Disclaimer89
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I'd say keep it all together, it is all a great read and I'd hate for the first half of your story to get lost...people should definitely experience both halves
C.J. Lippo, A life in football.
- Thread starter Lippo255
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I'd say keep it all together, it is all a great read and I'd hate for the first half of your story to get lost...people should definitely experience both halves
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New Beginnings
The Set-up.
So, in re-creating C.J. for the managerial part of his career I have tried, as much as possible, to stay true to the character from the BaP.
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The first image is from the BaP, the second, my recreation.
As you can see, I have attempted to recreate him as closely as possible from playing experience, coaching badges & even his preferred formation (which I will try to use).
Some relationships & coaching stats vary but that can't be helped.
I have also added George to the DB for Sydney FC, copying his birthday, playing career, stats, relationships & Attributes as closely as I could.
On a personal note, I am excited to once again be doing a "traditional" story. It feels like forever since I did anything but play online games or sim through the years.
I hope you all enjoy the next chapter of C.J.'s career, thanks for following.
The Melbourne Knights.
At first Glance.
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The Melbourne Knights are quite a famous club in Australia. Well, as famous as a lower league club can be in any case.
Some notable ex-players include legendary duo, Mark Viduka & Danny Tiatto.
Its also worth mentioning that our chairman is looking to leave & the media has us down for a 4th placed finish.
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Our facilities are very good for the level with "well established" youth recruitment to go with a 15K stadium & good training facilities.
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Its not all good news though with the club predicted to make a loss of near enough to 1M pounds before a ball has been kicked! Not at all unexpected given the horrendous financial state of Australian football.
Lets hope I can trim some fat off of the wage budget & collect some unexpected prize money from somewhere!
The Squad
First impressions & early decisions
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I was initially quite pleased with what I saw when first running my eye over the squad at my disposal.
We have some stand out players like Daniel Visevic, Antun Kovacevic & Jacob Colosimo as well as some talented youngsters like Jordan O'Doherty & Ivan Grgic.
On closer inspection though I found some real issues.
First off, it appears that all but 3 of my players are off contract in a couple of months. Looking at our schedule, that's smack bang in the middle of competitive competition.
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The day before our second round match up in the Mirabella Cup in fact. Not ideal.
I quickly scrambled to contact the guys to get an idea of who was interested in staying on.
To my surprise, I found that all but 2 were willing to discuss terms, most would even settle for the same wage or even non contracts!
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Unfortunately the hold outs were 2 of our better players but never mind, as long as I can trim some fat I know I can assemble a squad that will last for more then a couple of months.
Which brings me to my next issue. Of the 3 players contracted past the next 2 months we have Ben Surey (2 and a half stars, 775 P/W) & Chris May (half star, 650 P/W) they are the clubs biggest earners by a long, long way. Getting rid of those 2 is going to be essential to building a competitive squad moving forward.
Obviously my first move was to offer them out on a free transfer. Unsurprisingly there were no takers so I made the call to pay them out just to be rid of them.
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This gave me a whopping 1300 pound of free wage room. That's over a 3rd of my total budget! With that money I can easily afford to keep the majority of my current squad, bring in some new faces & still have cash to spare!
My first week in the job &
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While I can cross my fingers & hope for a tycoon, the truth is this is a delay I could really do without.
My attempts to get in early & nick good players before the competition gets wind of their availability have been foiled.
I did however manage to confirm one deal before the embargo was in place.
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Kiwi shot stopper, Rhyss Keane, joins on a free transfer.
Bought in as a direct replacement for the over-paid Chris May, Keane is likely to beat out Michael O'Farrell as my first choice keeper.
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Unfortunately, the embargo only works one way & with Antun Kovacevic unwilling to resign, I had to let him go.
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I had no reservations about the deal, if he didn't leave now he would do in a couple of months. Unfortunately not everyone saw it that way.
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I am not sure if Sam understands what a transfer embargo is or that Antun had no interest in staying but I was extremely happy when he decided to shut his yap & leave my office a relatively happy man.
