Hello my dear friends, welcome back to Notts County’s Football Manager 2010 quest for glory! This will be a rather quick update as we only had three games to play in October… Until that point our Premier League season went quite well, we were in 5th place at the end of September but I was sure that a few defeats could get us into the low region of the league table.
The first game of the month was away at 6th placed Sunderland, it seemed that we had a tough battle to fight. Sunderland came out with the clear intention to score, there were numerous moments of pressure for my defense in the first half. One player ran the show in the first 45 minutes though, right winger Sam Hinshelwood. His raids on the right flank were unstoppable and his crosses produced the two goals for us, the first one scored by Tinga and the second by the insatiable Guilherme. Goalkeeper Sergio Romero was fabulous once again, his saves were brilliant. Sunderland continued to attack in the second half and finally got one in thanks to a long range shot from Tainio. Lucas Biglia placed the three points in our bag with a well executed finish only a few minutes later, the fans were quite happy about it :)
The next game was at home with 13th placed Birmingham, we had to confirm our good form and get another good result. Sam Hinshelwood gave us the lead with a fine corner kick header but we conceded a goal from long range again, Mark Van Bommel powered in a volley from 30 yards out. Guilherme got us back on track right before the break but things were level again only a few minutes into the second half, we conceded a corner kick goal. The team got back in attack after that shock and I liked the way they played, with great determination and creativity. Two penalty kicks and another great finish from Guilherme gave us a high scoring win and the first hat-trick for the star Brazilian striker.
That was all the Premier League had to offer in October, we consolidated our fifth place with fellow newly promoted Newcastle just above us in 4th. Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City seem to have something above the rest, they conceded just a few goals so far…
The month was not over yet, we still had the Carling Cup 4th round game to play, away at West Ham. The first half was fairly even, the two teams battled hard for the ball in midfield but failed to produce anything special upfront. The second half was different, West Ham looked slightly better and managed to put us under pressure several times. We stood firm and hoped to go to the extra time. We finally did, but not as we expected. We took the lead in the 80th minute thanks to Italian winger Nicola Bonetti but we couldn’t hang on to that lead, West Ham made it all square only a few minutes before the final whistle. Both teams looked tired in extra time, chances were created on both ends. Sabrin Sburlea found the strength to power one in, we were in the lead again. Unfortunately things ended quite badly for us, West Ham equalized again and won the dreaded penalty shoot-out…
The fans were disappointed, they expected us to reach the Quarter Finals and I was quite bitter too. My deepest regret was that we were not able to hang on to that extra time lead, we conceded a rather foolish goal. Take a look at the screen shot below, that’s how that equalizer was scored. West Ham had a free kick from around 30 yards out and Scharner, the goalscorer, was completely unmarked inside our penalty area! I can’t understand why my players left him all alone like that but I guess I’ll have to live with that regret.
We’ll have the chance to get revenge over West Ham right away, the first game of November will bring them at Meadow Lane… We’ll have some tough matches after that one, Everton, Fulham and Manchester City, the title holders!
That’s about it folks, I’m looking forward to reading your comments. And before closing the post I’d like to make a quick statistical announcement, this is the 200th post that ever got published on this website! Big thanks to all the readers and authors that brought us this far!
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Wilko
15 января, 2010 at 14:51
Well done mate good wins over two established Premier Teams, Unlucky against West Ham tho, But if you beat them in league will be big win for you and confidance, Have you got any decent youngsters breaking through the First Team yet? My Stoke side is 16th at mo in my 3rd season but I have some great youngsters breaking through like Henri Saivet,Georginhio Wijnaldum and Marqunihos, I recomend them mate.
Martin
15 января, 2010 at 15:11
Well Done Johnny, But Unlucky In The Cup, I Hate It When Someone Is Unmarked On Football Manager Or PES, Its Really Annoying
Ive Started Yet Another New Game:(, This Time As Stoke:P
TheZiggy
15 января, 2010 at 15:18
Great wins in the league games. Your side really seems to be playing well with Sam Hinshelwood doing an excellent job for you.
The loss to West Ham is a real shame. Conceding to free kicks like that one is very annoying, but I’ve seen similar mistakes in real life, where you wonder what was going on. Definitely just one of those annoying things to live with.
I’ve noticed that sometimes the placement of the wall at free kicks is very poor. The only good thing is it seems to be a problem for both teams, with several goals scored and conceded at free kicks with the ball being hit straight in, some even curling towards the wall. I know that happens once in while in real life, but I think it happens a little too often in game. I’m sure they’ll tweak it eventually. However since our keepers reflexes improved, we’d conceded from less of these situations.
Johnny Karp
15 января, 2010 at 15:27
@Wilko
Thanks for the recommendations mate, those players are on my shortlist. I have several youngsters in the first team squad, we have the lowest average age in the whole league!
