Tiger Fan's SI Test Drive - An EHM & WWSM dynasty

[Tiger Fan]

I had never been a fan of the Championship Manager series of games, only because I had little interest or understanding of soccer. However, I picked up a copy of Worldwide Soccer Manager 05 (the North American version of Football Manager) a week ago and I must say if SI can get me this excited about a soccer sim I just cant wait to see what is in store for OOTP7. With that in mind I thought it might be interesting to do a dynasty with the 2 current SI releases (Eastside Hockey Manager being the other) so that together we can learn a little about these games and maybe get a taste - and possibly even some new suggestions - for OOTP7. I also expect both of these games along with OOTP7 to play a prominent role in my next All-Sports dynasty.


I will control a team in each of these sports and will provide daily updates on my progress but one of the things that draws me into EHM and WWSM is sheer depth of the sports universe I am competing in. With that in mind I will also try to convey the feel of what is going on throughout the hockey and soccer world in nearly as much detail as my updates on my teams.

I still don't have EHM yet as I wait for the hopefully soon to be released digital download I am making do with a great demo. I believe it was posted on the SI board that early next week could be when it will be available so until then I will focus solely on the soccer universe of WWSM.

SETTING UP MY SOCCER MANAGEMENT CAREER
Having very little knowledge of soccer I really was not sure where to start so after several reads of the manual (which is fairly easy to understand even for a soccer novice) and a quick day or two practice game I decided it was time to dive in and see what happens.

My cpu is not overly powerful - Celeron 2.4 ghz with 512mb ram and it runs a little slow with the following setup but it is certainly something I can tolerate for the extra detail. I wanted a good cross section of world leagues so I set it up to run the following leagues.

From the Americas
- United States Major League Soccer
- Mexico first division
- Argentina first division
- Brazil first division

From Europe
- All England Leagues
- All Scotland Leagues
- France first League only
- Germany first division only
- Italy Serie A only
- Portugal Super League only
- Spain first division only

I could be way off but these are what I assume to be considered the world's premier leagues. I selected all divisions in England and Scotland because I decided I would start my career in one of those two countries.

The amazing thing is while these leagues are front and center there is just so much else going on as well. There are World Cup qualifying games being played all over the place, European Champions Cup and the Euro Cup (I still dont know what the difference between the two is but I will make it a point to figure it out sometime) and a ton of other international games popping up here and there. It is this level of involvement and detail that I find fascinating even though I currently have little knowledge of the sport. I cant wait for OOTP7 to do something similiar where we have all the minor leagues playable alongside major league baseball plus the opportunity to scout Latin America, the Far East, hopefully even college and high school ball.

[Tiger Fan]

WHERE TO BEGIN MY SOCCER MANAGEMENT CAREER
I knew I wanted to start in either England or Scotland but had no preference as to what team. Browsing the SI messageboard I saw some threads on the challenge of starting your career unemployed and taking the first job offered. Sounds good to me so I began the league strictly as an observer, with a nice stack of resumes ready to go out on a moments notice.

I set myself up as a 40 year old Canadian (not sure if my nationality will hurt my employment chances in Britian or not) and starting watching. Tournament games were being played, which incidentally you can watch either in their entirety or just highlights with a 2-d game engine - or quick sim right through. I watched two Mexican clubs square off in something called the North American Champions Cup final. Pumas tied Monterrey 2-2 in the game to win the two game total goal series 4-2 and claim the (I guess) famous champions cup. Looking over the history of the award I can see it has been handed out every year since 1960 and a pair of MLS teams - Los Angeles and DC United have each won it once.

2 days after the Champions Cup game I received an email notifying me New England of the MLS had fired it's manager and was looking for a replacement. I was tempted but decided not to apply because I wanted to learn my craft in Britian. I checked the Job Security chart - which is a great in game list telling me who was in jeopardy of getting canned - and saw a couple of Brazilian managers and 2 more MLS clubs saying their bosses were on very shaky ground. Since the European season had not yet got into full gear there was little action on that front. I would have to wait patiently.

