Darren Trott's Managerial Journey!

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We were heavy favourites for this game. Margate are in the National Leagues and this was billed as a tough encounter for them. I rested a lot of my first team players during this congested phase. With two strikers, Jake Hyde and Reece Thompson doing well, I decided to give Vadaine Oliver a start as the striker.

Margate set-up very well and performed excellently in the first half. Our strikers didn't get enough opportunities to score. But it wasn't just the good defense; our attacking play was very weak. Oliver remained very passive and barely troubled Margate's defense.

"You wanted first team football - so here it is. I want you to prove to me, and everyone that you can do well at this club. I want more from you," I told Oliver during the half-time team talk.

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Things didn't change with Oliver as he continued his poor form. Thankfully, Coulson gave us the lead with a tap-in from the left wing. In the 65th minute, I decided I've had enough with Oliver and brought on Thompson in his stead. Aaaaaaand Thompson scored within 15 minutes of being on the field.

We completed the scoring in the 80th minute when McCoy's cross was awkwardly turned into his own net by Wharton. The final score was 3-0, with all goals coming in the second half. The last 20 odd minutes were easily our best phase when Thompson was on the pitch.





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Awesome story can't wait to see York climbing the leagues. Cool presentation to match. Looking forward to more.
 
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FA Cup 3rd Round Draw
View attachment 208611Tricky draw. After facing teams from the National Leagues in the first two rounds, it's time to take on a League One side. Walsall will be favourites for this clash and it'll be interesting to see how we hold our own against them!
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Johnstone's Paint Trophy: North Semi final - Tough game ahead! Burton are 5th in the League One and will be coming to Bootham Crescent hoping for a victory. I started with my preferred 4123 formation with Jake Hyde leading the line. Hyde has been our best striker this season and I needed a strong side for this game.
We started off cautiously, and at a very low tempo to disrupt Burton's momentum. It kinda worked as most of their threat in the first half came from long shots and long, hopeful passes that relied more on luck and our mistakes.

"One goal! We need one goal, lads. If you get it, I can see you winning this one," I told them at half time. But it was not all that simple. Burton have good quality in their attack and we had to keep our focus and composure for the remaining of the game. I reminded the defenders of this.

The second half was vibrant, in stark contrast to a drab first half. Both sides were going for the win, which led to some nervous moments and some nice attacking play. Moments after the Burton strike force missed a glorious opportunity to go 1-0 up, Coulson put us ahead with a close range finish. Hyde's cross found Coulson at the far post who had an easy tap-in. 1-0 to us!

With the game winding down, I went a bit defensive. Counter mentality, and rigid structure with 6 players told to stay in our half at all times. It helped us as Burton couldn't find a way past us. The game finished 1-0.

Excellent victory in the end. And we are now through to the Northern finals of the Cup! Oh and this was our fifth clean-sheet in a row!
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With this game coming just 3 days after our JPT win, there were a few tired legs in the dressing room. I had to shuffle my side a bit so as to not risk fatigue-related issues. Bristol are 19th in the League and I'm expecting a win in this game, despite resting a few names.
The game started slowly. To be honest, if I weren't managing a side today I would've fallen asleep due to boredom. It took over 30 minutes for the first significant moment to occur. Jake Hyde got two chances and he managed to hit the bar on both occasions after comfortably beating the goal keeper. We took the lead in the 41st minute through Anthony Straker, who headed home a cross by right back Nolan.

My half-time teamtalk had one theme - avoid complacency. I told the players to make sure we get the 3 points from a winning position.

Chris Lester doubled our lead in the 58th minute with a composed finish from 13 yards after Berrett played him through. 2-0 with 30 minutes left! Considering that Bristol had just one attempt till then, 3 points seemed all but secure. Bristol asked our defense a couple of questions towards the end but nothing we couldn't handle.

Sixth clean sheet in a row in the League, and fifth straight victory in all competitions. Things are good!

