Non League to Legend [FM23]

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

With my current Wrexham save being in the year 2042 with my side being a footballing powerhouse, I've decided that the time is right to freshen things up and try something new. To do this I've decided to do something I've never done before and start an unemployed save and see where I go. I'll be holidaying until just before Christmas 2023 before then looking to find a job.

With that said, there will be one major rule that I will be abiding by for the duration of this journey.

Keep it realistic. I'm from the North West so any starting jobs would need to be within commuting distance. Also, should I be offered other jobs during the save I will view them on a basis on if his save were real life, would I move to that club. For instance if the approaching club offer a higher salary or a long term contract, I'd be more inclined to take the job.

Let the journey begin.

1st of December 2023 and here are the jobs on offer currently.

To be honest, the only realistic job would be Oldham but they, along with Scunthorpe and Forest Green, are off limits due to my dislike of the clubs IRL.

My first interview offer and it's Concord Rangers. Looking at the map I see that they are a west London based club which is way too far away to consider, especially the house prices around that area.

Fast forward 2 weeks and there are now a few more jobs available.

Here we go, an interview offer which is actually worth looking at. Alfreton is about 2 hours from where I live, which is entirely doable until I manage to get myself on my feet and buy a place.

Shotout to @TheNotSoSpecialOne for inspiring this

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

SUCCESS. Alfreton have offered me the job and I've decided to accept, mainly due to the salary of £550 a week. Can't say no to that.

Alfreton aren't the biggest club in the world but for the level we're at, we don't look too bad. A 3,600 capacity stadium is more than decent at this level, with some good facilities to boot.

This season the board want us to finish in a mid-table position with us then looking to push into the top half of the table in future seasons. I'd say that's doable if we can hit the ground running this season.

It's not been great so far this season and we see ourselves in 22nd place in the National League North, though just two wins could see us up as high as 14th place. The first aim is to upturn our form which is dismal when you look at this table. Atleast we aren't as bad as Hereford's form.

A quick glance at the squad shows where the problem lies. To say this squad is paper thin would be an understatement. Apparently my predecessor wasn't a fan of an actual midfield! I'm definitely going to have some work to do to bolster the squad a bit.

Fortunately, we have a bit of leeway in the wage budget to do so. It's going to be about signing the right players for the right positions. That being said, let's have a look at the three system variations I have in mind for the club.

With the players we have this is the formation I'm going to go with a now. A very attacking formation but it suits our lack of midfield quality and I'm hoping we can adopt a "We'll score more than you" philosophy.

 

[FM_TNSSO]

Good luck mate...I'll be following!

 

[Nightman]

Good luck!

 

[MrTini23]

Good luck mate...I'll be following!

Good luck!

Thanks guys!

Non League to Legend [FM23]

December 2023

The first order of business was to dive into the transfer market and see what is available. This lead to us bringing in three players ahead of my first game in charge.



First through the door was striker Marquise Martins on loan from Crewe. A relatively inexperienced striker having only played one senior game but he has good potential.



He was followed up by a second striker with Charlie Caton joining on a free following his release from Shrewsbury. Charlie was on loan at Chester in this league and scored 10 goals so can certainly cut it at this level.



The last man in was Brad McGregor on loan from Notts County. A much needed signing to bolster out midfield options.

A frustrating first game in charge. There's no way we deserved to lose the game. The system showed some promising signs but the finishing from our front men was poor and that's what cost us the points.



Another midfield signing with Max Wilcox joining on a free transfer. He'll be a further boost to the quality of the squad.



Another through the door and another Crewe loanee. This time it's winger Calum Aguis who can hopefully provide some much needed creativity.



A break from the league as we play in the FA Trophy. This has probably come at the perfect time to be honest as we can look to use this result to build a bit of confidence.

Alfreton drawn at home to Chesterfield in the FA Trophy 4th Round

Our first league win under my management. Unlike, Curzon Ashton, we were clinical in front of goal and that's what got us the win.

Another important win, this time away at Gainsborough. That moves us above our hosts into 17th place.



