key interventions late in the match. Myhre, Burton, Traore, Fox, and Johansen also pick up 8's in this thriller. Draw, 1-1, remain in 13th Shots/on target: Railwaymen 14/5, Posh 13/5 Poss: 55-45, Railwaymen A: 8,561 __________________ My listening habits

03-21-2005, 10:12 AM	#31
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Next up, Gillingham visits London Road. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah Mid: Campo (DM), Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse (AM) Str: Johansen, Hammond Dec. 16, Match 23 6-9-7, 13th pl., 27 pts. v. Gillingham (6-7-9, 14th pl., 25 pts.) First meeting Fav: Posh, 6:4 6'- Johansen with a good through ball to Hammond... Hammond shoots... it hits the far post, and rolls all the way across the goalmouth, parallel to the goal line, but it doesn't go in and is cleared. 25'- Devlin with a free kick from 25 yards, and he blazes it just over the bar. 33'- Gills first chance is a long distance shot that Myhre can't get to, but it hits the crossbar and Traore clears it. 44'- Valois to Monkhouse, who slips it to Hammond... Hammond between 2 defenders, and he slots it home! 1-0 on Elvis Hammond's 5th league tally of the season. No changes at the break. 48'- Another long Gillingham shot, and Myhre has to fist it away, as it nearly sneaks in the back post. Gills apply a lot of pressure, but all of their shots are wide or high. 78'- Fox in for Devlin, Eriksson for Johansen, as we go to a 4-5-1 with 2 DM's. 82'- Gills with a great chance, a swift cross in headed down but Myhre with a great reaction save to keep it 1-0. A lot of frenetic action late, mostly us sending the ball far down the pitch, but we hang on for the tight 1-0 win. Thomas Myhre the well-deserved man of the match, making at least 3 great saves. He picks up a 9, everyone else a 7. Win, 1-0, up 1 spot to 12th Shots/on target: Posh 14/3, Gills 14/6 Poss: 53-47, Gills A: 13,466 Jean-Louis Valois gets an automatic one match ban for picking up his 5th yellow card in this match. __________________ My listening habits

03-21-2005, 10:13 AM	#33
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Ipswich offers me $750k and 30% of the next sale for Jim Johansen. I decline. Ipswich currently leads League One. A short week, as we visit Cardiff on Boxing Day. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Campo, Dakinah, Traore, Sarr Mid: Fox (DM), Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse (AM) Str: Johansen, Shaw Dec. 26, Match 25 - From St. David Stadium, Cardiff 8-9-7, 12th pl., 33 pts. @ Cardiff (10-9-5, 9th pl., 39 pts.) Last meeting: Draw, 1-1 Fav: Bluebirds, Evens 4'- A favorable bounce for Shaw inside the arc, and he hits with the outside of the boot, but just into the side netting. 8'- A steal in midfield... Fox plays it through to Shaw, who is just onside... Shaw chips the keeper from 20 yards, and scores! 1-0, Posh! 23'- Johansen with a steal, up to Valois... Valois to Monkhouse who is point blank with the keeper! Stoned! But the ball wiggles over to Shaw, who taps it in! 2-0, Posh on a great midfield series. 38'- Campo with a free kick from about 40 yards... to Valois... they play the one-two, and Valois has space down the left... he crosses to the middle... Shaw is there with a diving header... YES! Shaw with a hat-trick, and we lead by 3! We take Devlin out at the half for Eriksson... Monkhouse to the right wing. 61'- Johansen breaks free, but has it slide tackled from behind... and it goes in! An own goal puts us up 4! Cardiff grab one back in the 66th, but that's pretty much it. A great win! Shaw the natural MoM, with his 2nd hat trick of the season! He rates a 10, as do Fox and Valois. Monkhouse a 9, and nearly everyone else an 8. What a victory! Win, 1-4, up 1 spot to 11th Shots/on target: Bluebirds 9/3, Posh 8/4 Poss: 55-45, Cardiff A: 18,775 __________________ My listening habits

03-23-2005, 09:29 AM	#34
