Grrr. Still isn't here. And neither's my birthday present. Stupid post.
So, more demo play ensued. Genoa of Serie B. They're quite crap. Not unsalvageably so though. Another free transfer discovery - David Fox, 17 year-old CM. Former Man United youngster, always a good sign in a young player. At 17 he's doing a fine job in Serie B, so if the inhospitable surroundings of Foggia don't drive him away, he could be a great signing.
I should probably explain my reluctance to wander from the Italian Leagues. I like to have the opportunity to sign whoever/whomever I want. In England I need work permits for non-EU residents. That kinda damages any chances of signing the youth of South America, and as the game goes on, 17 year-old Brazilian forwards and 19 year-old Argentinian defenders are what it's all about when you're in control of a team with a useless rep and no cash. There's nothing better than offering a club 2m for a striker, them saying no and then the player signing a new contract with a minimum release clause of 250k.
Speaking of leagues, I wonder how many this laptop can run at a fast pace. Something to look into. In the glory days my PC struggled with Italy plus England and Spain on background.
So apparently 're-gens' are a thing. Players that retire, come back as someone else. I always suspected this was the case. I remember a player called Rocco Riccio that I signed on a free for Bologna in season 18 or something. He was 16 and amazing. A forward with 20's in shooting, pace, creativity and passing. Played him behind the front 2 to devastating effect. I wish that game hadn't gone wrong. He must've been a re-gen of someone, I suspect Ronaldinho, although I dunno if they regenerate as the same nationality or not.
Then there are the players from completely random countries. I vaguely recall the top scorer in La Liga being a nippy striker from Pakistan with a ridiculously German name. Also, a top, top-class goalie from the mighty Cape Verde Islands.
And perhaps my favorite bit of "deep" games - absurd teams winning the World Cup. As if an England vs Scotland final (England won on Pens) wasn't laughable enough, victories for Ukraine (after the retirement of Shevchenko) and the awesome Paraguay team of 2014 that had NO good players at all, make the failures of Fantashtico's Italy particularly hilarious. Although my international record was equally abysmal until my legendary Holland side. Failed as France, Brazil and England. Although my record with smaller nations was gold. Croatia and Mexico leap to mind. And my classic 5 day spell in charge of Australia. Applied for the Oz job and Croatia at the same time, Australia offered, I accepted, then 5 days later left for Croatia. Smooth.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Thursday, March 13, 2008
No Dice
And it wasn't a birthday present either.
Well the demo has pretty much been exhausted. 6 months isn't long, even when managing 4 teams. 4 different tactical systems tested. 352A rules, 532A no good, 4132 pretty decent though lacking in midfield goals and 433 great going forward, crap defensively (not much of a surprise to be honest, especially with Inter). Still easily occupying the top 4 and still in Europe. Cristiano Zanetti scores 10 from CM!? But averages 7. Weird. 3 different players given 8 match bans for headbutting too. Smooth. Here's an example of the foibles, frustrations and many other f-words that can accompany an Inter 433... 
Well the demo has pretty much been exhausted. 6 months isn't long, even when managing 4 teams. 4 different tactical systems tested. 352A rules, 532A no good, 4132 pretty decent though lacking in midfield goals and 433 great going forward, crap defensively (not much of a surprise to be honest, especially with Inter). Still easily occupying the top 4 and still in Europe. Cristiano Zanetti scores 10 from CM!? But averages 7. Weird. 3 different players given 8 match bans for headbutting too. Smooth. Here's an example of the foibles, frustrations and many other f-words that can accompany an Inter 433...
Well I'm on holiday next week, so if it turns up tomorrow I'm not gonna have long. Still, I suppose there's always the slim chance it's turned up in the hour and a half I've been drinking coffee...
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Is the wait almost over?
I have a package... But I can't pick it up for another hour, and I don't know what it is. It's my damn birthday next week, so it may be something else. The tension, the tension. It reminds me of the 2nd leg of my Serie B play-off for the title against damn Palermo [I lost].
So I took a gander at Foggia's squad in the demo. I was surprised by how few of their players I remember. It's definitely got something to do with the fact that I bought in a whole new squad immediately, but still. Players I recall - Faveo (because of that damn goal), Quaresmini (because he lasted longer than anyone else as a bench warmer) and the combined talents of Elio Di Toro and Eddy Mengo. These 2 I remember because CM claimed they were the "star players" in the squad and were on high wages too. I gave them a go and they were awful. Then I couldn't get rid of them (even Sant'Anastasia wouldn't take them) and they festered in my reserves for years on end, their only contribution was helping me to repeatedly bankrupt the club.