We were now closing in on the end of August and the European Leagues were beginning their slate of games. Two more MLS clubs fired their managers but again I resisted the tempation and decided not to apply. On the pitch (see I am learning soccer terms as we speak) I learned that Porto won the European Super Cup on penalty kicks after playing Valencia to a 1-1 draw. Near as I can figure the Super Cup is a 1 game challenge between the winner of the European Champions Cup and Euro Cup from the previous season.

On September 21st I received great news. Peter Taylor had resigned from his post of manager of Hull City in English League One to accept the head coaching job with San Jose in the MLS. I immediately dispatched an email to Hull City chairman Adam Pearson expressing my interest in the job. Hull City looked like a perfect start for my career as they were 5-4-0 (European display Wins-ties-losses) and at the top of the table in England's League One. The Hull board sent me an email confirming they had received my application and would inform me of their decision in the near future.

A week later I had still not heard from Hull City when another job looked to be opening up. St Mirren was in the cellar of the Scottish first division and rumours were flying that embattled boss Gus MacPherson was about to get the axe. A reporter asked me if I would be interested in the job should it become available. I replied "Of Course" and was delighted a day later when I read that many people saw me as the ideal candidate for the job. However, St Mirren's chairman Stewart Gilmour insisted that no decision had been made on MacPherson's future.

By mid-October I had still not heard from Hull City and St Mirren had not pulled the trigger on MacPherson yet so I continued to observe. Another job looked close to opening with Ayr of the Scottish second division. Again I expressed interest in the position should it become available. I was shocked a day later to read in the paper that someone from Ayr had said I have no chance of being offered the job and my decision to tell the media of my interest smells of desperation.

A week later after earning just 4 points from 10 games St Mirren fired MacPherson. My application went in the same day. A day later I learned Hull City had hired Mark Wright away from Chester so it looked like St Mirren was my only option. Four days later my management career began as St Mirren Chairman Stewart Gilmour offered me the job. I was excited to begin but that was tempered a fair bit with the accompanying note from Gilmour which stated due to the club's perilous financial situation there will be no transfer funds available. However, Gilmour added that he thought that might appeal to my desire for a challenge.


ST MIRREN - Fuels my desire for a challenge
Challenge. That is an understatement. Gilmour and the board expect me to steer clear of relegation this season despite the fact that the club sits dead last in the 10 team league and are 8 points away from the 8th position which would allow us to remain in the first division. On top of that I have no money for transfers and no offense to speak of. We have just 4 goals for in 10 games and have allowed 23 against in the same period.

The good news. With no knowledge of the league or my team I get to prepare the squad for a big home game with 7th place Falkirk tomorrow. Counting that contest I have 26 games to turn things around and salvage the season. So much for the good news.

Tomorrow the fun begins.

[Kavalkade]

Looks interesting, I've only briefly played Worldwide Soccer Manager, but will enjoy reading about it. EHM is a fine game that should make for a really entertaining dynasty. Good Luck!!

[tward13]

I have the older version of EHM, pre SI, and have enjoyed playing it. I tried the demo of SI's EHM and maybe it was the different interface (or the fact that I'm addicted to OOTP) but I couldn't get into it. Maybe because it seemed, to me, that it was the Soccer game altered to work with hockey? It just didn't feel like NHL hockey to me.

Still I'll be interested to follow this thread.

[Tib]

Originally Posted by tward13

I have the older version of EHM, pre SI, and have enjoyed playing it. I tried the demo of SI's EHM and maybe it was the different interface (or the fact that I'm addicted to OOTP) but I couldn't get into it. Maybe because it seemed, to me, that it was the Soccer game altered to work with hockey? It just didn't feel like NHL hockey to me.

Still I'll be interested to follow this thread.

