Saturday 19 April 2008

Highs and Lows

So there we are just going along when we start losing a few games, then we lose a few more. Suddenly your looking back at ten games without a win and a team that plays like strangers.

No changes made, no players released no one sold, no one bought. This is the third time I have experienced this and it's FM Live at it's worst.

Even if you knew where it came from the only way out is to grind though the games as fast as you can.

Eventually a lucky result will come your way and slowly you'll come back.

The most frustrating thing is though you don't know why it happened and apart from crudely playing a load of games in the hope that you'll get out of the rut you've no idea how to end it.

Thankfully with the players now in the squad the end has to come somewhere. With a few wins back to back we seem to be back on tack.

Was it because I sold Camara, but that in game time was weeks ago, Jemma that was months ago. With a few injuries I had to move players in from U21 to cover first team, does this affect Squad Morale.

I had two players looking to leave to get first team football, no warnings from them though.

Was it because I had made a few tweaks to the team tactics, was it because I hadn't made enough changes.

All through these twenty games you wonder why and nobody has the answer. I'd be quite happy to be forced to see a drop in the rankings and be forced to play at a lower level and hopefully pick back up from there.

I don't know if I'd just started I'd have honestly stuck with the game..

This is a massive problem facing FM Live if you ask me. I've already covered it previously but how many will play if their in the bottom 300?

Today saw two top teams leave and dump their collection of players on the market. Players that normally go for millions sold for hundreds of thousands. Their aim to cause massive unrest and controversy.

Inter Midgets, a team I felt I had a chance of beating had taken two of these players. In our game I got hit with a beauty of a free kick 1-0. The second one went in and I checked, guess where the player came from...I abandoned I mean what's the point..The home game I did the same. Small protest from me but I hope the guy felt a bit empty with his six points.

Then I don't know where or how it started, but the odd win here and there. A few good results in the League a few bads ones as well. Then we have to play CUJummy one of the favourites for the title and grab a 1-0 lead. Only for it to slip away to the full blast of superstars on display for CUJimmy.

We're 2-1 down on 85minutes we grab a goal back, 2-2. With a few minutes to go Ely is on the wing he floats one in to the penalty spot and it's like your there at a game.... It plops onto Budals head and that one moment as the ball hits the back of the net it makes it all worth while, 3-2 to us.

Adam Buxton manager of Barcelona FC had started off well in the NFA Premier League and still had title aspirations. He had been nagging me to play our remaining fixture at our ground.

I wouldn't say we were playing great at the time but the side is settled now and I had no suspensions or injuries. We kicked off to a 2-0 lead and despite a scare eventually pulled away to take the game 4-2.

Oddly that does leave us top of the NFA Premier League with 25 odd games gone and when you consider we're top of NFA U21 and U17 Leagues it's an odd situation to be in.

I've come to the conclusion now that bad runs and good runs happen just like in real life, having a player or two in your team that can produce a match winning performance is likely to make those bad runs shorter. Having a mean defence will result in less frequent bad runs. It is a funny old game as you never really really know how things are going to work out.

So we're starting to near the end of the second season and you begin to realise just how clever SI are. I have a settled squad, young, and have already competed well in the Premier League. I'll just kick back for a month or two and maybe my starlets will flower and the world will be at our mercy. One problem, contracts, I can only lock five players to a contract. The rest have to opened up to a wage auction.

I have no doubt this close season we'll again see some desperate measures to get talent. In my opinion it's a short sighted panic option. In the last close season I did bid on a load of players but every manager in the Gameworld was bidding silly prices.

I did bag two, Arda on £33k a day (Wage Demand £24k) and Daikte on £2500 a day (Wage Demand £8k a day). £33k a day was a lot more than my previous record of £10k a day. I've got to look at this as I've one contract lock left and three potential players to use it on.

Arda is talented he's 22 and sometimes can on his own change a game I'd like to keep him but if I let him go to wage auction in the silly season some loon will bid £50k a day.

Honestly he's not worth £33k maybe £20k and the bottom line is I can't get him on that contract so really he has to go.

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