I think I'm gonna be Foggia again. There's some fond memories there. A portion of the West stand getting shut because of health and safety problems for example. Oh, I remember another player - Mezzacapo, the 2nd keeper. Terrible keeper, marvelous assistant manager after a couple of years. Another reason for wanting to be Foggia is that I remember that it's damned hard to attract any staff to a club in Serie C2 and Foggia have a couple of coaches, scouts and a physio. That will make my job a touch easier.
Anyway, 45 minutes to go until I can get my package. Fingers crossed...
So I took a gander at Foggia's squad in the demo. I was surprised by how few of their players I remember. It's definitely got something to do with the fact that I bought in a whole new squad immediately, but still. Players I recall - Faveo (because of that damn goal), Quaresmini (because he lasted longer than anyone else as a bench warmer) and the combined talents of Elio Di Toro and Eddy Mengo. These 2 I remember because CM claimed they were the "star players" in the squad and were on high wages too. I gave them a go and they were awful. Then I couldn't get rid of them (even Sant'Anastasia wouldn't take them) and they festered in my reserves for years on end, their only contribution was helping me to repeatedly bankrupt the club.
I think I'm gonna be Foggia again. There's some fond memories there. A portion of the West stand getting shut because of health and safety problems for example. Oh, I remember another player - Mezzacapo, the 2nd keeper. Terrible keeper, marvelous assistant manager after a couple of years. Another reason for wanting to be Foggia is that I remember that it's damned hard to attract any staff to a club in Serie C2 and Foggia have a couple of coaches, scouts and a physio. That will make my job a touch easier.
Anyway, 45 minutes to go until I can get my package. Fingers crossed...
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Warm-up
So all smart footballers warm up before they start. Decreases the chance of injury and what-not. In this light, and to help me through the seemingly endless wait for my CD to show up, I downloaded the demo version to get back into it. Check out tactics and stuff.
I think tactically it'll be a choice between a solid, if boring 4132 formation and the more adventurous 3412 that I used to favor back in the day. The advantage of the second one is that I wouldn't have to hunt down full backs, which is a pain in the arse because most of them are crap.
I tried this formation for 16 games with Juventus and only conceded 5 goals, so if you have 3 quality center-backs, you're solid defensively too. Until Paolo Montero gets an 8 game ban for headbutting someone at least. Obviously, this standard of defender will be unavailable to a team in Serie C2, but I think I may have discovered someone who could do an awesome job at that level. A certain Nelson Akwari, 19 year-old American available on a free at the start. Transfer target number 1. Sign him up on a long contract and I'll be laughing.
Also did a spot of research online and was surprised to find that one of my stalwarts from the old game; To Madeira, is considered cheating by many because he doesn't exist. Personally, he's in the game, so I have no problem signing him up. Although literally I may have a problem securing his signature, as many teams in Serie C2 have no funds available to buy players at the start.
To Madeira was a regular in my old Foggia side for 12 years and was top scorer in all but 1. The horrible 3rd season, where successive promotions had left me with a side woefully inadequate for the challenges of Serie B, and relegation was avoided, literally on the last day of the season. It's entirely possible my top scorer that season was a CB, I can't remember.
Anyway, this was supposed to be a brief post, so I'll wrap up. What have I learnt from a brief stint on the demo game? I think I'll be much better at it this this time. I'll have a smaller squad, focus even more on youngsters and not be so harsh on players that look a bit crap. Fabian O'Neill at Juve for example. I remember transfer listing him on day 1 when I played as them back in the day. He's a very competent back-up for Pavel Nedved, I dunno what I was thinking. Maybe this new attitude will prevent me repeatedly bankrupting my new club!
I think tactically it'll be a choice between a solid, if boring 4132 formation and the more adventurous 3412 that I used to favor back in the day. The advantage of the second one is that I wouldn't have to hunt down full backs, which is a pain in the arse because most of them are crap.
I tried this formation for 16 games with Juventus and only conceded 5 goals, so if you have 3 quality center-backs, you're solid defensively too. Until Paolo Montero gets an 8 game ban for headbutting someone at least. Obviously, this standard of defender will be unavailable to a team in Serie C2, but I think I may have discovered someone who could do an awesome job at that level. A certain Nelson Akwari, 19 year-old American available on a free at the start. Transfer target number 1. Sign him up on a long contract and I'll be laughing.
Also did a spot of research online and was surprised to find that one of my stalwarts from the old game; To Madeira, is considered cheating by many because he doesn't exist. Personally, he's in the game, so I have no problem signing him up. Although literally I may have a problem securing his signature, as many teams in Serie C2 have no funds available to buy players at the start.
