The Lone Rangers

[DerbyJack]

Thanks Dan, as long as I don't slip into the play-off might be able to pull it off.

Cheers Pez, never really played a formation like this before but it seems to be paying off in style.

7th December 2013
Scottish League Two

Our winning streak comes to an abrupt end as we finally slip to a defeat following a collapse in the first half an hour of the game. A red card for veteran midfielder Bob Malcolm gave us a glimmer of hope and Darren Lavery was quick to take advantage but we couldn't crack a determined Montrose side who deservedly took all three points.


14th December 2013
Scottish League Two

Having lost our good form hopes of a quick return to winning ways were dashed when we collapse five minutes before the break to put Stirling into a comfortable lead. To their credit the team rallied and with the help of another Pat Walker brace we managed to claw back a point to keep us ahead of the chasing pack.


21st December 2013
Scottish League Two

We're back. A return to Sheilfield Park proved to be all that was needed to get us back to our best as all three strikers again combined to thrash a sorry looking Elgin City. Despite our recent wobbles there were no signs of any weakness in an efficient demolition of our play-off chasing rivals.


26th December 2013
Scottish League Two

We're turning our home ground into a fortress in some style. The deadly duo of Lavery and Walker were at it again to fire a goal a piece past Peterhead, whilst our three central defenders proved more then able to keep any attack at bay, to seal another clean sheet.


December 2013
Scottish League Two

Our lead at the top might have been cut but were still a solid six points clear for the time being. With half of the season down were certainly making a very strong claim for the top spot and despite a minor blip in form, it appears we might just be able to pull this off.

 

[DerbyJack]

Midway point of the season and were flying high at the top of the table and well on our way to making an instant impact in the Scottish League Two, however as things stand the club is still dominated by Scots., time to sort it out with the arrival of the January transfer window.

Five more departures from the squad and once again all Scottish, as we look to clear some more space and reduce a rather bloated wage budget.

​

Right back Turner was deputising as a midfielder following the change in formation but with little to no game time he opted to jump at some first team football with non league Dalbeattie Star.
Saunderson, Hoskins and Beveridge all were stuck in the reserves having been on the transfer list for the entire length of my time here it was clear we weren't going to shift them anytime soon, so I opted to bite the bullet and released all three of them in one swoop.
Last to leave was Billy Bald, the Goalkeeper has fallen well behind English arrivals Mitchell and Halliwell and ironically left for England to try and salvage his career with a swap to Accrington Stanley.

With five departures I was kind of hoping it would allow me to bring in an influx on new English players, however it wasn't to prove so easy, with scouting restricted and the wage budget still rather tight following some reissued contracts it resulted in just one signing...

​

Cost: Free
From: Stirling University.

Another student joins us on the border, this time central midfielder George Leigh. With the defence seemingly bursting with English talent and Pat Walker proving to be an absolute machine at this level the only part of my team lacking of a home grown player is the midfield. The teenager isn't exactly going to break into the team straight away but is highly rated by my scouts and with the right chance could one day become a strong ball winning midfielder.

I've not exactly reformed the squad by any means but little by little were getting there. Currently we have nine of the finest English players but there still outnumbered by all twelve of our Scottish players still at the core of the squad. ​

 

[DerbyJack]

4th January 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Start of the year and it appears were still suffering from the hangover as Shielfield Park witnesses one of the dullest games imaginable as both Berwick and Annan struggle to even pull off a shot on target in a bitterly cold game in Northumberland.

​

11th January 2014
Scottish League Two

Thats more like it. If there's one thing were good at its an absolute goal fest. Queen Park shot into the lead after just ten minutes but an own goal at least kept us in the game at the break. With our unbeaten record at home seemingly under threat the team rallied in the second half or more accurately Pat Walker did, the in form striker rifling in a lethal hat-trick to ****** all three points in fine fashion.



19th January 2014
Scottish League Two

​

New year, same Berwick. The form is back and were once again quickly racking up the points, this time with another close win following a tense tie against a struggling East Stirlingshire. This time it was our two reliable Scots who took the plaudits as Lavery and Currie continue to impress infront of goal.