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	I get a question from the media after our big win over Cardiff: Our local paper, the Peterborough Evening Telegraph, wants to know: Jim Johansen is being labelled as one of the best young players of his generation. Do you believe that you will be able to stop the big clubs poaching him? "POACH AWAY!" I think to myself, but then I end up responding by saying I want Jim to stay with us and hope he feels the same. Though I sure wouldn't mind a multi-million dollar transfer fee at some point in the future. We're nearly at the end of the year, and we close 2006 with a tough trip to Derby County. Lamine Traore is away on international duty for Burkina Faso, so Burton starts in his place. Lineup: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Sarr, Burton, Dakinah Mid: Campo (DM), Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse (AM) Str: Johansen, Hammond Dec. 30, Match 26 - From Pride Park, Derby 9-9-7, 11th pl., 36 pts. @ Derby County (13-4-8, 8th pl., 43 pts.) Last meeting: Posh 0:2 Derby (8/8/06) Fav: Rams, 6:4 1'- Pritchard with a long ball down the left off the opening kickoff, and Valois centers for Johansen, who hits a half-volley but it's just high... nearly a score after just 12 seconds. 5'- Devlin with a free kick from about 10 yards off the end line on the left... he crosses for Monkhouse who heads it, but it's cleared off the line nicely and out. 10'- A midfielder beats Burton with speed and fires at Myhre from 5 yards... but he is able to push it away. Burton's lack of speed showed there. 15'- Another good chance, as Pritchard is caught upfield, and Burton is out of position on a through ball... the same midfielder tries a cross this time, but Myhre is aware, and deflects the ensuing header wide. Dakinah clears. 21'- Myhre with a long ball to Hammond, who is clear... Hammond is in free, but his angled shot is deflected onto the post and out for a corner. 35'- Rams with a 20-25 yard free kick, and it's off the crossbar! The rebound comes to a Ram striker, but Pritchard tackles it away! Great play by Luke Pritchard to save a goal! No changes at the half... Derby is outplaying us, but we're holding on. 47'- Good play by Derby, they've got a man in on the right, and he crosses back to support... a strong header is saved by Myhre, but there was a Derby foul on the play anyway. 49'- Another chance for Derby, but Dakinah tackles it away on the left of the box... Monkhouse picks it up about 25 yards from our end line... he advances a bit, Hammond and Johansen have both gotten off a bit too early and would be onside if he passed it... so he keeps going... and going... the Ram defense is not closing him down and he's clean through! Monkhouse in on the keeper... finally has to hold off a challenge at 10 yards while trying to maneuver around the keeper... his shot to the near post is tipped and held by the keeper, but a great individual move by Monkhouse... probably the longest individual run I've ever seen. 51'- Burton with a steal to Valois... Valois advances across midfield, to Monkhouse in the center... Andy with a through ball to Hammond! Elvis has it... he strikes a shot and it's in! A nice low ball beats the keeper, and we take the lead! 55'- Dakinah is injured and forced to leave. Plummer in for him, he goes to central defense and Sarr switches to right back. Derby with a 10 minute series of intense pressure, including about 6 corner kicks... but Myhre with at least 2 brilliant saves and 3 more standard ones to keep it 1-0. 75'- Fox in for Johansen as we switch to a 4-5-1 and try to slow the fierce Derby attack. 77'- A ragged series of midfield play ends with the ball bobbling to Devlin unmarked on the right. Devlin crosses to a flashing Hammond at the near side of the box... Elvis receives, turns, and lets loose a pacey shot, and it beats the keeper to the far post! 2-0, Posh! Hammond's 10th of the year should seal this one up. 87'- A hanging outswinging corner from the right for Derby, and Myhre is called for a push to give Derby a PK. 89'- Valois with a centering cross that Hammond nearly converts for a hat trick. Derby with one more decent chance, but Myhre clutches the cross, and we are able to hold the ball long enough to take all 3 points! Elvis Hammond with his best game of the year, rating a 10, with a brace and MoM honors. Sarr picks up a 9, and nearly everyone else picks up an 8 in this good team effort. Win, 1-2, up 2 spots to 9th Shots/on target: Rams 15/10, Posh 18/11 Poss: 55-45, Rams A: 27,058 Dakinah will just be out a few days with a damaged shoulder. __________________ My listening habits

03-23-2005, 09:31 AM	#36