To Madeira was a regular in my old Foggia side for 12 years and was top scorer in all but 1. The horrible 3rd season, where successive promotions had left me with a side woefully inadequate for the challenges of Serie B, and relegation was avoided, literally on the last day of the season. It's entirely possible my top scorer that season was a CB, I can't remember.
Anyway, this was supposed to be a brief post, so I'll wrap up. What have I learnt from a brief stint on the demo game? I think I'll be much better at it this this time. I'll have a smaller squad, focus even more on youngsters and not be so harsh on players that look a bit crap. Fabian O'Neill at Juve for example. I remember transfer listing him on day 1 when I played as them back in the day. He's a very competent back-up for Pavel Nedved, I dunno what I was thinking. Maybe this new attitude will prevent me repeatedly bankrupting my new club!
Monday, March 10, 2008
In the beginning there was only Tash... (or Epilogue)
So, I guess it all started in 1997/8 (I, like many football fans work in seasons, not calendar years) when a friend of friend got himself a copy of CM97/98. This was back in the day when you could just get a game once between all your friends and all install it off the same CD, which you didn't need to run the game. Or as I like to call it, the golden age. Anyhow, I digress. This was THE turning point in my life. From "straight A's" and in bed by 10, maybe 11 if something good was on TV, to scraping by in school and staying up well into the next day. This transition occurred in about 2 days. I loved that game. The only thing I've ever loved more is CM01/02 - THE BEST GAME EVER. And this is where Fantashtico was born.
It was 2003/4 and as a very poor student (both monetarily and academically) I had a lot of spare time on my hands. Between the 2 lectures a week I regularly attended and enjoyed, and football on sunday morning, I had a huge chasm of time to fill. CM01/02 fit the bill perfectly. With a computer that took an age to load, a SNES for the particularly long waits between seasons and a good friend who would come to share my obsession, I was set.
When it comes to CM, I'm a fan of taking a lowly club to great heights over a longish period of time. Hence, I chose to manage Foggia, a club with a decent history in Italian football and good facilities for a club languishing in Serie C2C (the equivalent of Coca-Cola League 2, assuming they haven't renamed it again when you read this). Then came the moment, the birth of Fantashtico. My friend decided to join the game, naming his character Salvatore Fantashtico and taking the reigns of fellow Serie C2C club Sant'Anastasia. If Foggia were the Man Utd of Serie C2C, then Sant'Anastasia were the Watford, namely, they weren't gonna be there long without some damn fine management. As you can probably imagine, the combination of a slow computer and two dorks with overactive imaginations resulted in some ludicrous back stories being invented surrounding our respective characters, which make me chuckle to this day and have resulted in me using the Tash character as my CM name of choice since then.
I'm not going to regale you with the entire history of this game. Needless to say the 12 year plan I enacted at the start of the game was a success. Season 12 resulted in Foggia lifting the Champions League and me quitting Foggia due to the boards total incompetence. This success came via me bankrupting Foggia 3 times, and did not include a Serie A title after being ripped off by Roma in a play-off.
Perhaps the stand-out event of this era was in season 1 as 5 weeks of the game were lost to a computer crash. After replaying those 5 weeks again, Foggia remained top of the league. Unfortunately, Sant'Anastasia were 2 positions lower and struggling to reach the play-offs. Cue Sant'Anastasia vs Foggia. Now, being assured of the title, and a thoroughly good friend to boot, I gave Tash the edge by playing my reserve team [useless cretins one and all] in order to redress the balance following the crash. I got battered 4-0 with 2 ex-players scoring against me, including the ridiculously poor Faveo. I have still not been allowed to live this result down. The name Faveo still haunts me to this day.
Miraculously, Fantashtico eventually led his team to Serie A and a couple of extremely respectable mid-table finishes before becoming manager of Italy, for a more laid back lifestyle and much, much bigger wage.
12 years of Foggia wasn't the end for me. Taking over a Fiorentina side completely bereft of any good players, bottom of Serie A in December and low on funds may seem a strange choice of follow up jobs, but a mere 6 months later, Fiorentina were lifting the title [my first Serie A trophy] in the most stunning turnaround ever. How was it done? Stealing many of my old players from Foggia who were deemed surplus to requirements by whatever joker they got in to replace me [they were relegated 2 seasons later] was the main reason. 5 successive Serie A's and 4 Champions Leagues later, I was bored and began to repeat the story at Bologna.
Meanwhile, Fantashtico was leading repeatedly cataclysmic attempts by Italy to earn some silverware for the national team. Always blaming me for not having any Italian players in my squad, rather like England being crap is allegedly Arsene Wenger's fault.