​

25th January 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Thats how to do it. Promotion chasing Albion Rovers were looking like they might cause us a few problems but in the usual style Rangers went to town picking up four goals as we prove just why were top of the table, with midfielder Tulloch pulling the strings scoring two screamers and setting up Pat Walker for the first.

​

January 2014
Scottish League Two

​

He cant be stopped. Pat Walker is an absolute machine at this level and hopefully beyond. The former Albion Rovers striker has been lingering in the lowest league of Scottish football for almost his entire career but with him almost single handedly firing us towards promotion, the Leagues top scorer could soon be about to test his ability in League One.

​

Its working, somehow the arrival of our English players has sparked this small club into life. The formation is still proving too much to handle for most clubs and with Darren Lavery and Patrick Walker now the top two scorers in the league its just a matter of sitting back and watching the magic happen.

​

Having been down to a six point lead were once again back firmly in charge following another impressive month for the Borderers. With the league now heading rapidly towards the business end of the season, its looking more and more likely that the race for the automatic spot is set to go down to a two way fight between us and the equally impressive Stirling.

Bring it on.

 

[Dburnsdundeemad]

This is looking really interesting, can't wait to see the progress you make on your way up the Leagues. With you signing all English players chances are when you get the finances to bring in the real quality you'll have no competition, the poor Scottish youth rating will stand you in good steed especially if you are using all English players.

Scotland in the future of the game will never have prospects like Tony Watt, Ryan Gauld and John Soutar, these guys should all be gone by the time you are reaching the premier league that's even given you the chance of securing back-to-back promotions.

On a not so unrelated side note:
To be honest I think with the uprising of talent and money that the SFA are plowing into youth development in Scotland with all these training camps I see happening I would of expected SI to have increased the Youth Rating of Scotland in this game, 83 is not high enough anymore, players like Ryan Gauld, John Soutar and Tony Watt are springing up all over the place now. Not to mention over the past decade you have Charlie Adam, Danny Wilson and James Forest too. In the game there are many players who are highly rated prospects in the real world that haven't been given the right ratings in game.

Craig Wighton of Dundee for example:

ONLY has a PA -6. This guy has been attracting the attention of ******* Arsene Wenger who was spotted at a match watching him recently, he should be at least -7 in my opinion, maybe even a -8. For god sake he made his debut for Dundee at 15 in the Championship!

 

[DerbyJack]

Almost perfect timing with that comment, just had the trial day at Berwick managed to find some pretty good talent, for this level at least. Interestingly we get both English and Scottish players coming through the ranks and its pretty fair to say that the English youngsters are head and shoulders above the Scots. I'm not entirely sure but I hope its just coincidence.

Will be interesting to see how it pans out in the long run, to be honest I've never managed in Scotland before but from the little I've experienced it seems you might be on to something. Time will tell I suppose.

With the turn of the new year, comes the arrival of yet more new faces at Berwick as we hold the first trial day under my tenure as manager.
​

Under the watchful eyes of both Kieron Dyer and Dean Ashton, the trialists were given a run out against our current Youth setup and its fair to say the teenagers impressed as we brought in seventeen fresh new faces to the youth team and four of them proved to already have what it takes to make it into the first team.

The squad is currently full to the brim with young English defenders and with the arrival of Matt West into the squad were looking to have a lot of strength in depth. At just sixteen, West certainly has a lot of potential to fill but for a young head, he already has all the right mental requirements to be an absolute beast in the back line.

​

With all the attributes to be an extremely effective ball winning midfielder at this level and beyond, Lee Armstrong is probably the most technically gifted of our new arrivals, despite not quite possessing the strength and ability to become an instant addition to our first team, its safe to say he's almost destined to become a key member at the heart of the team.

​

Alex Mitchell is already performing way beyond expectations between the sticks but his deputy Bryn Halliwell is quickly becoming unhappy at the club and a replacement needed to be found, fortunately for us Jordan Lowery emerged at just the right time. The fifteen year old has potentially a long and glittering career ahead of him but he certainly has a while to wait until he can oust Mitchell.