Had the same experience. Interface = SOC and not online league- friendly.

Interested in the new one. Heard they fixed most of the gripes.

[Tiger Fan]

Originally Posted by Tib

Had the same experience. Interface = SOC and not online league- friendly.

Interested in the new one. Heard they fixed most of the gripes.

I cant speak about online play as I have little interest in it but the interface did take some getting used to. However, I am a huge hockey fan and so badly wanted to give this game a real shot that I spent a good week just messing with the demo and asking questions on the SI board. Now the demo interface really seems like second nature and as I said above the game has me hooked. It certainly feels like hockey to me at least in the couple of half seasons I have played so far.

[Steve Kuffrey]

Just a comment, FM/WWSM is just an awesome game. The depth and the "power" that this game has to draw a person in is just unreal. Really looking forward to this one.

[Tiger Fan]

Originally Posted by Steve Kuffrey

Just a comment, FM/WWSM is just an awesome game. The depth and the "power" that this game has to draw a person in is just unreal. Really looking forward to this one.

I agree completely on the depth. I have spent a couple of hours just setting up my tactics for the first game. There was no need to spend that much time as I could have simply asked my coaches for a reccomendation but it is so easy to get caught up in all the detail.

[Tiger Fan]

ST MIRREN: Day One - Assessing the Saints
My first job is to figure just who we have on this club that is any good. But before I do that I check out a brief history on the St Mirren Saints, or Buddies as they are also known. With our record, no wonder everyone else in the first division is calling us Buddies.

I am surprised to see St Mirren actually finished as high as third in Scotland's top division, the Premier League, as recently as 1980. Our club has won the first division title on three occassions, the most recent being in 2000. We also have 3 Scottish Cup titles to our name - in 1926, 1959 and 1987. One other thing I notice is that in the preseason reports the media pegged us as a bottom rung club that would be battling to avoid relegation to the Second Division.

Andy Millen is my assistant coach and I am sure I will come to rely on him heavily as I learn the ins and outs of our squad. He is only a 12 (out of 20) on judging player ability but has a better grasp (15) on assessing player potential. Like the rest of our staff his reputation in the soccer world is rated obscure.

Bill Barclay is my head scout. His numbers are adequate (15 judging ability and 14 for potential). My other scout has little value and it is just a matter of time (and money) before I try and replace him.


THE TEAM
With the help of Andy Millen we have compiled this preliminary assessment of our first team squad. As you will see we are very young and with no money available to sign transfers it will be a year of development rather than making a run at anything.

GOALKEEPERS
Craig Hinchcliffe 32 yr old - The veteran enters his second season with the Saints after 6 years with a second division club. While Millen concedes Hinchcliffe can play an important role for us, he notes that the goalie has been producing some fairly average displays for us this season. Looking at his handling and reflex attributes, which the manual calls the most important for a keeper, he seems to be among the best at his position in the league.

Chris Smith 18 yr The youngster has a bright future according to Millen but he is still a year or two away from gaining our full confidence. He appeared in 3 games early in the season while Hinchcliffe was nursing a foot injury and earned decent reviews.

We also have a pair of decent looking youngsters playing for our under 19 team but neither seems ready to contribute at this stage. If Hinchcliffe stays healthy and can be consistant I am happy with our situation in net. Especially when you seem some of the other glaring weaknesses.

DEFENDERS
Kirk Broadfoot 20 yr old DC Has played all 10 of our league games and looks to be our most consistant defender despite his youth.

Laurie Ellis 24 yr DL ML Better suited to a midfield role but will probably play at the back because of our lack of depth. He has not played much this season and as I join the team his morale is very poor. Asst Coach Millen and I agree he is good enough to start for us but the previous coach gave him just 1 league start so far this season.

Mark Lindsay 16 yr DR Needs to work on his endurance but the youngster is already one of the best tacklers on the team and will likely see some action with the big club this season.