The culmination of our endevours was a 20 season epic game which, due to the useless computer we were using, took 45 days of ACTUAL time to play. Or just over 6 weeks of game time in a period of about 8 months calendar time. Wow. So that's why my degree is none too impressive, although that I got one at all is a surprise to many. But I'll never forget those glorius days in front of the PC.
So, this blog. Basically, I will be writing the summarized events of a new game of CM01/02 in order to see just how much I'll play with a faster computer. Although, now I have a job and a relationship too, so perhaps this is a bad idea... Screw it, I love this game. All I have to do now is wait for my CD to arrive in the post after a purchase from eBay. Being in the USA certainly makes it hard to obtain this game. Also, I guess I need to think about who will be blessed with the mighty Tash as their new manager. Gotta be a Serie C2 team of some description, perhaps Foggia again? Stay tuned...
It was 2003/4 and as a very poor student (both monetarily and academically) I had a lot of spare time on my hands. Between the 2 lectures a week I regularly attended and enjoyed, and football on sunday morning, I had a huge chasm of time to fill. CM01/02 fit the bill perfectly. With a computer that took an age to load, a SNES for the particularly long waits between seasons and a good friend who would come to share my obsession, I was set.
When it comes to CM, I'm a fan of taking a lowly club to great heights over a longish period of time. Hence, I chose to manage Foggia, a club with a decent history in Italian football and good facilities for a club languishing in Serie C2C (the equivalent of Coca-Cola League 2, assuming they haven't renamed it again when you read this). Then came the moment, the birth of Fantashtico. My friend decided to join the game, naming his character Salvatore Fantashtico and taking the reigns of fellow Serie C2C club Sant'Anastasia. If Foggia were the Man Utd of Serie C2C, then Sant'Anastasia were the Watford, namely, they weren't gonna be there long without some damn fine management. As you can probably imagine, the combination of a slow computer and two dorks with overactive imaginations resulted in some ludicrous back stories being invented surrounding our respective characters, which make me chuckle to this day and have resulted in me using the Tash character as my CM name of choice since then.
I'm not going to regale you with the entire history of this game. Needless to say the 12 year plan I enacted at the start of the game was a success. Season 12 resulted in Foggia lifting the Champions League and me quitting Foggia due to the boards total incompetence. This success came via me bankrupting Foggia 3 times, and did not include a Serie A title after being ripped off by Roma in a play-off.
Perhaps the stand-out event of this era was in season 1 as 5 weeks of the game were lost to a computer crash. After replaying those 5 weeks again, Foggia remained top of the league. Unfortunately, Sant'Anastasia were 2 positions lower and struggling to reach the play-offs. Cue Sant'Anastasia vs Foggia. Now, being assured of the title, and a thoroughly good friend to boot, I gave Tash the edge by playing my reserve team [useless cretins one and all] in order to redress the balance following the crash. I got battered 4-0 with 2 ex-players scoring against me, including the ridiculously poor Faveo. I have still not been allowed to live this result down. The name Faveo still haunts me to this day.
Miraculously, Fantashtico eventually led his team to Serie A and a couple of extremely respectable mid-table finishes before becoming manager of Italy, for a more laid back lifestyle and much, much bigger wage.
12 years of Foggia wasn't the end for me. Taking over a Fiorentina side completely bereft of any good players, bottom of Serie A in December and low on funds may seem a strange choice of follow up jobs, but a mere 6 months later, Fiorentina were lifting the title [my first Serie A trophy] in the most stunning turnaround ever. How was it done? Stealing many of my old players from Foggia who were deemed surplus to requirements by whatever joker they got in to replace me [they were relegated 2 seasons later] was the main reason. 5 successive Serie A's and 4 Champions Leagues later, I was bored and began to repeat the story at Bologna.
Meanwhile, Fantashtico was leading repeatedly cataclysmic attempts by Italy to earn some silverware for the national team. Always blaming me for not having any Italian players in my squad, rather like England being crap is allegedly Arsene Wenger's fault.
The culmination of our endevours was a 20 season epic game which, due to the useless computer we were using, took 45 days of ACTUAL time to play. Or just over 6 weeks of game time in a period of about 8 months calendar time. Wow. So that's why my degree is none too impressive, although that I got one at all is a surprise to many. But I'll never forget those glorius days in front of the PC.
So, this blog. Basically, I will be writing the summarized events of a new game of CM01/02 in order to see just how much I'll play with a faster computer. Although, now I have a job and a relationship too, so perhaps this is a bad idea... Screw it, I love this game. All I have to do now is wait for my CD to arrive in the post after a purchase from eBay. Being in the USA certainly makes it hard to obtain this game. Also, I guess I need to think about who will be blessed with the mighty Tash as their new manager. Gotta be a Serie C2 team of some description, perhaps Foggia again? Stay tuned...
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