All is good in the world again.
What!?
Oh, wait. That's not good...
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What a first week! What the F@#K have I gotten myself into!
Exciting and nervewrecking at the same time! Let's hope the new owner decides to keep you around, so you won't have to go job-hunting already.
P.S.: Am I the only one hoping you will get to manage George before his career is over...?
P.S.: Am I the only one hoping you will get to manage George before his career is over...?
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Thankfully, after some **** kissing in the press, I have been spared the humiliation of having to return to my local unemployment office.
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The new board injected some much needed cash into the club however they did nothing to help my wage or transfer budget.
I don't really mind. I am confident of putting together a competitive squad the funds at my disposal.
Raaritsgozilla
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Awesome idea and story! Good luck.
As a New Zealander, what is going on with the Aussie leagues? Phoenix and Auckland City playing together?
As a New Zealander, what is going on with the Aussie leagues? Phoenix and Auckland City playing together?
Hey mate, thanks for the kind words! Nice to hear from a Kiwi on here
As for Auckland & the Phoenix, its all part of Weiry's Aussie lower league database which you can find here http://www.fm-base.co.uk/forum/football-manager-2015-editing-discussion/183887-australian-league-system-pyramid.html. Its fun, check it out!
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Obviously wont be doing this for every pre-season game but wanted to see how things looked without the club logo's as some of them are proving hard to track down.
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Obviously wont be doing this for every pre-season game but wanted to see how things looked without the club logo's as some of them are proving hard to track down.
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I'm impressed you attracted 39 people to watch, I've never seen more than 10 watching a match at that park
Hahaha, Lippo's first game in management was a massive draw card!
JamesScott2908
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Unfortunate end to the playing days however I am sure his management career will surpass!
Hahaha, Lippo's first game in management was a massive draw card!
I wonder how many of those 39 have the same last name as the manager...?
Hahaha, Lippo's first game in management was a massive draw card!
This is where 39 people packed in to watch C.J Lippo's managerial debut.
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True Lower League stuff
This is where 39 people packed in to watch C.J Lippo's managerial debut.
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True Lower League stuff
According to my information, you can seat 4000 people in that "stand"
Pre-Season
As a player I always dreaded pre-season, just another chance to injure myself against some young kid looking to prove a point. As a manager it was my first opportunity to see the idea's I had in my head come to life on the field.
As a whole, results were decent but, more importantly, I was impressed with what I saw from the lads. Although I had asked them to learn a completely new system, they seemed to be adapting well.
Tactics
I have 2 main shapes I am looking to implement.
A 4-4-2 with a wide diamond in midfield is still my preferred way to play though, even after our recruitment efforts, I am still unsure if we have the balance right to pull it off.
Based on what I've seen of the guys, a 4-1-2-2-1 may be our strongest formation. We have the cattle to play it, play it well & mix things up to vary our threat.
I am also training a flat 4-4-2 but don't expect it to get much use. We only have 2 natural strikers in the squad at the moment so any shape that relies on both is a risky proposition.
Transfers
Unfortunately, the transfer embargo meant we weren't as active in the market as I'd hoped. I sat back & watched as a number of possible recruits were snapped up while our hands were tied. I did however get a few deals over the line.
In addition to Rhyss Keane, I've bought in a further 4 players so far. Tom King is a young left back with a wicked cross, Paul Savio an experienced right back or central defender, Matthew Demo is an explosive striker bought in to compliment the hulking frame of Stipo Andrijasevic & Seimata Chelia is a 36 year old Vanuatu international who plays in midfield.
All 3 of my departures have already been discussed. May & Surey were given free transfers to cut back on wages, Antun Kovacevic left to join South Hobart after refusing to discuss a new deal.
And that's about it, I think I have covered everything...
Nothing left to do but sit back & await my first competitive match as a manager. I honestly cant wait! Look out Ballarat Red Devils, Lippo's Knights are coming!
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