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Emile Sinclair
There are five strikers in my first team - Jake Hyde, Reece Thompson, Ellis Bellamy, Vadaine Oliver and Emile Sinclair. Bellamy and Sinclair can play on the left and right wing, respectively.

Hyde has been our best forward and Thompson has been chipping in with goals when given the chance. Bellamy has played every game as a left inside forward rather than a central one. Oliver has been poor whenever he got a start.

That leaves me with Emile Sinclair. He has started as a right winger in a handful of games and came on a sub for the striker position even fewer times. With so few opportunities, he approached me to resolve the issue.
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After careful consideration, I thought that a transfer was the best option for him. We have excellent right wingers in Lester and Coulson, and I don't see him getting opportunities as a striker with Hyde, Bellamy and Thompson around.
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Home game against a side in the relegation zone? A good chance to get 3 points and continue our clean sheet run. But Morecamble will be desperate for goals as they've been on a poor form and we have to be watchful.
The boys looked a bit casual in the first 20-25 minutes of the game with Morecambe getting the best chance of the game. Given our slow defense, Morecambe resorted to long balls from defense to attack hoping to catch our defenders off-position. They did and if not for Flinders' acrobatics in goal, it would've been 1-0 to the away side. The first half was quite average from our viewpoint. A few chances but none troubled their GK.

I made sure the lads were all pumped up before restart. We created a lot of chances in the opening 10 mins of second half but poor finishing and the cross-bar stopped us from taking the lead. If this continued, our winning form would end today. When Summerfield's shot rattled the crossbar, I was cursing my luck - for almost a minute....
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Coulson came on for Straker in the 61st minute. I needed an inside forward, as opposed to a traditional winger. And the gamble paid off perfectly as Coulson opened the scoring with a drilled finish from 15 yards. He was delighted as he ran towards the supporters to celebrate.

The game was nearing the end but Morecambe weren't giving up. Our defense was able to repel their long balls but one mistake and *poof* lead gone! And a goal was scored in the 92nd minute, with literally a few kicks remaining. Thankfully, it was Coulson who scored again from close range.

A sigh of relief from me, a joyful scream from Coulson, and 3 points and a cleansheet for the team! Although Morecambe highlighted our weaknesses today; and through the stats don't seem to be in their favour, they gave us a lot of trouble with their speedy forwards.
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Sky Bet League 2
I started rather slowly as a manager but the performance of the side has increased significantly over the last couple of months. Here's the list of matches in the League so far:
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We conceded too many at the start of the season and were involved in a lot of draws and some away defeats too. But since the home loss to Wimbledon, we got our act together and are on a 7 game unbeaten streak. The most pleasing thing for me is that we've kept cleansheets in all 7 of them!

Such a disciplined defensive display has pushed us upward in the table and has taken us from one of the competition's worst defenses to the competition's best.
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wow what an amazing run your on...any help you can offer for a good tactic lol...as my strikers just d not score
 
Cbarber871 said:
wow what an amazing run your on...any help you can offer for a good tactic lol...as my strikers just d not score
Click to expand...

Thanks! Even though my team is currently on a winning streak, it's not my striker(s) doing most of the scoring. A lot of my goals come from my wingers cutting in, or midfielders making forward run.

I don't want to fully reveal my tactic yet but I've got a box-to-box midfielder and another midfielder who is encouraged to make forward runs. Also, my wide men are given a lot of freedom - who contribute a lot to my attack. My strikers are usually set to deep lying forward, defensive forward or target man (all on support).

I'm fairly surprised that we've been consistently scoring because the tactic I'm using right now uses a defense first approach. No wonder we're keeping so many cleansheets. :P
 
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Our opposition today were a side expected to finish above us but this season has gone differently for both the clubs. While we have exceeded expectations, Northampton are battling it out in the middle of the table. We were slight favourites for this encounter due to our recent good form.
Northampton started the game on the front foot and were relentless in attack. Our attempts to put brakes on their tempo seemed pointless. And D'Ath deservedly gave them the lead in the 35th minute. And there is goes. We finally concede after 636 minutes in the League. Northampton became even more resilient after that goal and there was an eerie silence around the Bootham Crescent. I, however, was making quick notes in my pocket book about our gameplay and tactics.