David Martin 17 yr DR DC Will be better served seeing some playing time on the U19 squad and will likely be assigned there. Millen feels he has the potential to be a regular one day.

Ryan McKay 18 yr DL ML Another of the young guard who would benefit from some time with the U19 squad. Millen really likes this guy.

Kevin McGowne 34 yr DC The veteran is the glue that holds our defense together. Has a fair amount of Premier Division experience. Unfortunately he is suspended and will miss his first game of the year when I make my coaching debut.

Calum McGregor 16 yr DC Appeared in one league game for us but was clearly overmatched. Another player who should be with our U19 squad.

Graham McWilliam 18 yr DC Might have some potential but not good enough for the First Division at this stage of his career.

Bobby Robinson 16 yr DC Yet another teen who should be playing for our youth squad. Robinson has limited potential according to Millen.


We are very thin defensively. If I play a 4-4-2 allignment then I am very comfortable with my middle back players in McGowne and Broadfoot. Ellis and Lindsay will play the corners but I have no one else suitable for everyday action on the roster. Clearly I need to find a way to add a defender or two but with no transfer money it will be tricky.




MIDFIELDERS

Mark Crilly 24 yr M C Dropped to the reserves after a slow start. My assistant Andy Millen is confident Crilly's presence on the first team is of a great benefit to the squad. I feel he is no where near match shape but will give him a chance to prove me wrong.

Ricky Gillies 28 yr AM RC Has spent the better part of 13 years in the St Mirren organization. Gillies is not good skilled enough to be a regular but will provide some depth.

Simon Lappin 21 yr M LC Has played all 10 league games so far this season with mixed results. Millen feels he has a bright future and urges me to stick with him.

Alan Muir 17 yr M C I have no idea why this talented teen has played but one league game this season. He is the best passer on the team and has an outstanding work ethic.

Hugh Murray 25 yr M RC If he was just a little more athletically gifted he could play a vital role on our team. A good passer with decent technique but he is just a little slow to play the right side with authority.

John O'Neill 30 yr AM C Struggled early in the season and was relegated to the reserves by the previous management. He has some finishing skills and for that reason I am willing to give him another shot.

Mark Reilly 35 yr M C A backup signed away from St Johnstone during the offseason. At the tail end of his career but may see some action for us.

Darren Young 26 yr DM C A terrific tackler brought in just prior to the season from Dunfermline of the Premier League. He has played all 10 games so far and scored one of our four goals.


A lack of depth forces me to play Murray on the right wing while I feel a little more comfortable with Lappin on the left side. There is some depth in the middle where Young and Muir will start.


ATTACKERS

Mixu Paatelainen 37 yr SC The veteran Finn doubles as an assistant coach. He has had a solid career with 70 international appearances and will likely see more action that he expected with our team.

Stewart Kean 21 yr SC Has played all 10 league games for us but the younger striker has yet to score.

John Baird 19 yr SC The youngster scored twice in 4 friendlies this season but has played in just one league game so far. Millen thinks he has a solid future with us.

Brian McGinty 27 yr SC Gifted with great speed and decent jumping ability, McGinty simply lacks the finishing ability to be a solid striker. He scored 6 goals for us in 28 games last season but likely wont see much action this year.

We also have a pair of players on the reserve squad who deserve a look. 23 year old Allan Russell and 18 year old David McKenna are both strong finishers but are lacking in many other areas.


We are all set for tomorrow's contest. With McGowne suspended here is what my lineup will look like.

[Tiger Fan]

MY FIRST MATCH - ST MIRREN VS FALKIRK
St Mirren Park will be the site of my first game as manager of the Saints. Our opponent will be 7th place Falkirk. It has been a dissappointing start for Falkirk as they were tabbed by the pundits as a likely candidate for promotion to the Premier League. We lost to them 2-0 on the road earlier in the season as their star striker Darryl Duffy scored both goals.

