Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
INTRODUCTION



Long hard season is finally over....after earning promotion last year we were one of the favourites to be relegated from Slovenian Second League. But we pulled through and in the penultimate game of the season we officialy secured enough points to stay in the league.

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/vQ2Ufm548tTPkdnPJnNfZ43MKO4UgFDakkd3JyJD.png

I, unfortunately, wasn't playing that much. Injured my knee in third game of the season and having constant problems with my hamstring I decided enough is enough. It was time to move on, get a full-time job and travel whenever I'll have the time to.

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/kdIlLBxJ698wtPmV2SYG3uIfWnbcjcKzBd3xpwu0.png
(FM really doesn't like me )

Because I love to travel I spend a lot of time on the internet looking at flights and trying to organize my next trip. I found some great deals on flights to India so I decided to buy the tickets...India, here I come.

I landed in a city called Shillong. Quite a beautiful city I must say.

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/1WKHBGmOaI9xFbc2c6RJ5nPuakMK9gWQELfuESJ0.png

Anyway, one night when I was out in the bar I got into conversation with one man about local football club. One thing lead to another and he suddenly invited me to spend the day around the stadium. Before I knew it I was speaking to the club owner, Prabhat Dey Sawian himself. Apparently, he liked my knowledge of football and decided that he will give me a chance of managing a real football club!!
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
SHILLONG LAJONG


Before I get into club history and achievments I want to show you something. As I was trying to find anything about the club and the stadium I came across following:

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/FmfhWLjdTmfvGjSHEmXuYxoh2fIsRXP77ztFJGCX.png
There are 16!! stadiums in India with that (or similar) name!!

So, now the club...Shillong Lajong was established in 1983 with the prime objective of improving the declining standard of football in the state, and to spot, train and nurture local talent, as per wikipedia. Club is located in the city of Shillong in the northeastern part of India and has the population of 143,229. There are actually three football clubs ine the city. Royal Wahingdoh F.C. and Rangdajied United F.C., both of whom are currently in the lower Indian leagues.

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/WX7UgZ0aevUBIdY6cPLKowkSHhTziroPVxFry6fA.png

Club has a strong fan base across the North-East, which is being actively developed. Shillong Lajong had an average attendance of 11,308 for the 2013–14 season.
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
SQUAD


Squad is more than capable of winning the league. Main players are of course the foreigners but because you can only have 4 of them (plus one Asian player) we need to find the right balance for the team.

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/9P1X2pKm8qN3C5ogm1L9L1r7IWsCai2GroMaN00D.png

Best Players:

Abdoulaye Koffi
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/uKb9unuOA1t0QTCluKD3TtLDMwPtHtO2sveHsTmd.png

Lawrence Doe
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/kOc1pxO3cCClHjg2pkBIsEWQTpPRSEArQc0M6swA.png

Daniel Odafin
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/O5i9o0AGnPDqpcVlDI4Yvf2LUv2zDknyYBTAhkWa.png

Meanwhile we are short on staff so I am looking to get some coaches, scouts and physios into the club.

Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
Thanks to the owner, I got a really nice apartment about 15 minutes drive away from the stadium. Rent comes at 2800€ p/m but I have salary of 4000€ p/m so I can afford that expense. After calculating all the costs I'm left with 1060€ per month to spend or save.

Some pics of the apartment:
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/UyTGDD49aEiRGxHeldr93aR6qHVGjA0cVYwZZXWi.png
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/PD6nyzN7Oakc6JnEzNAXrbuOItxoD6NXtbE1cmmv.png

TinakoFM
10 years ago
3 days ago
1,522
Good luck in India @Simque16!
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
STADIUMS

Part 1


So to break the agony of waiting half a in-game year to start the season I'll introduce you the stadiums where we'll be playing this season:

Rajiv Gandhi Stadium (Aizawl FC)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/dgwKhIxZXXHkywyKqyVXvOGjNrMHdstj05FqoNRn.png

One of two stadiums that I'm most looking forward to be playing in (because of the location) is the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium, located in the city of Aizwal in the region of Mizoram. Once finished, the stadium will have the capacity of 20,000.

Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (Coimbatore) (Chennai City FC)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/o9SF7q3vMw9y9ZCjUhtDbxcfg4HHBDk9BWzA1tZh.png

Stadium is located in Coimbatore in the southern India. Constructed in 1971 and renovated in 2008, it holds 30,000 spectators. The game however says the home stadium for Chennai City FC is instead bigger and more modern Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai but that is false. That stadium hosts home games of Chennaiyin FC, the club currently playing in Indian Super League (not available on FM)

Fatorda Stadium (Churchill Brothers S.C.)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/qcsihCBeRo2cvVD8tjVHdruu9s6xe44dsgFLrn1G.png

Another example of the game being wrong is the stadium of Churchill Brothers S.C. but this time it is reversed. The game says that the club plays its home games at Tilak Maidan Stadium while in reality it plays most of them in the bigger Fatorda Stadium, which they share with Goa FC, another Indian Super League team and three other Goan clubs. Fatorda Stadium is located in the city of Margao, second biggest city in the state of Goa. It was established in 1989 and has the capacity of 19,000.

Salt Lake Stadium (Mohun Bagan & East Bengals)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/oJuFlXcCeEKCpXGgzrMAKpOkxOlXEp8ipQy45djZ.png

Salt Lake Stadium, located in Kolkata, is the largest stadium in India with the capacity of 85,000. Before its renovation in 2011 it was the second largest stadium in the world with the capacity of 120,000. Although its full capacity is 85,000 it was limited to 66,687. It is home ground for three Kolkata based clubs. Atletico de Kolkata, playing in Indian Super League, Mohun Bagan and East Bengals, both playing in the same league as us (according to the game, in the Indian First Division). Although game states that East Bengals play their home games at Barasat Stadium, that is only partially correct as both East Bengals and Mohun Bagan play their home games against lower local clubs at their training ground, but they host the league games at Salt Lake Stadium.
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
STADIUMS

Part 2


Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex (DSK Shivajianas FC)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/zjkyiXLdrASRKREgr6G53TN18ezwUXsxEIdyodmh.png

Balewadi Stadium is part of the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in the city of Pune. Opened in 1995 it can hold 10,900 spectators. The stadium is also home ground for the Indian Super League team Pune City FC. In real life, however, Shivajanas FC decided not to play in the Hero I-League so there will be a team called Indian Arrows playing instead of them.

EMS Stadium (Gokulam Kerala)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/Y5psPvrNzAXWpVH0IE5wGjl4NPTjXvk5kHa63jq5.png

EMS Stadium, named after the first Chief Minister of Kerala, was built in 1977. It is primarily used for football matches. After reconstruction it will have state-of-the-art facilities. Located in the city of Kozhikode, it is probably most famous for the football crazy fans

Guru Nanak Stadium (Minerva Punjab FC)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/YfHnCSZaomUU5SwHg29oErBr8PJuhWctzuxhTTaE.png

Guru Nanak Stadium, located in the city of Ludhiana, can hold up to 15,000 spectators.

Khuman Lampak Main Stadium (NEROCA F.C.)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/DFhjS3FBexDeAwdOvj8GDXtQvbBUv8myx5Qf7JBu.png

Built in 1999, Khuman Lampak Stadium is located in the city of Imphal. It can hold up to 30,000 people and lies inside the Khuman Lampak Sports Complex

Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (Shillong) (Shillong Lajong)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/miCIVGQSwqsZacDooidHlVYTzmZtPNdjzrLHz9sS.png

And finally, our home ground. Total capacity of the stadium is 30,000 spectators and the club regularly fill out the stadium during their first year in the Hero I-League. The stadium was renovated in 2011.
Dan
12 years ago
4 months ago
16,964
Good luck with this!
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
So the season finnaly started...

