Crusaders F.C. - The European Crusade

[Arazar]

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Crusaders F.C. are one of the biggest clubs in Northern Ireland, and play in the Danske Bank Premiership, the top flight of Northern Irish Football. They finished 2nd in the 2012-13 season, and have fierce local rivals in Cliftonville. Belfast Big Two Glentoran and the dominant force of 51 time league winners, Linfield, are historic rivals in the division.

Northern Irish Honours



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• Irish League:
  • Winners (4): 1972-73, 1975-76, 1994-95, 1996-97
  • Runners-up (4): 1992-93, 1995-96, 2010-11, 2012-13
• Irish Cup:
  • Winners (3): 1966-67, 1967-68, 2008-09
  • Runners-up (3): 1979-80, 2010-11, 2011-12
• Irish league Cup:
  • Winners (2): 1996-97, 2011-12
  • Runners-up (5): 1986-87, 1995-96, 2007-08, 2012-13, 2013-14
• County Antrim Shield:
  • Winners (6.): 1959-60, 1964-65, 1968-69, 1973-74, 1991-92, 2009-10
  • Runners-up (14): 1954-55, 1966-67, 1970-71, 1971-72, 1977-78, 1978-79, 1979-80, 1983-84, 1984-85, 1993-94, 1995-96, 1997-98, 2004-05, 2007-08
• Sentanta Sports Cup (between Irish and Northern Irish clubs):
  • Winners (1): 2012

In this story, I set out to make Crusaders a dominant force domestically, and to improve the stature of both the club and league in Europe. To manage the Northern Irish national team one day is an ambition. I chose Crusaders as it presents a much bigger challenge than Linfield, who are streets ahead of everyone else in terms of honours and infrastructure (and hopefully can join us on a European adventure in the not-to-distant future, to help further boost our UEFA standing as a league!). The challenge of taking a relatively tiny club in such a lowly ranked league into Europe and improving the standard of football in a country is massive, and one I look forward to!

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The 4G artificial pitch used at the Crusaders' 3383 capacity Seaview stadium
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I have loaded just the English, Scottish, Northern Irish and Irish leagues for this save in order to maximise game speed while also having all the NI players possible, all English and Scottish leagues while also the Irish leagues since we will encounter them every season in the Sentanta Cup.

 

[AndySams10]

Good Luck mate. Look forward to seeing how you do.

 

[Arazar]

First Impressions

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Key Players
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These are my 3 best players, most notably the 6 times NI capped Colin Coates, who is my best player and also now club captain. The star of the side if ever there was one!

 

[ltpbfc]

Good luck mate, hope you do well.

 

[Arazar]

First impressions and preparations

Transfers
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Being entrusted with a ?600/pw budget, I brought in 2 scouts, 1 Northern Irish and 1 English, to help identify signings. I brought in a solid left-back in Johnny Black and a defensive midfielder in Stephen McAlorum who could be the difference in games where we switch from the 4-4-2 to 4-5-1 in order to see games out.

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First team squad

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After a 100% win ratio from our pre-season against other NI sides, mainly confidence boosters, we were drawn against Azerbaijan side Xazar in the 1st round of the Europa League. Here's what happened:

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We created the better chances in the first leg, and took 2 of them to give us something to defend in Azerbaijan. We set up to be hard to beat in the away game, and nicked 2 goals to go through 4-1 on aggregate! A great start to the campaign!

Up next...

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We will face the Hungarian side Debrecen. With ?84k already in the bank from that 1st round win, more riches are an incentive in the 2nd round, money which dwarfs the annual TV revenue for the whole season (?50k for winning the league!). We can dream of making the group stages, where the 2 million pounds could totally transform our club.

New updates coming soon

 

[Athe~]

I had a 3 season save with Crusaders, won the league every time. It wasn't easy, though! Got bored after I went pro and the league became a walk in the park.

McCutcheon and Adamson or Owens up front (both are very good) were nothing short of amazing.

 

[Arazar]

I had a 3 season save with Crusaders, won the league every time. It wasn't easy, though! Got bored after I went pro and the league became a walk in the park.

McCutcheon and Adamson or Owens up front (both are very good) were nothing short of amazing.

The aim is to get the NI league on a par with some other good European leagues like the Belgian and Dutch ones, with much higher quality all round. It may take many many seasons and I don't know if I can do it on my own, I'll probably need Linfield to become a European force at some point!

As for the Crusaders players, Coates is a great player and I signed him for rivals Linfield on a Bosman on 13! Top class

 

[ltpbfc]

I don't know if it's just me but I find N.Ireland good for regens. I've signed three 4.5/5 star potential players in my wolves save.