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	As I get set to sign some new players, I notice that we are over $3.5 million in the black now. We're doing unbelievably well, mostly due to our bump up in TV revenue this year, and increased gate receipts. We've already made more in ticket sales this season than we did in the entire slate last year. As far as players leaving, Ferdinand, Plummer, and Shaw are the only key players we have going out of contract this coming June. All are going to be let go. Strikers Steve Basham and Derek Holmes, and attacker Eoin Jess are currently in our reserves and will be leaving as well, along with a couple of defensemen who will not be kept. All tolled, that will be a salary savings of $768,000 in 9 players leaving... and we're currently slightly under our salary budget, so that's not a bad amount to be able to spend, although we're still limited in who we can offer contracts to, since our board won't allow me to offer any contracts worth more than about $350k per season... I've tried to circumvent that with signing bonuses and the like, but it hasn't yet worked. I am targeting more defensive depth, and midfielders... along with a good striker, if one can be had for the price I can pay. A lot of players are coming up for contracts next year, so I have to keep that in mind as well during the signings if I intend to keep Hammond and Valois around. Valois is aging, so I'm still undecided on him, frankly. He is the classiest player we have, by a long shot, but he'll be closing in on 35 when his contract is up next year. Ipswich offers us $750k and 40% of the next sale for Johansen... this looks familiar. I decline. Well, back to the footy... we're in the midst of a 10 game unbeaten streak in league play... all of which is getting my hopes up of gaining a playoff spot. Even if we did get a playoff spot and somehow managed to win the playoffs this season, we'd get smacked down mighty quick back to the Championship. Lineup for Wigan, part 1: GK: Myhre Def: Pritchard, Traore, Burton, Sarr Mid: Campo (DM), Valois, Devlin, Monkhouse (AM) Str: Johansen, Hammond Jan. 6, FA Cup Third Round v. Wigan Athletic (17th in Championship) Last meeting: Wigan 0:0 Posh (8/19/06) Fav: Posh, 6:4 Not much action early, we get a couple of balls into the box that are cleared, and Wigan can't even penetrate our midfield. 28'- Johansen swings it to Hammond in the middle, then over to Valois on the left who is unmarked... Jean-Louis attacks the keeper, and hits it to the far post and in! 1-0, Posh! 37'- Burton with a fierce free kick from about 23 yards... it hits the wall and deflects to the edge of the box, where Valois attempts to chase it down but is pushed over... it's a penalty! The commentator notes that it was surely a dive, but we get a spot kick and a chance to double the lead! Lamine Traore is the choice to take it.... SAVED! Right into the center of goal, and saved easily. 45'- Myhre saves a close in shot fairly easily, then sends it 75 yards to Jim Johansen... Johansen beats the keeper, but took a long time doing it and can't get his shot past the 2 defenders stationed on the line. Halftime, and we're beating Wigan fairly soundly. No changes, though Luke Pritchard is gimping around. 64'- Wigan with a legitimate chance, as a striker gets open in the arc and charges Myhre... Myhre tips the shot away, then falls on the rebound. Good goalkeeping. 76'- Devlin with a corner kick for Campo... it's headed back to Devlin, who heads it back into the congested middle... where Elvis Hammond climbs up and heads it in the net! 2-0, Posh on a strange goal... but I'll take it if it means more FA Cup play! Dakinah, Shaw, and Fox on for Devlin, Pritchard, and Johansen as we go to a 4-5-1. 81'- Dakinah steals a corner and outlets to Valois... Valois holds the ball for a couple of seconds, then plays it long to Hammond, who started his run on our end to avoid the trap! Hammond with a good 10 yards on the nearest defender, but he settles for a 12 yard drive that is wide. That's it! We advance to the Fourth Round! Luke Pritchard named MoM, with an 8... Myhre, Campo, and Valois with 8's also. Win, 2-0, advance to Fourth Round Shots/on target: Posh 15/5, Wigan 11/3 Poss: 51-49, Posh A: 13,211 We win $90k for the victory. __________________ My listening habits

03-24-2005, 10:02 AM	#38
Chas in Cinti High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Cincinnati, OH	Still Reading... Your story has been great so far... I really like the fact that the reader can tell you're getting better at coaching/tactics/evaluating talent as time goes by as well as your players getting better... Will be reading! Regards, Chas

03-24-2005, 10:13 AM	#39
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Thanks a lot, Chas. Appreciate the comment. __________________ My listening habits

03-24-2005, 10:14 AM	#40