Perhaps with the toughest route of all Alistair Hutchings is the final arrival to be called up to the first team. With Pat Walker scoring for fun along side his Scottish strike partners, Hutchings certainly wont be causing the three of them much trouble initially but with an already impressive finish and the tutoring of Michael Owen and Dean Ashton, the teenager could one day be absolutely lethal upfront.

With all four called up to swell the ranks straight away, the squad is now certainly looking extremely strong in depth, however to ensure that they continue to reach there potential all of them have been made available for the Youth team until they can eventually force there way into the starting line up.​

 

[DerbyJack]

1st February 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Bottom of the table Clyde proved to be somewhat of a challenge as two first half strikes gave the stragglers a surprise lead at the break but in usual fashion we fired up in style to smash four quick fire goals in to the back of the net with all of the usual suspects making it onto the scoresheet.


8th February 2014
Scottish League Two

​

It looked like everything was going towards the normal script against Montrose as another spectacular game at Shielfield Park looked to be leaving us with all three points following a brace from Morris and another one for Walkers tally but an injury time equaliser silenced the Borderers crowd and gifted Montrose with a deserved point.

​

15th February 2014
Scottish League Two

​

This time it was us who were to steal the spoils before the final whistle, as a tight game against promotion chasing Stirling saw us ****** all three points with Morris starting the scoring and the ever present Pat Walker scoring the winner, four minutes from the final whistle to give as another three valuable points over our closest chasers.

​

22nd February 2014
Scottish League Two

Following three tight games in the league we turned the style on for the last game of the month, smashing six goals past Elgin City with Morris once again making it into the scoresheet along side Walker but it was there fellow strike partner Lavery who took the plaudits scoring a stunning second half hat-trick in some style.

​

February 2014
Scottish League Two

​

An almost faultless month sees us stretch our unbeaten run to eleven games and more importantly our lead at the top to an almost unmatchable fourteen points. With the season just a few games away from the end, we could seal our place in the next division by as early as next month but nothing can be taken for granted, every game counts.

 

[Dburnsdundeemad]

Looking forward to seeing the end to your first season tonight, if it goes up, getting really into this story... Can't wait to see some of the signings over the summer as well

 

[DerbyJack]

Sorry, work got in the way. Ironically it still involved football. I work for Sky not exactly been a good day for them football whys but thanks for the continued support really appreciate it!

1st March 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Peterhead are the in form team at the minute trying to salvage what was a miserable start to their season and we were soon to give them another boost as a cruel injury time goal gifted them all three points after winger Ross Gray's first of the season appeared to salvage a point. The good luck comes to an end.


8th March 2014
Scottish League Two

​

With promotion now agonisingly close it was crucial that a defeat didn't complete take us off the rails and a clinical first half performance proved to be more then enough to put us back to winning ways as we cruised past Annan Athletic in our attempts to restart the winning streak.


15th March 2014
Scottish League Two

​

A superb victory over Queen's Park saw our strikers once again find their shooting boots as an action packed second half saw is fire in four quick fire goals to put us within touching distance of sealing the top spot. With the next game now against our closest chasers, East Stirlingshire were within ninety minutes of a rapid promotion.


22nd Match 2014
Scottish League Two

​

A record breaking goal after just seventeen seconds gave us the perfect start against second place East Stirlingshire courtesy of Darren Lavery and with a two goal lead at the break, we could afford to sit back in the second half. A quick fire goal following the break gave us a brief scare but at the final whistle Shielfield Park erupted..

Job Done.
​

Promotion and top spot secured with six games of the season remaining. Its been a stunning season for the Borderers so far and with the party starting early, we can already start to get excited for life in League One, however the season isnt over just yet.


29th March 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Either we partied to hard or we took our foot off the gas but with promotion secured we slumped to a disappointing loss, with a goal five minutes from time ending our incredible unbeaten run at home but it mattered little to the still joyous Borderer's support.