 

[Arazar]

I don't know if it's just me but I find N.Ireland good for regens. I've signed three 4.5/5 star potential players in my wolves save.

From what teams out of interest? FM cliche I know but they are the future, in 4-5 years time I want my squad to be full of them, and the ones that don't make it will trickle down to strengthen lower teams!

 

[Athe~]

The aim is to get the NI league on a par with some other good European leagues like the Belgian and Dutch ones, with much higher quality all round. It may take many many seasons and I don't know if I can do it on my own, I'll probably need Linfield to become a European force at some point!

As for the Crusaders players, Coates is a great player and I signed him for rivals Linfield on a Bosman on 13! Top class

Coates and Robinson were crucial, great CB partnership throughout the years. In my third and final season I had an amazing cup run reaching the final 16 of the EL after kicking Roma out in the group stages (Dropped out of CL in the play-off round, sadly). I was also trying to get the NI league and NT to the top, but the fact that I was bossing the league with ease and Michael O'Neill was doing a great job with the NT and didn't get the boot killed the fun for me as I couldn't become NT manager and the league was far too easy.

 

[ltpbfc]

From what teams out of interest? FM cliche I know but they are the future, in 4-5 years time I want my squad to be full of them, and the ones that don't make it will trickle down to strengthen lower teams!

I got two from Linfield and other was from Glentoran I think. They were all relatively cheap considering their potential.

 

[Arazar]

I love building the anticipation;

(6)

Big update on its way...

 

[Arazar]

Update - Massive Strides forward made

Previously, we had just been drawn against Hungarians Debrecen in the 2nd Round Qualifier for the Europa League, with the first leg at home.

The boys smashed 4 past them in the first leg, but worryingly we conceded 2 away goals. Our defensive frailties will be our undoing in Europe, but with a limited budget there isn't much I can do about that. We set up in the second leg to defend with the 4-5-1, and we managed a 1-1 to see us through to the 3rd round. Success! And another ?84k all the way to the bank!

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Next up, we were drawn against Irish side Drogheda United in the 3rd round, in what was sure to be a Holy Sectarian War! Expect seats to be torn out and launched accross the terraces, and a pitch invasion at the end. The police will have their hands full, that's for sure. (6)

We parked the bus in the first leg for a 0-0, and then kept our end of the bargain with a 2-1 at home to see us through to the playoffs!

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So another ?84k hit the bank account, but we were in with the chance of a far bigger cheque against AaB or Aalborg of Denmark in the playoffs!

We set up to play on the counter, and we managed to win the first leg 1-0 with Jordan Owens towering in a header from a corner. In the second leg, we took our chances on the counter and saw them off 3-2 and 4-2 on aggregate. While the score flattered us, it didn't matter one bit as the prize money for winning that game and making the group stages totals ?1.2million!

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Some good and bad news also, as Linfield made the playoffs also but were given a much harder draw against Dutch Giants AZ Alkmaar, being destroyed 8-1 on aggregate. Despite missing out on the massive payday we enjoyed for making the groups, they still would have received over ?400k in prize money for getting to the fourth round of qualifying, which is alot in Northern Irish football!

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Unfortunately, I forgot to ask for more budget after qualifying with 2 days left of the window (****!) and so couldn't touch that tasty balance. Here's the roundup of summer transfers:

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On to the groups, and we were drawn against Udinese, Zurich and APOEL Nicosia. Bring it on!

Final group table:​

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Well, it was fun while it lasted. We lost every game apart from the two at home against the smaller clubs Zurich and APOEL Nicosia, which we drew. Its all part of the learning curve and the money gained from this cup run should help us build so we can be here again!

As for the league fixtures, we found some consistency in what is a pretty poor league. Glentoran, Linfield, Portadown, Glenavon and our rivals (and holders) Cliftonville are the bigger teams, while the other half of the table is fairly reflective of stature also.

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With half the season gone, we topped the table with 49 points from 23 games, just a point ahead of Portadown. With Europe no longer on the agenda this season, we can focus our attentions on a title challenge.

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One thing about the NI football landscape is the sheer amount of fixtures in all competitions. I don't think it is designed for regular European football, so we will have to ensure we always have a large squad (quality isn't so important for domestic matches) or else they will be burnt out. The League has 38 games, and there is the Irish Cup, Irish League Cup, All-Ireland Cup and also the County Antrim Shield. which we won by defeating rivals Cliftonville in the Semis and then a second tier side in the final:

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Financially, we have a balance of ?1.5million and expected to rise to ?3million come the end of the season (due to Europa League TV payments) which dwarfs our wage-bill and outgoings. This surplus gives us longevity, and room to expand operations.