A bit of good news with the board agreeing to send me on a coaching course.

Team Stats

Player Stats

League Table

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

January 2024

Another really good away win to start the month. We're really starting to build in confidence.

What a comeback! I feared the worst when we went 2-1 down just after the hour but the lads battled magnificently to win 4-2.



I wasn't planning on signing anymore players really but a player of Kian's ability and versatility was too good to turn down.



Well this is interesting. We've been placed under a transfer embargo amidst takeover rumours.

By far our hardest game since I joined the club so I'm happy to see us pick up a point.



Takeover complete, not that it really makes much of a difference to our goals with no investment on the horizon.

A game we were favourites in and we showed why. A simple win over relegation threatened Banbury.

Well then! This was unexpected. A 1-0 win over National League Chesterfield takes us through in the FA Trophy. What a result that is.

Alfreton to play Hendon at home in the FA Trophy 5th round.

Another great win at home and we keep climbing the table. Superb.

Take a bow George Willis. A man of the match performance from our shot stopper means we come away from top of the table Boston with a point. We are now up to 10th now as well which is incredible.



A bit of bad news from that game though as we lose Ahmed Salem to a very bad injury. Probably the end of his time with us now I'd say with his contract up in the summer.



To replace him we've brought in Joseph Johnson on loan from Huddersfield, a man with a lot of potential.

Team Stats

Player Stats

League Table

 

[FM_TNSSO]

Climbing that table mate and the playoffs are within reach now with 18 games to go!

 

[MrTini23]

Climbing that table mate and the playoffs are within reach now with 18 games to go!

Definitely with the way we are playing atm

Non League to Legend [FM23]

February 2024

What an absolutely crazy game. Disappointing to lose but this is what can happy with our way of playing. We were put to the sword by ex Premier League man Matt Derbyshire.

A good response to the loss last time out. We definitely need to upgrade our defence in the summer though. Some horrible mistakes in this one.

A 3-2 win puts us up into 10th. Slowly making progress. Could we sneak into the playoffs?

We are loving the 3-2 wins atm. Another sees us into the FA Trophy quarter final at the expense of Hendon.

Alfreton to travel to Woking in the FA Trophy quarter final.

A good draw against playoff hopefuls Southport. Thought we did enough to win but wasn't to be.

A disappointing result. We only have ourselves to blame though as we didn't take our chances.

Team Stats

Player Stats

League Table

 

[FM_TNSSO]

That 8-6 game!!! I don't think I've ever had a result like that in FM!

 

[MrTini23]

That 8-6 game!!! I don't think I've ever had a result like that in FM!

That's the one downside to the attacking formation we use

Non League to Legend [FM23]

March 2024

A superb way to bounce back after two disappointing results.

A very good away win. Another fine example of our score more than you policy.

A solid away point. I'll take it.

A solid 2-0 win. Good to see us keep a clean sheet aswell.

Unreal scenes! I wasn't expecting anything from this but We've somehow managed to sneak a draw and then a penalty shootout win. We're into the SEMIS.

We have been drawn away at Ebbsfleet in the FA Trophy semi finals. Not the worst draw we could have had.

A 3-2 win means it's a happy birthday for me. We're now only four points from the playoffs!

A very tough game against the side in 4th so we can't be too disheartened by the loss. Up until the red card we were very much in the game.



Great news! I've been offered a new contract. Signed with no hesitation. Can't argue with a cheeky £25 a week pay increase as well.

Awards

Charlie Caton - National League North Player of the Month

Team Stats

Player Stats

League Table

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

April 2024

A solid 4-2 win to start a massive month of football.



Not much to shout about from this year's youth intake.

WE ARE GOING TO WEMBLEY! An absolutely stunning result. A 5-0 win means we will play Yeovil in the FA Trophy final at Wembley.

A really good away win to keep the pressure on those above us.

A disappointing result but can't really complain against the team in 2nd who are pushing for the title.

A superb result against already relegated Banbury.

A nervy affair but we eventually got the job done. A result that moves us into the playoff places!