March 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Sixteen points clear and scoring for fun, the season is already looking like were going to be breaking records with Rangers goal tally and Morton's points record looking seriously under threat from the rampant Wee Rangers. Taking both records would certainly see us say goodbye to the foot of the Scottish football leagues in style.

 

[TheFalse9]

I've only had time to read the first page, but it's been a great read so far - I'm looking forward to reading the rest! Good luck with this, it's a very original challenge!

 

[DerbyJack]

Thanks very much False9, hope you enjoy the rest of it as much as I enjoy playing it...so far.
​

5th April 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Our post promotion hangover doesn't last long as were straight back to normality with another thrashing this time of play-off chasing Montrose. Scott Dalziel who spent the majority of the season sidelined comes back into action with a well taken brace to mark his return.

​

12th April 2014
Scottish League Two

Dalziel continues to take his chances with a fifth minute goal but its the leagues top scorer, Pat Walker once again who stole the show, adding a second to the scoreline just two minutes later before securing all three points with a beautifully executed volley into the top corner, following a brief scare from the leagues bottom club.



19th April 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Walker got us off to a fine start but it was Stirling who ran in at half time in the lead, following a five minute defensive collapse before the break but it was to prove another night to remember for our inform strikers as Walkers second of the afternoon was soon followed by Dalziels winner just five minutes later.

​

26th April
Scottish League Two

​

Theres certainly been some tight games this month with narrow one goal victories appearing to be the theme of the month but one things for certain, Dalziel and Walker are unstoppable upfront. With a frantic first half it wasn't clear who was in control at the break but in front of the thrilled Berwick supporters a curling free kick from Lee Currie made it four wins in four games with five minutes remaining.

​

April 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Another easy choice for the panel as Dalziel and Walker take the top two spots in the Player of the Month award following a fantastic month for the pair infront of goal. With a season in League One dawning its crucial that the pair of them carry this rich vein of foal scoring into next season.

​

Another award and another month of just sitting back and watching the magic happen. Our strikers are absolutley flying at the moment and between the three of them have fired us way past my expectations and more importantly into League One.

​

One game remaining, twenty four points clear the top of the table and with Rangers goal scoring record almost completely destroyed we sit just one point away from setting a new points total record in the division. There's still something to play for, we want to go out with a bang.

 

[DerbyJack]

3rd May 2014
Scottish League Two

​

Final game of the season and we end it in true Berwick style with another goal fest of a match. With Pat Walker out with a minor injury, it fell to our three Scottish strikers to see us through to the end and they did it in style grabbing a goal a piece to sink Peterhead in front of the largest attendance of the season at Shielfield Park.


May 2014
Scottish League Two

​

League done and dusted, were sitting pretty, absolutely miles ahead of a chasing pack who couldn't match our rampant pace as deserved winners of the league. With a mammoth goal difference, we smashed the record set by Rangers the season before and with our final victory of the season edge two points clear to set a new points record at the same time. Its been an incredible season for the Wee Rangers and long may it continue into League One.

 

[DerbyJack]

So the first season is done and dusted. We flew through the games and showed our true potential in emphatic style with some absolutely dominant football in the Scottish League Two and our efforts were to be duly rewarded.​

2013/14
Scottish League Two

Almost a goal a game. Our English revolution has been pinned almost entirely on the shoulders of our senior striker and Pat Walker didn't disappoint. Some superb displays in front of goal saw Walker stroll to the top of the goal scorers table and tear teams apart at will, without his lethal right boot we'd certainly not have made such light work of our first season.

Two records set in the league, instant promotion and a rapidly reforming team sheet, its not exactly been a terrible start to my career but the real work starts now. Its going to be a big step up in League One and my tactics of simply trying to outscore our opponents might not cut it against much tougher competition.

As for the league it made very pleasant viewing for the Berwick faithful for too long the team has floated between the bottom tiers unable to make an impact upon the league standings without an impressive slice of good fortune but this season The Borderer's truly deserved their title and a true crack at finally breaking out of the bottom two divisions.