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/Szr4txsrJXSRdYHHibnggUgeGnG7RBzwjd8jxaHs.png

Preseason was OK, won against both lower ranked teams and drawn against better teams (Aizawl FC are current champions in our league). Now it's time for the Durand Cup and our first match against Ozone FC where we are favourites to win..
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/bbiiIcoeOLg4QeyQEgHgnsE6uIb36Nyz3iYOMG1F.png

And we did it!! Apart from games with Ozone FC and Minerva Punjab (and NEROCA FC but we were already through the group stage at that moment) we certainly didn't make it easy on ourselves. Conceding 91' minute equalizer against Mohammedan, allowing Mumbai FC to score two goals after being 4:1 up at the half and losing 2:0 at half against Churchill Bros, scoring 90' minute equalizer and then scoring again in the extra time were the moments that, in short, describe the whole Durand Cup run
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
And another great news...
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/6dF5AvQBlxW04b7vYfRsqMQlRlyzXv4rKKQ5RQVk.png

TinakoFM
10 years ago
3 days ago
1,522
Congrats on the Durand Cup!
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
Thanks now the wait begins again since the league doesn't start until 6th of January
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
LEAGUE FINALLY STARTS


So the first four games in the league went really well..
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/kJzeM6pSsxFSBLucrtwtTmRYSvN8jS42R6BNDtQ0.png

We are currently sitting 2nd in the league, only behind East Bengal on goal difference. Matches are really congested in January as you can see so there are some tired legs out there...fortunately my subs are more than capable to compete in the league so I can start them without much fear of losing the game...Other thing to note is that I renewed contracts with almost everybody whose contracts would run out this year. I'm gonna let the contract of Saihou Jagne, my other striker run out because I don't really need two foreign attackers...Instead I'll try and bring in either GK or midfielder so that I'll have the quality spread more even amongst the team instead of having one foreigner sitting on the bench..Anyway here are the stats of the games we played:

vs GokulamFC
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/33ythVG31m73L1ZRIYtOKDqxioKKZjzwMHi87XF9.png

vs Mohun Bagan
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/RYil8eOoYrbslFawjRTqlwBCDfvGdyMMFuqTrxif.png

vs Shivajians
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/Hfss6u4hkbuoF14rgDWTkfEAOsihA0x2mpTYhajN.png

vs Aizwal FC
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/3n5WhoNoGTyZPclfY1EXGQojKOpg7t2vFZ4w4AeF.png
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
Second part...could have gone better
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/VD4JFLXWeu8Z4oRvZl8GSepoDGmAte1FibzEmPx5.png

We came into the derby with East Bengal with two nice, comfortable wins against Chennai and Neroca. Then came the derby and we just weren't ourselves. And against Minerva the players just weren't able to execute the chances they got...meanwhile East Bengal is winning against everyone at the moment and they are 2 points ahead of us right now...there are still 10 games in the season but we'll need to get ourselves together and get back on the winning path..

vs Chennai City
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/1DW2RUqditVjwVwSdSTjZxQrTapSWIa8MT8w4DIZ.png

vs Neroca (IND)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/y8KCRGOUHIfnsCOFh5Uip8q7ldsUdhenqZ3pOafw.png

vs East Bengal
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/raz5As0MsSoi2CN2BsYsHLfUtllBQJaFeWUyE3sQ.png

vs Minerva Punjab
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/FD9bs1nKT4PzgvpyR9y9eHRMdZlkXQmr1TZTOyde.png
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
Well you could said that we are easily winning in the league....and you'll be wrong
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/ErGqbkTLgd2FwugvaD64zI2mYMUkz8OVic6cC64N.png
East Bengal just can't lose the damn game...