@Martin
Thanks Martin, I hope you’ll have better luck with Stoke :)
@Ziggy
You’re right about the wall problem too but it seems to be better with the 10.2 patch. Hinshelwood is absolutely fantastic, the only flaw is that I have to take him out at half time in almost every game, he gets tired quickly. He might become a superstar sooner or later, I’m quite happy that I bought him last season.
eddie eddie
15 января, 2010 at 17:19
Good results there and as always good luck.
Lye
15 января, 2010 at 17:20
Hi mate, good wins against 2 decent side. Relegation worries should be out of your sight now. I think West Ham should be powerless to stop your team at your home ground, so you should exact the revenge easily. The opposition for next month is not too strong except Man city. I hope you can gain maximum points for these fixtures. Good luck
Johnny Karp
15 января, 2010 at 17:28
@Eddie
Thanks mate, good luck is always needed :)
@Lye
Thanks for the comment. I believe that Everton and Fulham are not easy opponents either but at least they are not impossible to beat as Manchester City seems to be at the moment.
Martin
15 января, 2010 at 18:07
Ive Done A New Blog:P
http://martinfmstory.blogspot.com/
Johnny Karp
15 января, 2010 at 18:25
You’re always surprising Martin :) I hope you’ll keep this one a bit longer though, good luck!
Martin
15 января, 2010 at 18:36
I Will Try My Hardest To Be More Patient
It Will Be A Bit Easier Being In The Top Leahue Straight Away Because I Won’t Have To Make Big Changes In My Second Season(If We Stay Up):P
Martin
15 января, 2010 at 18:56
Johnny, I’m Really Happy Now, I Just Got The Facepack To Work! :P
Johnny Karp
15 января, 2010 at 18:57
That’s great news! I’ll keep an eye on your new blog, just added it to the links page.
Rooneye
15 января, 2010 at 19:39
Excellent as usual Johnny and grats on the 200th post woohoo! Hopefully there will be an other 200 posts to come :D I have to say this is my favourite FM blog of them all. Looks like your Notts Co. team can kick it with the big boys, great job and good luck with next month!
Im still stuck on which team to choose to start my blog, I have the site set up and everything, but I just cannot decide who to be :( I’ve thought about many teams including, Middlesbrough, Spurs, Wolves, Walsall, Southampton, Nottingham Forest, Vauxhall Motors, AFC Wimbledon, Norwich….What do you reckon I should go for? Lower league or start in Premier League or Championship…..Maybe I should just do random choice lol Hhmm…decisions, decisions.
Johnny Karp
15 января, 2010 at 19:49
Thanks a lot Rooneye, I hope there will be at least a few more thousands to come :) About your decision, I’d go with Vauxhall, you know I like lower league starts… Wimbledon might be a nice choice too but Vauxhall is a tough challenge. However, it’s your decision, so do what you think is best for your way of playing the game. Let me know about your blog, link and stuff, I’ll add it to my favorites :)
Lye
15 января, 2010 at 20:40
Vauxhall motors is a good choice, i got a lot of affection for them as i managed them in FM2009. But most probably i like to see you manage Southampton. Hope you bring them up again.
Rooneye
15 января, 2010 at 21:38
Thanks for the response guys :)
Southampton was the first club i thought of because they are a big club with a 32,000 stadium etc. and will have plenty of money to spend so you could achieve great things with them fairly quickly i feel.
On the other hand i do like the challenge of bringing a small unknown club up through the ranks, thats why I like the idea of AFC Wimbledon as they are a newly founded club.
So I think its going to be one out of them two, Wimbledon will certainly be the bigger challenge, though it might be a bit slow to begin with, whereas Southampton I could quickly build my own team and shoot for the stars :D Yes! Thats it, I will be Southampton! Hurray! hehe Lets awake the sleeping giants. Wish me luck!
Laxeyman
15 января, 2010 at 22:29
Another Great month there Johnny. I think you could even get a Europa League place! Rooneye, looking forward to see how you do with Southampton, Good Luck!
Johnny Karp
15 января, 2010 at 22:50
@Laxeyman
Thanks mate. Don’t know about that Europa League spot, I think we’ll have a better idea of what we can achieve at the end of December. If we’ll still be among the first 8 I guess then we might have a chance.
@Rooneye
Good luck with Southampton then Liam!
Kevin Mayo
15 января, 2010 at 22:56
Johnny, great wins again for you in the League and my sympathies for your cup loss. I never get passed the first round so well done in getting as far as you did. Sam Hinshelwood seems to be an intregal part of your team and always comes up big.I’m gald Guilherme and Romero are doing well.
I need a coffee I’m exhausted!
Martin: Welcome back mate! I’ll check out your blog later, have to get back to work
Johnny Karp
15 января, 2010 at 23:10
Thanks Kevin, take care mate. Coffee and work can cause problems if you have too much of them :)
Romero has been essential for us, we would have been way lower in the league table without him. The same thing goes for Guilherme, he’s a star.