Prior to the game I am asked if I wish to make a comment about my opponent's manager. Being the newcomer to this league I figure it is best to keep quiet - at least until I have something to brag about.

The bookies have us as 5-2 underdogs despite the fact we are playing on our home pitch.

As for the game itself Falkirk carries the play in the first half. We do get one very good chance about 20 minutes in when Alan Muir sets Stewart Kean up at the top of the goal crease (or whatever they call it in soccer) but Kean fires the ball just over the bar. At the other end our keeper Hinchcliffe makes a couple of nice saves but it is more the poor shooting of Falkirk that keeps the game level at the break.

Less than a minute into the second half Falkirk's striker Darrel Duffy outjumps two of our defenders and directs a header past Hinchcliffe to make it 1-0 for the visitors.

I open up our offense a little and we are rewarded 10 minutes later when Hugh Murray makes a nice run down the right side and then feeds the ball to John Baird. Baird finds Stewart Kean unmarked on the farside of the box and Kean makes no mistake, burying it in the back of the net to allow us to pull even at 1.

Knowing that I need three points out of this game we decide to continue to push forward. We create some chances, particularily for Kean but he is unable to convert. Especially dissappointing was a brilliant oppportunity in extra time when Kean was wide open at the top of the crease but drilled the ball right into the Falkirk keeper.

Because of a dominating first half Falkirk ended up outshooting us 17-9 but we had the far better opportunities in the second half. Kean was given a rating of 8 despite missing that last second chance while the rest of our lineup all earned 7's for their efforts.

While I am dissappointed we failed to earn 3 points I am happy with our effort. I also think I learned a few things about our team and we may be more aggressive as a result. I think I can trust my keeper and central defenders enough, particularily with McGowne returning to the lineup next game, for us to push a little further forward in an attempt to generate some more offense.


Here are the other results and league standings:

TEAM		GP	W  T  L   GF  GA  PTS
Clyde		11	7  2  2   16  11   23
Ross County     11      6  4  1   17   7   22
Patrick		11	5  4  2   21  10   19
Raith		11	5  4  2   12   7   19
St Johnstone  	11	5  1  5   24  19   16
Queen of South 	11	4  1  6	  14  18   13
Falkirk		11	3  3  5   10  10   12
Airdrie Utd	11	3  3  5    8  16   12
Hamilton	11 	3  2  6	   9  14   11
ST MIRREN	11	1  2  8    5  24    5

YESTERDAY'S RESULTS
Clyde 1 Hamilton 0
Raith 0 Airdrie Utd 1
Ross County 3 Patrick 1
St Johnston 5 Queen of South 2
St Mirren 1 Falkirk 1

NEXT SATURDAY
Airdrie Utd vs St Johnstone
Falkirk vs Patrick
Queen of South vs Ross County
St Mirren vs Clyde


LEADING GOAL SCORERS
Stephen Dobbie		St Johnstone 	8
Gary McSwegan		Ross County	7
Derek Lyle		Queen of Sth	6
Chris Hay		St Johnstone	5
Neil Janczyk		Patrick		5
Craig O'Reilly		Raith		5

In other news from Scotland and around the soccer world. Celtic blanked Motherwell 4-0 to remain unbeaten in Scottish Premier League action. With 31 points thru 11 games Celtic has a 7 point bulge on Dunfermline atop the standings.

In England Chelsea beat Norwich 1-0 while Arsenal was forced to settle for a 1-1 tie with Crystal Palace. The result stretches Chelsea's lead over Arsenal to 6 points. Liverpoll, Crystal Palace and Fulham round out the top 5. Manchester United is off to a terrible start and sits in 16th place in the 20 team league.

In Italy Serie A through 10 games Inter Milan holds a 1 point lead on both Juventus and Messina. FC Bayern leads VfB Stuttgart by a point atop the German First Division.