 

[Dburnsdundeemad]

Should post your attendance rises as well, Berwick is a fairly small town i'd love to see if you can outgrow the measly population of 11000

 

[DerbyJack]

Will do at the end of every season, just to let you know we amassed a huge 546 average attendance, we're not exactly getting the fans flocking to Shielfeild Park despite the changes and good form.

So with the season at an end its time to review how the squad has changed over the course of the year.

​

Having started my time at Berwick with just one English player in the entire team, the squad has undergone a massive upheaval, with eleven players now heralding from the clubs home nation. The transfer market has seen the arrival of Eight new faces to the team, with striker Pat Walker and defensive stalwart Curtis Jones proving to the best of the bunch, with a host of youngster also arriving at the club following a hugely successful trial day to bolster our numbers

With half the team still needing to be replaced with suitable English players the job is still far from completion but the first season of our English invasion has gone almost perfectly.

A preseason transfer window and a hopefully larger budget following our promotion will hopefully see us make yet more progress towards completing our transformation.​

 

[dani3w]

Great first season mate, scored more and claimed more points than me in the first season but I also followed you with promotion! Keep it up

 

[DerbyJack]

Thanks Dan been pretty impressed by Berwick so far didnt really have to do much, how have you been finding it?

At the start of my career I brought into six new staff members and a the start of 2014 our numbers have grown even more.
​

With Kieron Dyer, Dean Ashton, Jamie Carragher and Michael Owen all happily plying there trade in Northumbria our staff numbers were boosted by yet more former first team players of the Three Lions.

​

With a step up in the league the board freed up some more space in the staff budget and allowed us to bring in some new faces, starting with out brand new first team coaching team, with legendary striker, presenter and Crisp salesman Gary Lineker teaming up with three time England striker Stan Collymore to get our first team players firing.

​

Alongside them comes two more household names, with England's most famous former pony tailed goalkeeper David Seaman taking charge of our newly formed Scouting team and marque staff arrival the one and only David Beckham coming in as our Under Nineteens manager on a part time basis, an absolutely massive move for a tiny club on the border.

With fellow members, Tyke Harvey, Stacey Beckham, Gary Stevens, Rob Wesley and Josh Sozzo adding to the team, our staff is looking suitably English.​

 

[Safc-mad-scotty]

Great first season mate, your team certainly knows where the back of the net is!

I've just started a save with Clyde which I'm thinking of doing a story about, so it's not too encouraging to see them finish bottom with just 25 points haha

 

[DerbyJack]

Thanks Scotty, yeah I think I've finally found a formation that at least results in goals. Sorry Scotty, they were really were pretty poor this season but I'm sure under your hands they'll certainly pull off something special.

The squad is already half English but with an impressive transfer and wage budget now behind us we actually have some funds to use to our advantage, all be it just ten thousand in the kitty and two thousand to use for wages but non the less at this level its an absolute fortune.

The clearance of Scottish players from the team continues as nine players are shown the door to allow for our new arrivals to come in but ironically its an English player whose the first to be shown the door as backup Halliwell is released on a free, alongside Scottish midfielders Janczyk and Carse.
Midfielders Gielty, Notman and defender Tulloch are also given the push as all three are released on a free, with Notman and Tulloch both making the move south of the border to take up roles with Kidderminster Harriers.

The main departures of our transfer window saw star defender Dougie Brydon leave for Gateshead for a cool ten thousand pounds, with a host of English talent already willing and ready to make it into the team, its a gamble following our step up in league but the English revolution must carry on.
Our final transfer saw set piece master, Lee Currie leave for Grimsby another risky transfer following his huge impact last season but provided we sign the right players in the window we hopefully wont miss his influence too much.

So with nine departures, eighteen thousand added to the budget, a hopeful fan base and David Seaman searching high and low for some English talent, we set out to strengthen the team.