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Now, Jim Johansen fractures his jaw in training, and will miss 3 weeks of action. They're testing me, aren't they? Luke Pritchard finally gets around to whining about his cheap contract, so I'll probably have to raise his wages to keep his performance up. Birmingham tops Everton 1-0 at Goodison Park, so we'll face another Premiership team in Cup action this week. Too bad Everton couldn't pull it off, as we've passed them in the Championship standings now. This is going to be a tough win to pull off with several regulars out due to injury. Campo is also out due to fatigue. We decide to play a more standard tactic instead of our usual attack, and use the counter attack to our advantage. I also designate Aaritalo as a target man and play direct passing to him, hoping to pop a goal to Hammond at some point. Lineup: GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Traore, Sarr, Dakinah Mid: Fox, Valois, Devlin, Shaw Str: Aaritalo, Hammond Jan. 20, FA Cup Fourth Round v. Birmingham City (14th in Premiership) Fav: Birmingham, 4:5 25'- First chance for either side, it's Birmingham's Jesper Gronkjaer who has a shot from 8 yards but it's right into Kruse's chest. 45'- Gronkjaer with a long ball to striker David Johnson, but luckily the flag goes up after he's broken clear. We're not playing poorly at the half, but haven't really troubled the Blues (who are actually wearing red today because of our home blue kit). No changes yet, but we might up the attack a bit later, as I don't really desire to play a replay at a Premiership park if I can avoid it. 54'- A good save by Kruse sparks a breakaway, and Hammond eventually gets into the box with the ball and the whistle goes... but it's Devlin holding back Gronkjaer, who was trying to get at Hammond. 73'- Valois with an impressive move to keep control amidst 3 Birmingham defenders, but his 25 yard panic strike goes harmlessly wide. 78'- Ferdinand and Eriksson on for a tiring Hammond and Aaritalo, and we increase our attack. Doesn't matter. Birmingham pretty much played for a replay the final half-hour, rarely pushing forward. Lukas Kruse with the MoM, making a couple of decent saves and earning an 8, but it's hard to pick out a player of the match from a game so devoid of action. Dakinah also picks up an 8, and everyone else rates a 7. Draw, 0-0, replay Shots/on target: Posh 6/2, Blues 11/5 Poss: 52-48, Blues A: 15,298 At least we got a good crowd for this, likely our last home FA Cup game of the season, unless we can find a way past Birmingham on the road. I'm informed that our gate receipts of $550k for this match were a record high. Tobias Eriksson sprained his wrist during his brief substitute stint, and will miss about a week. __________________ My listening habits

03-24-2005, 10:15 AM	#41
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	The replay will be in 11 days, on the last day of the month. We reach terms on our first Bosman signing, D/DM Talal El Karkouri from Charlton Athletic agrees to terms with us. He is a 30 year old Moroccan, who has not been in Charlton's first team this year. El Karkouri possesses sensational technique, and lacks a bit only in his mental game, but still is a step above most of our current players. He will join the squad on July 1. The Fifth Round FA Cup draw is held, and if we can somehow make it past the Blues, we'll get to host the Reds... Liverpool would be coming to London Road. But that's a big if. Luke Pritchard wants a new contract, and he wants $280k a year to play left back for us. He's good, but not irreplaceable. I offer about $120k a season and a 2 year extension on his contract. He is only 20 years old, but set to leave after next season. Next up, a visit to Burnley. Another revenge game for Valois, hopefully. Lineup: GK: Kruse Def: Traore, Burton, Dakinah, Sarr Mid: Campo, Valois, Devlin, Shaw Str: Ferdinand, Hammond Jan. 23, Match 29 11-10-7, 9th pl., 43 pts. @ Burnley (10-7-11, 13th pl., 37 pts.) Series: Even, 1-0-1 Fav: Posh, 6:4 8'- Devlin shoots from 20 yards after a nice build-up, but it's wide. 21'- Burnley with some good pressure, but Kruse saves a shot aimed at the near post. 25'- Sarr heads it away to Hammond, to Ferdinand, to Hammond, to Valois, to Shaw... then Hammond is played through... he has 2 defenders closing him, but he slots a shot to the near post from 18 yards... and scores! Hammond's team leading 12th of the year puts us on top again, 1-0! 27'- Burnley with a terrific pass to an open man about 8 yards off the near post, and his wicked shot is saved by Kruse nicely. The ensuing corner is hit to Robbie Blake, who heads it in from 8 yards... 