[Tiger Fan]

SUNDAY OCTOBER 31
Our reserve squad is in action and they play the Airdrie United Reserves to a 1-1 tie. 17 year old Stephen Anderson scores for us and we get a tremendous game from 16 year old midfielder Mark Fulton. The tie keeps the reserves in first place in their group, one point ahead of Raith and Berwick.

Our under19's also enjoy success in a 3-0 win over Greenock Morton. Mark Stewart, Jake McGregor and Mark MacDonald all score for us. We sit in the middle of the table with a 4-2-2 record in this league.

MONDAY NOVEMBER 1
Our board congratulations me on the opening game tie and add they are hoping for a long and successful era under my management.

Meanwhile Airdrie United's Kevin Christie has been named the Scottish First Division player of the month. Martin Scott of Clyde, our next opponent, finished second in the voting and the 18 year old goalkeeper was also named the league's Young Player of the Month. Manager Billy Reid of Clyde was named the top team boss of the month. He led Clyde to 4 straight wins in October.

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 2
We continue to train for this weekend's game with first place Clyde. Meanwhile today is a busy day in Champions Cup play.

[Tiger Fan]

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 2: CHAMPIONS CUP ACTION
As I mentioned earlier I have just a basic knowledge of soccer but I believe this is the premier club tournament in Europe if not the world. We are in the fourth phase of this tournament - the Group stage. The 32 teams that survive the early stages are placed in 8 groups of 4. Each group plays a double round robin series and then I believe the top two teams from each group advance to a 16 team elimination phase.

We are in the 4th of 6 matchdays for each group.

In Group A Juventus blanked Sparta Prague 5-0 while FC Bayern 
played defending tournament champion Porto to a 2-2 tie.  Juventus
 and Bayern lead the group with 8 points while Porto has 5.  
Sparta Prague is pointless and will not advance.

GROUP A
TEAM	 GP  W D L  GF GA DIF PTS
Juventus  4  2 2 0  11  3  +8  8 
FC Bayern 4  2 2 0  10  6  +4  8 
Porto     4  1 2 1   5  5   0  5 
Sp. Prag  4  0 0 4   0 12 -12  0 
            

In Group B Inter Milan has clinched advancement with a
 2-0 win over Club Brugge of Belgium.  Barcelona beat 
French side Lyon 2-0 and moves 2 points ahead of them 
in the race for second.

GROUP B
TEAM	 GP  W D L  GF GA DIF PTS
Inter     4  4 0 0   8 0  +8  12 
Barcelona 4  2 0 2   5 6  -1   6 
Lyon      4  1 1 2   2 3  -1   4 
Clb Brugg 4  0 1 3   1 7  -6   1 
   
With a 3-0 win over Turkish side Fenerbahce, Liverpool
has all but clinched advancement.  Panathinaikos of
Greece beat Denmark's DC Kabenhavn 1-0 to stay alive. 

GROUP C
TEAM	    GP W D L  GF GA DIF PTS 
Liverpool    4 3 1 0   9  2 +7  10 
FC København 4 2 0 2   3  5 -2   6 
Fenerbahçe   4 1 1 2   7  7  0   4 
Panathinaikos4 1 0 3   1  6 -5   3 
            
It went from bad to worse for Scottish side Celtic
after they were hammered 5-0 in England by Arsenal.
Real Madrid pulled into a second place tie with PSV
of the Netherlands following a 3-0 victory.

GROUP D
TEAM	 GP W D L  GF GA DIF PTS
Arsenal   4 3 0 1   9  3  +6   9 
R. Madrid 4 2 0 2   7  4  +3   6 
PSV       4 2 0 2   4  7  -3   6 
Celtic    4 1 0 3   3  9  -6   3

The other 4 groups compete tomorrow.


As for our St Mirren side I am busy scanning the transfer lists to see if I can pick up a player or two of value on loan from a premier league club in either England or Scotland.