Right! A few things were changed during halftime. Counter fire with fire. I asked the players to up the tempo and get stuck into tackles. I had some nasty words for selected players as well.

We cancelled each other out after the break. Just after the hour mark, we equalized through Keith Lowe. The centerback headed home from a corner, just beyond their keeper's reach. Is that our way into the game after loads of Northampton dominance?

Sadly not! Lawson D'Ath netted his second and we were back to square one. This goal was a sensational goal though. D'Ath launched a shot from 25 yards that swiftly flew into the net. Why does he have to score it against us? Couldn't he have done it to another team in front of their home fans. ******* it!
[video=youtube;U4tjkx81gY8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4tjkx81gY8[/video]

With the game nearing an end, we needed something special to equalize. Just like how Northampton broke our defense after minutes, Jake Hyde scored for us after over 10 hours of not scoring. Get in! 79 minutes gone, it was 2-2! There were suspicions of off-side when Berrett played the through ball but the linesman got the decision right.
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Northampton were shell-shocked. We tried to hit them, for one final time. I even brought on another striker to put pressure on our opposition. But somethings are not meant to be. We couldn't met a third and the game ended 2-2. Lots of drama in the second half - we maintain our unbeaten streak but lose our cleansheet streak.
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This promised to be a good game. I have faced Mansfield twice as the York manager and both those games have been thrilling - a six goal draw in the League and a narrow 1-0 victory in the JPT.
After our attempt at expansive football backfiring (a bit) against Northampton, I reverted to my preferred 4123 formation. My motto as a defender was simple - If we don't concede, there's a good chance we'll win. That's exactly how I set-up the team. For the entirety of the first half, we stopped Mansfield in the midfield and tried to put an attack together ourselves. As Mansfield were able to stop our midfield easily, the game boiled down to a congested midfield battle.

Fine by me! "Keep going, lads. You are doing well but I know you can do better. A little bit more and you'll come out winners," I told them.

More of the same followed in the second half. Two stubborn defensive units on display! It wasn't exactly pretty but I was happy with the way things are going. One opening, just one opening is all we needed. And it came from a corner. A floated ball into the middle of the box was headed brilliantly by James Berrett between the keeper and the defender on the post.
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We got the goal. It's time to see the game through. We continued our resilient defending and stopped every Mansfield attack in the midfield. They started taking shots from well outside the box and skied nearly everything. The home side couldn't stop us from walking away with 3 points. The game only had one shot on target - the stats perfectly reflect this game!

Not the prettiest football on display today but a very good victory.

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Contracts
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Little did I realize that nearly a half of my squad is nearing the end of their contracts. I spent the last two days talking to agents, some over the phone and the rest in person. After so many negotiations, it's all done.

Five of them weren't offered contracts. Ingham wants to leave, so no point in renewal. I'm not so sure about Swan and Sinclair - I feel it's better for them to move on to play regular football. Same for Winfield. As for Straker, his wage demand was TOO MUCH for his quality. Ya, screw that. I have better options on the left wing.
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Since I was negotiating player contracts, I decided to do the same with the backroom staff. Everyone except Torpey accepted the terms of the contract but needed some time to finalize their decision. Torpey wasn't sure of carrying on with his tasks as asst. manager. If he wants to move on, I need to find a new asst. manager.

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FIFA Ballon d'Or 2015
View attachment 207183Messi won the FIFA Ballon d'Or, surprise surprise! Cristiano couldn't even make it to the top three. However, two Premier League players took the 2nd and 3rd place, which was rather interesting to see.
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