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/rz6pULWsdGHTtHCazqfxBOXr4JhuzSuI1gTEF2wS.png

Meanwhile we are losing points to teams we should be beating and beating teams we are equal to... But overall performances just aren't the same that were at the beginning of the season... One positive point is that after the win against Aizawl FC we qualified for the Asian Confederation Cup Preliminary Round...as East Bengal won their game they had in hand we are currently sitting 4 points behind them... that means it is not down to us anymore to win the league...

vs Churchill Bros
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/F8YFB74rcKabVWVL5m2bNhCAwHDYiSDvlQbksy0T.png

vs Gokulam FC
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/5rg2v7hwCkmxft5RBSDEZRk7cY9DYAk9Xi64CqqJ.png

vs Mohun Bagan
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/IrtwvCSsqw9fAw37DKRNCMW9tLMZqWKVJ1kPauNJ.png

vs Shivajians
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/5lmINr2cpK4qXFGH0JuJSKaAiudowIA1WUqOdzfv.png

vs Aizawl FC
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/IiIYpwZJBMsclovahv25afxMIwNPEIqa0JABYUNC.png
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
AND WE DID IT!!
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/Hax17CpLF8QNaHzEcO296LoEN0UURoeXsIRubBBO.png

East Bengal really gave us tough run but in the end we (luckily) caught the break and won the league!! I also don't know why we had so much problems with Churchill Bros since both games were won in the last 10 minutes... Overall the quality in the team was spread OK but we will need to improve for the future....one of the foreigners, Saihou Jagne, will leave the club after his contract will run out so we will have one foreigner space available to bring in most probably the quality GK... I was also able to increase the youth recruitment which is now established... one big problem I found out is about our finances (which are currently Okay) but we made a loss of over 500.000€ over the course of the season so we will need to cut down on the wages... Hopefully we will get somwhere in the next year's Asian Confederation Cup to ensure us some regular income...

Anyway, here are the matches:

vs Chennai City
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/WJcaTGFYChts86MyZrRVvyHYkmZZWgOBOMugaXAH.png

vs Neroca (IND)
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/SakbTMXWLj6ggyb9hk5TIrLQIDUyzABVscOTi2YR.png

vs Churchill Bros
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/CdLGCdgsa1WvBNhGinR8zqzOyYmAQgHBqRBVLTEL.png

vs East Bengal
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/DUtlpsFRSLiEggOwVSA6x5jDhkAaPeJ3PnNLhQxg.png

vs Minerva Punjab
https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/zRWiQXACBPBH7ZNR3UIZKZN3ejblSNmim5q981Zw.png

And now....the hibernation stage begins again -.-
TNSSO
6 years ago
1 month ago
109
Nice one mate. An unbeaten season and a deserved league title :-)
TinakoFM
10 years ago
3 days ago
1,522
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
Thanks It really felt like it was a league of just two teams as others were either unable to compete with us and East Bengal or were just that unlucky (saw couple of results being decided in the overtime, the important draw between East Bengal and Shivajians, where Shivajians scored the equalizer in the 94th minute, too).... Apparently we also have an amazing sponsorship since we are by far the most valuable team in the league (1.22M € vs 586k € East Bengal)
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
Well, as it turned out the season is not over yet

We still have the Federation Cup to play so let me show you the results:

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/FwX92wQHxcGJISfUG1FRsybb03WZGPblR9kN6P7q.png

Conceding 92nd minute equalizer against Neroca was brutal but at least we managed to beat them on penalties... First game against East Bengal was like there is another team playing instead of us. We struggled hard against Neroca in both games but in this one, everything just clicked and went acording to plan... I also don't know if that helped but East Bengal parted company with their previous manager for unknown reasons... Second leg against East Bengal was the next day so we needed to change basically the whole team (except both central defenders) so there was the expected drop but we managed to survive and through great free kick, courtesy of Lalrawngbawla, we made it all the way to the final
Simque16
14 years ago
1 year ago
39
And there it is!!! We've done treble in the first season

https://sortitoutsi.net/uploads/mirrored_images/9e62t70duqzTr7ktY9mp4jgPu1q0Id1fuxWnMvZ9.png

I think it is obvious that my players really don't enjoy big games because they are just unrecognizable in them... but very happy with my first season in India since I also got into India Hall of Fame
On top of that I just bagged my National B Licence

And on that note... let the waiting game begin..

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