[Tiger Fan]

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 3
A little late since I am already employed but I just received a job offer from Notts County of English League Two. They sit at the bottom of the table and have no money available so it would have been as bad, if not worse, a situation that I found myself in here at St Mirren. I thanked them for their interest but quickly turned down the offer.

In addition to another busy Champions Cup day there is some Cup action closer to home. It is round 3 of the Scottish League Cup but we are reduced to observers after losing to Airdrie United on penalties in the first round.

There are a couple of real underdogs still alive. Division 3 sides Coedenbeath and Gretna have each made it through to the third round.

Today's games

Prem 	Hibs 		vs	Cowdenbeath 	Div3
DIV 1  Airdrie United 	vs	Aberdeen	Prem
Prem	Livingston	vs	Ross County	Div 1
Prem	Rangers		vs	Dundee United	Prem
Div 3	Gretna		vs	Motherwell	Prem
Div 1	Patrick		vs	Dunfermline	Prem

			NEXT WEEK
Prem	Celtic		vs	Inverness CT	Prem
Prem	Hearts		vs	St Johnston	Div 1

The final two games were postponed until next week because Celtic and Hearts are both involved in European tournament action.

[Tiger Fan]

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 3 EVENING: CHAMPIONS CUP AND SCOTTISH LEAGUE CUP RESULTS

The clock struck midnight for the two division 3 clubs as both Cowdenbeath and Gretna were shutout in Scottish League Cup action. Premier league squad Hibs beat Cowdenbeath 2-0 to reach the quarterfinals while Motherwell topped Gretna by the same score. Livingston beat Ross County 2-0, Dunfermline topped Patrick 2-0 and Aberdeen disposed of Airdrie United 3-1 to leave St Johnstone as the only non Premier League club still active in Cup play.

St Johnstone had it's match with Hearts postponed until next week because Hearts has a Euro Cup game tomorrow.


CHAMPIONS CUP

In Group E Valencia rallied with a late goal to salvage
a 1-1 tie with Paris.  The single point was good enough
to clinch advancement for the Spanish side.  PAOK and
Anderlecht tied 0-0 in Greece.

GROUP E
TEAM	 GP  W D L  GF GA DIF PTS
Valencia  4  3 1 0   9  3 +6  10 
Paris     4  2 1 1   5  6 -1   7 
Anderlecht4  0 2 2   0  2 -2   2 
PAOK      4  0 2 2   2  5 -3   2 

In Group F Milan beat Deportivo 2-0 in Spain to
move closer to advancement.  Olympiakos of Greece
topped Norwegian club Rosenborg 3-0 to stay alive.

GROUP F
TEAM	 GP  W D L  GF GA DIF PTS
Milan     4  3 1 0  6  0  +6  10 
Deportivo 4  1 2 1  4  4   0   5 
Olympiakos4  1 1 2  5  7  -2   4 
Rosenborg 4  1 0 3  3  7  -4   3 

Group G is decided as both Chelsea and Shakhtar
have clinched advancement.  Chelsea tied Ajax of
the Netherlands 1-1 while the Ukranian side Shakhtar
won 1-0 over Leverkusen in Germany.

GROUP G
TEAM	  GP  W D L  GF GA DIF PTS
Chelsea    4  3 1 0  10  2 +8  10 
Shakhtar   4  3 0 1   6  2 +4   9 
Ajax       4  0 2 2   3  8 -5   2 
Leverkusen 4  0 1 3   2  9 -7   1 

Group H remains wide open although Dinamo Kiev
is in big trouble after losing 3-1 at home to
Werder Bremen of Germany.  Italian side Roma
scored in the 90th minute to earn a 2-2 with
Manchester United in England.

GROUP H
TEAM	  GP  W D L  GF GA DIF PTS
WerderBrem 4  2 1 1   4 2   +2  7 
Roma       4  1 3 0   5 3   +2  6 
Man Utd    4  1 2 1   3 4   -1  5 
DinamoKiev 4  0 2 2   2 5   -3  2

[Thunder044]

Thanks TF. As a Championship Manager and Total Club Manager gameplayer, its der intersting to see a thread like this. Best of luck in the scottish leagues!!