A heartbreaking result with us conceding two late goals to lose and drop out of the playoffs. What that means is that we have to win our last game and hope Chester can do us a favour against Halifax.

Awards

Charle Caton - National League North Player of the Month

Team Stats

Player Stats

League Table

 

[FM_TNSSO]

Come on Chester!!!

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

Final Day 2024

So it all comes down to this, the final day of the league season. Win and Halifax drop points then we'll be in the playoffs, any dropped points mean we're out.



The troops for what is the biggest game of our season. The nerves are real.



GOAL! Heath steals in at the back post to give us a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute.



It's still 0-0 in Halifax.



That puts us where we want to be as it stands.



Loud cheers! Huge cheers. That can only mean one thing. It's 1-0 Chester.



Now it looks even better.



GOAL!!!! I have no idea who has scored it but a header finds the back of the net to make it 2-0.



Half-time, so far so good.



As it stands we are in the playoffs and Chester are going up.



More cheers. It's 2-0 Chester!



Uh oh. Halifax have one back.



Caton makes it 3-0. We're doing our bit.



90th minute penalty for Gainsborough.



Scored. It's not going to matter though.



It's a win and 3 points for us. Did Chester hold on?



They did!



We are in the playoffs and Chester are champions. Incredible.

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

Playoffs and FA Trophy final

Our final day miracle means we will travel to Southport in the 1st round of the playoffs.

An incredible performance at Southport means we will meet Chorley in the playoff semi finals. We lost the corresponding league fixture 1-3.

Football. There is no justice sometimes. We played so well to take Chorley all the way. We hit the woodwork FOUR times then they went and scored a winner at the death. Heartbroken.

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! This makes up for the playoff heartbreak. A 119th minute penalty gives us a 4-3 win over Yeovil in the FA Trophy final at Wembley!

 

[FM_TNSSO]

Nice bit of silverware for your first season mate! And I reckon you'll be in contention for automatic promotion next season with a couple of improvements to the squad.

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

2023/24 Season

Results





Awards Won

Charlie Caton - National League North Player of the Month x2

Team Stats

Player Stats

Medical Centre



League Table

Youth Intake



Transfers In

Transfers Out

Manager Performance

Managerial Record

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

2023/24 Season

Club Awards

Moments to Remember

Finances

Commercial

Best Eleven

Record Breakers

League Awards

League Stats



Manager of the Season

Player of the Season

Young Player of the Season

N/A

Top Goalscorer

Golden Glove

N/A

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

Alfreton

2023/24 Season

National League North - 7th (Lost in Playoffs) - Mid Season takeover

FA Cup - N/A (Out before arrival)

FA Trophy - Winners

Charlie Caton - National League North Player of the Month x2

Managerial Honours

FA Trophy - 1 (2024)

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

Pre-season 2024/25



Pre-season started with something a bit interesting. I saw that the Tranmere job was vacant and with me living quite close by, I thought I'd apply. I eventually ended up getting an interview.



Unfortunately it wasn't to be this time. I'll definitely keep an eye on that one though to see if it all goes sour there. I only live 10 minutes away from their training ground.

The only loan I've been able to extend is that of Calum Agius. The rest will sadly leave the club along with the mountain of players who are out of contract.

That leaves the squad like this. It's going to be a very interesting summer! I'll report back later.

As expected it's been a busy summer with a number of new faces joining the club.

Those signings leave the squad looking like this right now. I'd say that we are one striker away from having a squad capable of big things. Definitely an improvement on last season in terms of quality.

We had a decent set of friendlies as well, going unbeaten.

 

[MrTini23]

Non League to Legend [FM23]

August 2024

A great way to start the season. A really good performance.

Another dominant performance at home. A joy to behold.

Three out of three and a glut of goals. Lovely.

We are on fire in front of goal so far this season! Another three points in the bag.

Get in! We had to work hard for this one. It looked like it was going to be a draw but Charlie Caton popped up with a stoppage time winner.

An easy win against the bottom placed side.

Awards

John Warrington - National League North Manager of the Month

Team Stats

Player Stats

League Table