1-1. The Clarets do a good job keeping us out of the box... we're taking a lot of long shots, and not connecting. It's 1-1 at the break, and we keep the starting XI on the pitch. 56'- We break down Burnley's organization at the back, as a nice series of midfield possession ends with a through ball by Shaw, who drew his man out of central defense and made room for Hammond's run... Hammond with loads of space, gets the keeper to commit then taps it past him for his second of the match. 2-1, Posh. 65'- A breakdown by the defense, as a cross is sent to the left of the box, and no one's home, especially not Sarr... luckily Kruse saves his ass with a terrific reflex save on a 6 yard strike by Burnley. 73'- Another defensive breakdown, as Burton watches a ball go right past him onto the foot of a Burnley striker, who has space against Kruse, but Lukas with a magical last-second tip wide to save the equalizer. Pritchard on for a slightly injured Ferdinand, as we go to a 5-4-1. We also reorganize the players a bit, considering we're letting a lot of players through right now. 79'- Apparently someone told Sagi Burton to take a smoke break, as Robbie Blake is completely unmarked receiving a diagonal pass in the box... Blake shoots from about 10 yards, but Kruse with another magnificent save... sadly he couldn't hold it, and the rebound is tapped in. 2-2. Aaritalo on for Burton, as he comes out and we switch back to normal tactics. 84'- Long ball for Dakinah, and Aaritalo heads it down for Devlin... then after a few passes, it ends up back with Aaritalo, who has space against the keeper... he tries to go around him, but is a bit too slow about it and can't beat him with his shot, it's a corner kick. 88'- A nice intervention by Pritchard to take it away from Blake in the box... then we end up with a chance as Aaritalo ends up beating his man, but again his hard shot is right at the keeper. Both teams frantically send balls downfield to try and equalize, but we end up drawn. Paul Shaw with a terrific game in midfield, earning a 10 and MoM. Kruse with a 9, and Dakinah, Burton, Traore, and Hammond pick up 8's. Not a good point, as we should've had all 3 from this one. Draw, 2-2, drop 1 spot to 10th Shots/on target: Clarets 13/8, Posh 15/7 Poss: 55-45, Clarets A: 19,902 We remain a good 9 points back of the final playoff spot, we're seemingly unable to gain ground on the top 7, all of whom have 52 points or more. __________________ My listening habits

03-24-2005, 10:16 AM	#42
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	Sarr earns a match off for picking up his 5th yellow of the season against Burnley. We're now in the middle of a team record 14 game unbeaten streak. Quite a feat considering the start we had to the season. We now have 11 draws, 2nd in the league only to near-bottom Brighton, who have 14 draws, but just 4 wins, while we have 11 wins. We have a tough row to hoe now, as we have multiple injuries and are facing multiple mid-week games thanks to the FA Cup. Call-ups from the reserves are likely in order. I settle on bringing up Derek Holmes to fill out our bench, as Traore is out on int'l duty, Sarr is out suspended, and Eriksson, Johansen, Myhre, Plummer, and Monkhouse are still out injured, so I didn't even have enough first-teamers to fill the bench. And now we play Sheffield United, a team that kind of kick-started us with some trash talk earlier this year... as they've slid down the table their manager has been keeping his mouth shut. Their defense is horrendous, allowing 54 goals in 29 matches, worst in the league. Their offense is good, but only 39 goals against 54 won't win you many. Lineup: GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Campo, Burton, Dakinah Mid: Fox, Valois, Devlin, Shaw Str: Aaritalo, Hammond Jan. 27, Match 30 11-11-7, 10th pl., 44 pts. v. Sheffield United (11-5-13, 14th pl., 38 pts.) Series: Blades lead 2-0-1 Fav: Posh, 6:4 The Blades have the better of play early, narrowly missing the target with 2 shots. 21'- Valois with a corner, inswinging to Fox at the near post... Fox with time to turn with the ball, then shoot from about 8 yards... it deflects off a foot and goes in! Fox scores to put us up a goal early. 26'- Valois with a long range shot that also takes a deflection, but right to Blade keeper Paddy Kenny. 