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With these pleasing results, our board showed great ambition by granting the expansion of both training and youth facilities, as well as improved junior coaching. Our transfer and wage budgets were also increased by a total of ?10k-a-week when all assigned to wages. This is plenty to help us achieve domestic success with one eye on equaling our Europa League run next season (where we may not get an easy ride like this season, so improvements must be made).

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So, into the January transfer window we go, I'll be getting stuck in and delivering a full report on developments in due time!

 

[Arazar]

Just a quick few things

I've been given a budget, and while I want to strengthen, I want to be fair to the NI clubs I'll be buying from. Therefore I'll pay up front and slightly over the odds in order to help them grow as well.

I'll be posting screenshots of all the players I sign with a few comments about each one to keep you keen readers informed!

I'm honestly loving this save already, and it's going to be a long term one full of challenges; not just in bringing success to Crusaders FC both domestically and in Europe, but also improving the standard of Northern Irish football both at club level and on the International stage.

Thanks for reading, and stay tuned!

 

[ltpbfc]

Wow, good start in europe mate. That prize money should come in handy!

 

[Arazar]

Wow, good start in europe mate. That prize money should come in handy!

As you can see from the last 5 screenshots, its already been spent! Hahaha

Not completely, but it's gone a long way and I want to spread it across clubs in Northern Ireland, in return for some players!

I didn't expect to reach the group stages but we really did get lucky with the draw for all of the qualifiers, we dodged some real bullets as you can see with Linfields' 8-1 defeat to AZ Alkmaar.

 

[TheFalse9]

Even though you got an easier ride than Linfield, you still faced some hard teams in the qualifiers - so it's a great achievement mate! The fact that you managed to make a profit (by spending nothing) and earn the club millions in your first season in charge is nothing short of extraordinary, congratulations!

 

[Arazar]

Even though you got an easier ride than Linfield, you still faced some hard teams in the qualifiers - so it's a great achievement mate! The fact that you managed to make a profit (by spending nothing) and earn the club millions in your first season in charge is nothing short of extraordinary, congratulations!

Thanks!

This is just the start, I'm delighted that a 3-5 year project has been completed ahead of schedule in just 1 season; since the first stage is to get hands on that Group stage money! The next stage is to try and consistently qualify for the group stages in Europe, which requires good investment both now (January) and in the summer.

The philanthropy side of this save is brilliant, as I'll be constantly trying to build all of my league rivals with good transfer deals so they can hopefully one season gatecrash the Group stages in Europe as well, with the end game of making this NI league as reputable/well financed as some of the biggest in Europe!

 

[Arazar]

2013/14 January transfers and second half

So with a significant budget available, we got stuck into the transfer market, buying domestically. Most of these players were available on approach to sign for next season but I wanted to give our rivals a cash injection and share the Europa love!

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Here are the guys I signed:

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Casement cost 75k from Portadown and is a good utility player

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Canning was 85k from Coleraine and is a right-back with good potential.

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Birney is a young centre-half, and cost 27.5k from Glentoran.

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Jamie Mulgrew is a NI international and adds a bit of zip to the midfield, for 40k.

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McAllister is a 16 year old keeper with good potential, costing 20k from Warrenpoint.

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Drummond will be the new No. 1, after joining for 20k from Coleraine. 21 year old keeper with room to grow even further.

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Hughes is an exciting young striker, and joined from Warrenpoint for 25k.

So this concludes the January deals, and we now have some good talent to help us become a dominant force domestically.

Conclusion to the season​

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We defeated a second division side to win the Irish League cup! More glory for Crusaders, completing our double.

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There was to be no domestic clean sweep however, as we lost to a relegation threatened side in the Irish Cup (equivalent of the FA Cup in England).

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We kept up our good form to see out the season, as CHAMPIONS!

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This means we will enter the qualifiers for the Champions League next season, I don't know how it affects our chances vs. the Europa League though due to the Champions qualification route. We finally rounded off the season with the All-Ireland Cup Final:

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The Quadruple is done, very nearly a domestic clean sweep but for the Irish Cup, which eluded us. This season has been a great success, and hopefully our stature in the game has improved!

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The board confirmed upgrades to the training and youth facilities, great news as we look to invest what's left of the prize money following a large spend in January!

 

[coolmcool]

Going really well mate had a a story on here last year with Limerick from the other side of Ireland so have had a few run ins with some of the teams you play against in the All Ireland Cup, love an obscure league did 13 seasons with them and it was one of my favourite saves good luck, and KIU