Cost: Free
From: Dunfermline

With his contract running down, young defender Washburn jumped at the opportunity to continue his playing career, signing a contract with us in January. The nineteen year old certainly isnt going to be a ready made replacement for Brydon but given a few seasons in and around the first team he could potentially eclipse Brydons ability.

​

Cost: Free
From: Out of Contract

London born and bred, Botti Bia-Bi's playing career saw him wind up at Falkirk but having made just one appearance for the Scottish Championship outfit he's been forced to make the jump in order to try meet his impressive potential and we were keen to give him the opportunity. With a place in the first team alongside Lavery and Walker, Bia-Bi is certainly in the running to make an instant impact.

​

Cost: Free
From: Out of Contract

Released by our new league rivals Arborath, Twenty Three year old David Banjo is already made for a first team spot and should make a solid ball winning midfielder at this level. He'll be hungry to make his mark on the league following his release and hopefully we can give him the opportunity to prove himself at the level and beyond.

​

Cost: Free
From: Out of Contract

Another player straight into the starting line up and an ideal partner for Banjo in the middle of the field. Where Banjo will be expected to do the dirty work, Dwayne Coultress is here to make the plays. With a good eye for a pass and the ability to create something out of nothing, we're hopeful he could keep our impressive front line fed with chances throughout the season.

​

Cost: Free
From: Stirling University

Another signing and another midfielder joins the team, having shipped out five of them in the window, we simply cant get enough of them at the minute and when they have the potential of Williams-Mitchell its hard to resist. Formerly of AFC Wimbledon, the twenty year old ended up as part of the Stirling Univeristy team but an opportunity with Berwick proved to be enough to bring the midfielder back into the world of football all be it as back up for the first team

​

Cost: Free
From: Out of Contract

With us having a defensive line consisting of just three centre backs its hardly going to be an easy transition for Jonathan Blake but we have a large hole in the right midfield position and Blake is potentially more then able to plug the gap. Going straight into the starting line its hoped he could rapidly evolve his game to become an effective winger.

Cost: Free
From: Out of Contract

Adam McMath is the final arrival in a busy transfer window, the young striker has hardly seen head or tail of a goal in two seasons of semi-professional football but despite that, he's got bags of potential. A steady finish and some tricky flair, he could one day unleash himself upon Scottish football in style and with Lineker and Collymores coaching he's one step closer to being absolutely lethal.

Incredibly busy window, we've swapped and changed alot this window but hopefully this should be the end of our rapid transformations in the windows. An almost entirely English team now resides at Shielfield Park but its extremely young and inexperienced and with a harder challenge awaiting them its going to be an interesting season.​

 

[AayushCFC]

You're going to stick to 3 defenders even in this league? you sure like to take risks!

 

[DerbyJack]

Yeah I'm a stubborn one when it comes to FM. I've adjusted the instructions but other then that its still the same.​

That time again, Transfers done, new staff setup and the squad returned from there holidays. Lets get going.​

8th July 2014
Friendly

First game of the pre-season and we get things started with a well earned victory over Scottish Championship side Ross County. Having gone a goal down in the first half, the squad rallied well with Morris and Lavery both firing home as the remaining Scots take the plaudits following there well taken goals.

​

12th July 2014
Friendly

​

A disappointing result, following our impressive start to the warm up games. A game against Blackpools Youth team should have seen us flex our muscle but instead we were routinely taken to pieces by an efficient and ruthless young side that look formidably strong.

​

15th July 2014
Friendly

Our sole venture further into our home nation sees us go toe to toe with our feeder team Ashington. Despite surprisingly going behind we were quickly up to speed with Pat Walker picking up his first of the pre-season to draw us level before once again an own goal and the Scots finished the job.

​

19th July 2014
Friendly

​

Absolutely demolished by the Scottish Championship side. Soundly beaten over the ninety minutes it was an extremely disappointing display as our English defence completely collapsed under some severe pressure from a determined Brechin City. With the season just days away, my confidence in the formation is finally starting to waver.

Not exactly the most impressive preseason, the new squad is struggling to blend and adjust to our formation but with no time left to adjust its time to face the music and hope for the best.​