31'- Sheffield with a dangerous chance, a low cross is tapped goalward, but Kruse deflects it out. 34'- Recent Everton transfer Marcus Bent is giving Luke Pritchard fits, beating him for about the 3rd time today with speed, but missing a point blank shot as Kruse gets down well to save it. 36'- Burton with a free kick from the center circle... he hits it up to the edge of the box, where Aaritalo nods it down for Shaw... Shaw takes it on the bounce and shoots... GOAL! Nestled into the far post, Shaw scores and puts us up 2-0! We go in with a comfortable halftime lead. No changes. 59'- Shaw fires from 25 yards, and scores! How can we get rid of this guy? That's his 12th of the season, 2nd best on the squad... what's even better is all of Shaw's goals are league goals. He has the ability to completely take over games with his skill at times. Which is what he's done here, leading us out 3-0 now. 66'- We burn our subs, removing Valois, Devlin, and Hammond for Navarro, Martin, and Holmes. 81'- A long series of possession in the box, including 3 corners for Sheffield United, amounts to nothing. No goals for you today! 90'- OK, maybe one... but only off a corner from a tight-angled shot. Paul Shaw wins another MoM, dominating the attack today with his 2 goals with an 8 rating. Campo, Pritchard, and Kruse earn 8's. Lukas Kruse making quite a push to get his starting job back, he's been sensational of late replacing the injured Thomas Myhre. Holmes only got a couple of touches in his first league action since August. Win, 3-1, up 1 spot to 9th Shots/on target: Posh 11/5, Blades 13/5 Poss: 53-47, Blades A: 15,286 After the game, Holmes naturally complains to the media about not being part of the first team. You're out of contract anyway after this season, buddy. __________________ My listening habits

03-24-2005, 10:17 AM	#44
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	February starts, and we're shut out of the awards voting completely. At least the board is still delighted with me. And why wouldn't they be? They're sitting on just over $5 million thanks to my management of the club. Many of the other clubs in the league have at least one, if not more, players with a salary above $1 million, while my most expensive player is Ivan Campo, at $360k per year, with no one else even close to him. Hopefully, we can return to form against a struggling Millwall squad. Derek Holmes gets a start, as Aaritalo is pretty tired, Johansen is still hurt, and Les Ferdinand is just old. Lineup: GK: Kruse Def: Pritchard, Traore, Campo, Sarr Mid: Navarro, Valois, Monkhouse, Shaw Str: Holmes, Hammond Feb. 3, Match 31 - From The Den, London 12-11-7, 9th pl., 47 pts. @ Millwall (5-10-15, 22nd pl., 25 pts.) Last meeting: Posh 3:0 Lions (9/9/06) Fav: Posh, 6:4 12'- Navarro with an interception in our half, and a long ball to Hammond... Hammond nods it for Valois, to Shaw in the center, back to Hammond making a forward run... Hammond plays it ahead to Holmes making a good diagonal run into the arc... he takes one dribble and slots it to the keeper's right, and it's in! Derek Holmes is proving me wrong, scoring our last 2 goals! 1-0, Posh. 29'- After some more possession, another chance as the Millwall backline look totally disorganized as Shaw slides a ball to Holmes on the left of the box... Holmes is unmarked at the edge of the area, then attacks the keeper, and slots it home inside the near post! Derek Holmes with his second goal of the match gives us a 2-0 lead! The commentary notes "This Peterborough team are looking unbeatable at present!" We continue to bombard the Lions, and Holmes gets another chance that is saved, while Hammond and Monkhouse also have open shots saved nicely. Millwall's defense is just terrible. We lead 2-0, and don't even think about removing the pressure yet. 56'- Kruse with a long ball to Valois, who heads it to Navarro in the center circle... Alan spots Hammond, and finds his run... Elvis shoots far post after a dribble and scores! 3-0! 74'- As though things weren't bad enough for Millwall, a defender gets a second yellow card and an early bath. Eriksson, Aaritalo, and Fox on for Monkhouse, Valois, and Hammond. 83'- Holmes almost gets a hat trick with a diving header off a cross by Eriksson, but it just goes wide. Derek Holmes with the MoM honor, storming back to the first team after a lengthy absence with a 9 rating and the brace. Hammond also picks up a 9, and Sarr, Pritchard, Navarro, Monkhouse, and Shaw all pick up 8's. Total domination would be the easiest way to describe this. Win, 0-3, remain in 9th Shots/on target: Lions 2/1, Posh 23/11 Poss: 52-48, Posh A: 7,284 We're now 7 points off the pace for 6th, held currently by Fulham, but just 2 points behind West Ham for 7th spot. __________________ My listening habits