Evidently whenever Darren goes out of town, it automatically means the rest of us get down right lazy about our updates (sorry Johnny)! I apologize for my tardiness in providing an update, and I have no excuse other that not being sufficiently motivated. Regardless, I’ve squashed my lethargy bug and the result is the much anticipated (hah!) second half of Helios Kharkiv’s first season! Let’s see how we managed…
Last time out we’d found ourselves sitting in a surprising second place on the table, but I had growing doubts about our ability to remain in that position. Truthfully (as you’re aware), I was secretly hoping for a slight slip down the table; still a top 5 finish but just not in the top 2 (who are promoted). Our very next outing following that post saw this happen (VIDEO TIME!):
Just in case you weren’t able to tell from the grainy video (or didn’t watch it), that loss saw us fall down to 4th place with 12 (I think) games played. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your point of view), that was the lowest we would ever fall this season. Following that Olexandriya match, our fixtures fell rather…favorably:
Whaaaaaaat!? I really just can’t believe it. Despite putting together a solid string of results the entire season, I was never convinced we were a dominant team, and I never went into a game expecting a win. We immediately bounced back into 2nd position and we never relinquished it:
Chornomorets ran away with the league (as they should’ve given their £13,500 wage budget and reputation), and we secured 2nd place with two games left to play. Despite my statements to the contrary, I couldn’t help but be a little proud of our accomplishment. The media were also quick to doll out their adulation:
Madness, madness I say! I wouldn’t have believed it at the beginning of the season, but against all odds we’ve been promoted! This ragged bunch of past-their-prime veterans and far-too-inexperienced youngsters banded together and pulled off a feat that teams with twice the wages weren’t able to accomplish. If ever there was an underdog story, this was it. We were the David to the Persha Liha’s Goliath, we were:
Finishing in 2nd place also had a rather pleasant (and very necessary) side effect:
Excellent! That was money well needed, and should go a long way toward helping us secure some new players. Due to the funky structure of the Ukrainian season, we have barely a month’s break before the next season begins. This isn’t a lot of time to build/overhaul a squad, but we’ll be frantically trying to do our best. We have but a single goal next year: survive. The media seem to agree with us on that point:
Yikes, I’m pretty sure those are the worst odds I’ve ever faced. Nonsense, I absolutely must prove them wrong! With your help, and some insanely lucky transfers, I’m convinced we’ll be able to mount a serious relegation battle next season. Next update will have transfer news and the first few games. Thanks for reading all!
Sam Pettitt
30 июня, 2011 at 15:51
WOW! some brilliant results there given the wage budget! well done and good luck for the next season! :D
Stromson
1 июля, 2011 at 13:51
Thanks! I was just as shocked as you are, and I still can’t believe we were promoted…
Laxeyman
30 июня, 2011 at 16:08
Well done Stromo, if anything you’ve made Helios too good! Congratulations mate, you’ve pulled off a great achivement, and despite the terrible odds I’m sure you’ll do well next season. Looking forward to seeing who you bring in, you’ll need some good players for sure ;)
Stromson
1 июля, 2011 at 13:52
Haha, hopefully we haven’t exceeded our means with this rather unexpected promotion. I’m hoping our wage budget will be big enough for us to actually bring in some talent.
The Green Army
30 июня, 2011 at 16:24
Thats was a brilliant result this season and you earned some well deserved money. Your defence was absolutly rock solid looking from the results and league table.
Stromson
1 июля, 2011 at 17:02
I neglected to mention it in the update, but you’re absolutely right — our defense is the only reason we were promoted.
vaibhavc
30 июня, 2011 at 17:48
Hey Stromson
Congratulations on getting promoted, maybe you will prove the bookies wrong next season and stay up!
Stromson
1 июля, 2011 at 17:04
Thank you, and I certainly hope we can prove them wrong!
Nick
30 июня, 2011 at 17:54
Incredible results! Those odds have got to be the worst odds I have ever seen! You performed amazingly all season and if you can recruit well enough you should be able to stay in the Ukranian Premier League. Good luck!
Stromson
1 июля, 2011 at 17:23
No kidding, I’ve never seen anything quite that bad before. Thanks for the well wishes, hopefully we’ll stay up!
Sibo
30 июня, 2011 at 19:32
Great Work winning promotion! I ope you prove the bookies wrong next season and stay in the Premier League, I am just waiting for the day when Helios Kharkiv win the Champion’s League!
Ping me the video if you get the chance! :D
Stromson
1 июля, 2011 at 19:02
Thanks Sibo, I’m certainly hoping we’ll be able to! I’ll shoot the video your way soon as I can.
footballfan2991
30 июня, 2011 at 19:57
Hello Stromson,
Great results there, you definetely proved everyone that Helios are not pushovers. It is pretty obvious that your team will require reinforcements, I imagine that there must be a huge gap between the two leagues. Let’s hope that you cause another upset for the rest of the teams and make once again a great season.
Stromson
1 июля, 2011 at 19:05
Thanks! The gulf is almost certainly large, but hopefully we’ll be able to bridge the gap with a reasonable amount of success.
Sears
30 июня, 2011 at 21:07
Incredible! Great promotion, although your team need a complete overhaul :-( £510,000 isn’t a lot, but for your tiny tiny club it’s loads right? :-D It’ll take a long time to overtake Shaktar and Dynamo, but if anyone can do it it’s you :-) Good luck Stromo!
Stromson
1 июля, 2011 at 19:18
510k more than doubled our bank balance, if that gives you any indication of how much it means. :-p I’m no where near top tier, but I think we can manage to stay up.
Johnny Karp
1 июля, 2011 at 07:32
Congrats on the promotion, that’s a great achievement! From what I know the top flight is not that scary, there are around 5 very good teams including Shakhtar, Dinamo or Metalurg, but the rest of them are not too good so I think you are in with a good chance to survive the drop. Good luck!
Stromson
1 июля, 2011 at 19:20
Thanks Johnny! I’ve started to see that exact same thing, the gulf isn’t so much between the Premier and Persha leagues, but more so between Shakhtar, Dynamo, Metalist, and Dnipro and everyone else.
vikingmarius
1 июля, 2011 at 22:05
Very good job there with such limited resources, and now with money you can acutally sign players worth knowing huzzah :)
Kevin
1 июля, 2011 at 22:37
Hi Stromson
Congratulations on your promotion which turned out to be a nice little earner in 510,000. All good timing for you to enjoy Independence Day. Happy July 4th!!
Darren Smith
2 июля, 2011 at 09:53
You slacker lol,I may be out of the country but I’m watching you buddy lol:)
Only kidding, anyway great achievement and a wonderful season. I reckon survival is a decent aim but as you say, strengthening is a must. Can’t wairt to see who joins you in the transfer window.
CsAtlantis
3 июля, 2011 at 02:50
Great job in getting promoted on a shoestring budget, the prize money is pretty decent and should go a long way towards giving you something to work on, might be a bit hard to survive in the next division if you don’t get a decent wage budget though :D
Ana Garcia
5 июля, 2011 at 21:26
Just read it, and well done on your promotion!!
You face a massive task next season but when in South Africa at FCAK I faced similar odds, and managed to amass enough points before I left to keep them safe.
Hopefully this will inspire your team to defy the odds and get survival!!
Good luck!! :)