[Chappy]

Great write-up so far, although I'm very confused by all these cups and groups...

[Muppetus Galacticus]

Good luck TF, will be reading with much interest

[Tiger Fan]

Originally Posted by Chappy

Great write-up so far, although I'm very confused by all these cups and groups...

Here is my best explaination on the cups and groups. Anyone who knows for sure please correct me if I am wrong.


The Champions Cup that I discussed earlier is a European tournament. I believe it is considered the most prestigous club tournament in the world. The event is open to the champions and maybe second and third place clubs also from each of the individual country premier leagues in Europe. It is divided into several stages - the first couple being a home and home total goal series mainly involving top clubs from the smaller countries. The field gets trimmed to 32 teams which is where we are now.

Those 32 teams are divided into 8 groups of 4 and they play a double round robin series. The top two clubs in each of the 8 groups advance to a 16 team elimation series and it is eventually pared down to 1 team winning the European Club Championship.

In addition to the European championship every country runs its own Cup tournament (like the Scottish Cup I mentioned above). Each country's cup event is wide open so that any pro team regardless of its division can enter. It is a single elimination tournament and usually teams from the higher leagues get byes into the later rounds. Conceivably a team from the lowest division in a country could win the Cup championship.

To confuse things more I believe there is a second tournament in Europe for the Cup winners from each country. I believe its format is similiar to the European Champions Cup that I described above. The difference in the two is the Champions Cup is for the Regular season league champs from each nation while the Cup Winners Cup is for the winners of each countries open tournament.

On top of that we have the exact same type of events going on in Africa, Asia, South America and North America plus World Cup qualifying.

The game does a decent job explaining the basics of each event but playing it has got me interested in trying to learn more.


Hope that helps.

[goroyals]

Good stuff TF. Not a big fan of soccer, but I do find the World Cup interesting.

[Tiger Fan]

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 4
We continue to prepare for a very tough game against first place Clyde. In our first match of the season they hammered us 3-0 on their pitch. We have homefield advantage this time but the bookies still rate Clyde an overwhelming favourite to win. They have a record of 7-2-2 with their last three games all being shutout victories.


Meanwhile it was another busy day for tournament action. The Euro Cup continued its group stage play. Near as I can figure the Euro Cup is open to all of the individual country cup winners in Europe from the previous season. It differs from the Champions Cup that was played the previous 2 days in that the Champions Cup is for the regular season league leaders from each country's top division.

Here are the results. They are still early in this stage so standings will come later once a few more games have been completed.

EURO CUP
GROUP A
Parma (Ita) 2 Hearts (Scot) 0
Maritimo (Port) 0 AZ (Netherlands) 0

GROUP B
Basal (Switz) 1 VfB Stuttgart (Germ) 1
Udinese (Ita) 2 Rapid Vienna (Austria) 1

GROUP C
Feyenoord (Netherlands) 3 Djurgarden (Swed) 0
Sporting CP (Port) 2 Wolfsburg (Germ) 2

GROUP D
AEK (Greece) 2 Auxerre (France) 1
Middlesbrough (Eng) 3 Bochum (Germ) 0

GROUP E
Aachen (Germ) 2 Dinamo Buc (Romania) 1
Sevilla (Spain) 4 Lazio (Italy) 1

GROUP F
Monaco (France) 2 Benfica (Port) 1
CSKA Sofia (Bulgaria) 2 M Haifa (Israel) 2

GROUP G
Dortmund (Germ) 1 Nacional da Madeira (Port) 1
Rangers (Scot) 3 GAK (Austria) 1

GROUP H
Schalke04 (Germ) 2 Maribor (Slovenia) 0
Newcastle (Eng) 2 Heerenveen (Netherlands) 0