English Hero (Ebbsfleet)

English Hero Challenge

The English Hero Challenge is simple; take a club from the lowest playable league in England all the way to the Premier League. Consecutive promotions is obviously the aim but as we all know LLM isn't that simple.



Ebbsfleet United have announced the appointment of Michael Mul as their new manager. The arrival of Mul comes as something of a shock to fans and journalists alike; the young manager is a complete unknown and the spotlight will be firmly pointed on him and the board in the opening stages of the 2014/15 campaign.

With Ebbsfleet expected to push for promotion this term, fans appeared somewhat hesitant to see such an inexperienced manager take the helm. Speaking to the attending press Mul said, "It's fantastic to be given this opportunity. I assure you I'm here for the long-term. Together we're going to achieve great things!"

The optimistic statement was swiftly followed by stunned silence. Could a manager really be this confident, or was this display of animal puffery just an attempt to conceal his relative inexperience?

Consecutive promotions would be something very, very special mate!

All the best with this

In something akin to a biblical exodus I've decided to ship out some fairly average players. These lads are never going to get a look in and with new faces expected to arrive in the coming weeks I felt that the wage budget could do with a little trim. I've been given a very generous £90k transfer budget for the new campaign and with buying options somewhat slim, I've decided I may be best served to chuck the whole load into my wages. What do you think?

Cheers mate. It is a bit of an ask. To be honest, I'm just hoping to make it into league football!

Good Luck Mate

With so much upheaval in the playing department it should come as no surprise to see that the same was required in the backroom. Fortunately, I've been able to add some much needed experience in the shape of Nigel Winterburn and Joe Corrigan.

Cheers mate. Looks like we're both a glutton for LLM punishment!

Good luck with this mate.Hope you climb the leagues asap.

Good luck

Cheers SBR & Johno

Good luck matey

2-0 (vs. Concord Rangers)

After a busy few weeks, we finally got underway. The first game was a nervy affair but thanks to goals either side of the break we emerged victorious. The game ended 2-0 and although we deserved the three points there was definitely room for improvement!

3-1 (vs. Havant & Waterlooville)

A brace from Taylor-Crossdale was enough to see off a difficult Havant side. The match ended 3-1. with Michael West getting his second goal in as many games.

6-5 (vs. Whitehawk)

After a thrilling 90 mins we emerged victorious! After just 17 minutes we led 2-0 but thanks to two incredible strikes we found ourselves 2-3 down at the interval. Despite sympathising with the side and getting a good reaction we came back out and let another two in; from 2-0 up we were 2-5 down and staring defeat in the face. Following two mastermind substitutions we emerged 6-5 victors! Anthony Cook came on to bag a brace and Thalassitis provided 3 assists to secure a third league win of the season.

3-1 (vs. Wealdstone)

Despite trailing after just 2 minutes, we fought back to take a 3-1 lead into the break. A late 90th minute consolation from Bola was enough to have bums on the edge of their seats but not enough to save Wealdstone from defeat.

1-2 (vs. Basingstoke)

We finally lost. Goals either side of the half were enough to condemn us to defeat. Nigel Neita did net a late consolation but unfortunately we couldn't scrape a draw.





Having picked up 12 points from a possible 15, we find ourselves sat 2nd, a point behind early pace-setters Farnborough with a game in-hand.

1 defeat in your first 5 games isn't that bad at all.

Cheers Dan and yeah 1 defeat in 5 ins't bad SBR, hopefully my form will improve though; my side has seen A LOT of changes, it's going to take time but the future looks bright!

Not a bad start mate well done

1 Defeat in 5 isn't bad at all

Cheers guys hopefully we can keep this early form up!

Although we're by no means finished, here is a little taster of the mass upheaval that's been happening at the club. We've moved a lot out but we've brought a lot in; it's been a productive window so far as we've been able to add some really quality and depth to the side. A lot of players have been signed on non-contract so we're only paying appearance fees and their status is as 'back-up' - the reasoning behind this is two-fold: one, we get real squad depth and won't have too many players complaining about a lack of first team football, and two, we still have a hefty wage budget to play with.

2-2 (vs. St. Albans)

Following a defeat last time out I was determined to bounce back with a win. Unfortunately, St Albans didn't read the script as they held us 2-2 at home.

5-0 (vs. Weston-super-Mare)

A hat-trick from Godden and goals from Sheringham and Jeffrey helped us get back to winning ways. With the game ending 5-0, this was easily our best performance so far.

4-1 (vs. Whitehawk)

Yet another hat-trick, this time Taylor-Crossdale. the match ended 4-1, giving us our second win of the month and continuing our unbeaten start to September.

1-0 (vs. Sutton Utd)

The game look destined to end as a bore draw until Cook stepped up with an 83rd minute penalty to hand us another three points and give us the perfect end to a great month.

September also saw me win my first FA Cup game as Fleet manager. In truth, it was a very easy game; despite making wholesale changes to the team, we ran out 4-1 winners and easily secured our place in the next round.

2-1 (vs. Farnborough)

A penalty from McMahon and a 84th minute strike from October were enough to secure a vital 2-1 away win. Our good form continues!

2-3 (vs. Eastbourne Boro)

Despite fighting back from 2 down we let slip once again to lose 2-3.

4-4 (vs. Hemel Hempstead)

What follows a good month? Yup, you guessed it. A bad one. Following defeat in the last game a shambolic defensive performance saw us draw 4-4. Going forward we looked quite good, at the back however, things weren't quite so pleasing on the eye.

0-3 (vs. Hayes & Yeading)

In fitting fashion we ended the month with a 0-3 home defeat. By far the worst performance of the season. We simply must improve.



Our poor form sees us slip to second in the table, a point behind league leaders Concord.

October also saw us exit the FA Cup as we lost to in-form Vanarama Conference side Torquay. Despite trailing 0-2, two goals from Sekajja brought us back in the game; cheer soon turned to heart-ache however, as Benyon completed his hat-trick with a 90th minute strike.

3-2 (vs. Staines)

Thanks to a brace from Sheringham we started Novermber with a 3-2 win. Our form was atrocious last month and this result was the perfect response.

2-1 (vs. Bath)

An 84th minute strike from super-sub Tounkara was enough to see off a spirited Bath side.

1-0 (vs. Gosport)

What looked destined to end 0-0 saw a late twist as towering centre-back Parry netted a dramatic 94th minute winner!

1-0 (vs. Farnborough)

Yet another late goal as super-sub Tounkara strikes again! With 83 minutes gone it looked like we were destined for a bore draw, however the young Frenchman had other ideas as he slotted home a decisive winner. That's the second time this season we've struck late against Farnborough - it has to be said, our 'never say die' attitude is certainly shining through.

1-2 (vs. Eastbourne Boro)

A 100% record this month wasn't to be as our trip to Eastbourne saw us leave empty handed. All in all it was a good month for us; we've got players returning from injuries and we look set to push league-leaders Concord all the way!



Despite our incredible form this month, which saw us pick up 12 points from a possible 15, we find ourselves 2nd, 4 points off leaders Concord. In-form Concord have won their last six games and haven't lost for 13 matches, 12 of which they've won! They have been nothing short of sensational and I'm starting to think if I'm destined for the play-offs.

In other news, November also saw me start my new coaching qualification. Hopefully I'll be able to push-on and gobble up these coaching badges like smarties!

As former Blackburn legend Lucas Neill signs on, I invite you to look at the talent we've managed to acquire at Fleet. In a surprising move we managed to secure the loan services of young Arsenal keeper Dejan Iliev. The towering stopper will certainly add some much-needed competition for the number one shirt. In other news, I decided to ship-out Godden and Palmer as they were bitching about wanting first-team football.

Our FA Trophy began and ended on the same day. An abysmal performance saw a plucky Barkingside pick up a memorable 0-4 win. We were away but our inability to take our chances ultimately cost us our place in the next round. Oh well, there's always next year. That was our last game of November and following a relatively successful return to form in the league it was disappointing to see that we couldn't take that into the cup.

1-1 (vs. Maidenhead)

Following a disappointing string of defeat toward the back-end of November I was determined to continue our league form throughout the festive period. The first game of December ended in a draw; to be honest we weren't at our best and we could do a lot worse than an away point.

3-1 (vs. Weston-super-Mare)

Back to winning ways as injury-prone Sekajja returns to cap a wonderful team performance with a neat finish.

4-3 (vs. Chelmsford)

Back-to-back wins for Fleet as Sheringham bags a brace in a thrilling 4-3 victory.

4-1 (vs. Basingstoke)

Another late Christmas present for manager Mul as Fleet demolish a lackluster Basingstoke side. Having lost 1-2 in the reverse fixture at the start of the campaign, this victory was all the more special.



Truly unprecedented success for my Fleet side as we managed to deliver the goods two months running. We're still second but we've managed to close the gap on leaders Concord, whilst at the same time opening a sizable gap from the chasing pack.

December also saw me pick up my first managerial award. Although I'm definitely not the sole reason for the side's recent success I'll definitely take the plaudits coming my way!

Super stuff so far, concord are having a great year!

Cheers They really are mate! Saying that, my form has improved dramatically over the past few months - I think all the new players are finally settling in and my formations are becoming more fluid. Hopefully it will continue!