Dans Journey Around The World [FM15]

Good Luck Dan

Great start you've made at Excelsior! Keep it going!

Thanks SBR, its indeed quarterly playoff places awarded!

Thanks Jamie3

Thanks Wilc94, long may it continue.

Well, November was a superb month and saw us really take strides up the table, now I needed to try and continue it throughout December during the festive month. It wasn't to be the biggest month but could we still pick up the much required points?


Well, a fifty percent win rate, isn't bad but it should of been better really! Hopefully we can pick it up throughout the remainder of the year but two wins and two defeats were to end the calender year.

A narrow one nil defeat at home against FC Den Bosch began our month and ended our five game winning run.

A trip to FC Volendam brought us back to winning ways briefly as we won four two. Prade back from injury with a goal whilst Kersten netted twice and Kallah grabbed a goal. Conceded two which wasn't an issue.

League leaders Cambur visited us and beat us comfortably two nil, we lacked fight thats for sure!

We ended the month and calender year at home welcoming FC Emmen who we beat three two. Two nil up in five minutes through Karic and Hoekman. We conceded twice in the first half. Karic secured his second and the points for us in the second half with half an hour to go.


Well, Sparta end up in the playoffs for the end of the season as they finish the third period at the top. This sees three teams now confirmed playoff finalist for the end of the season. There still appears to be up to five more playoff spots available this season so I'm hoping we can grab one come the end of the year in a couple months time! Sixteen games to go!

Next Post: Excelsior - January 2030

unlucky on not getting the playoff spot.maybe you will next time but your still doing very well

It was SBR but expected a little I guess.

Back into action in the New Year, the players had a couple weeks without action but I didn't have any friendlies put in, I was more than confident we had what it took to bounce back to action and hit the ground running getting back to the form we were in before we left for a quick break.


Wow! What a horror return to football that is, we waited till the eighteenth to get back to action and we fell to two defeats.

Firstly a defeat against Fortuna Sittard, we lost out three two. We trailed and played poorly. Our goals were from Karic and Hoekman but we never deserved the points here thats for sure.

Then followed a one nil defeat against Almere City. Again poorly played.


We may have already blown our chance of winning this 'period' of the league following these two defeats. We've slipped down a bit but thats not good for us right now at all.

Next Post: Excelsior - February 2030

Good luck with Excelsior

Thanks as always Johno

So with that awful return to competitive football, two defeats on the bounce in January, we needed to ensure we went into February in high form and making sure we didn't blow our chances of a playoff spot come the end of the season. It appears I accidently got so into the save I played through two months instead of just one. So here is February and March' games.


Well, here is two months worth of fixtures, it hasn't been great but I've seen worse runs at form, remember that time at Rhyl, yeah. Ten games in total, five wins, one draw and four defeats. But have we done enough to secure a playoff spot yet?

First up it was a two one defeat againt Sparta at home. They already have a playoff spot but didn't let off anything here. Koyuncu netting a consolation for us late on.

We then beat MVV at home. de Jong struck first, Gabriels netted twice for us, either side of the break whilst Kersten wrapped up the game and the points with the fourth goal for us.

A two one defeat followed as we went on the road to De Graafschap. Poor showing once again we trailed two nil and netted a consolation goal late on through Gabriels.

Welcoming FC Einghoven didn't improve things, a goalless nil nil draw.

Finally things improved as we travelled to struggling Achilles'29 and bagged a brilliant five nil win, back to back clean sheets too. Karic netted twice in nineteen minutes with Prade netting one in that time to. Second half Evers and Kersten both netted as we ran riot.

Another big win came as we travelled to Halmond Sport and won four two. Kallah netted the first for us before Prade made it two nil in ten minutes. We conceded one before the break. Second half Prade had his second before we conceded a second but Kersten made it four two late on.

A defeat at home against Jong PSV ruined our form, we should of won here. Prade netting again though.

A trip to Jong Ajax saw us smash five past them in this five one win. Karic was brilliant as he grabbed four of the five goals whilst Prade of course got on the scoresheet with a late tap in.

A trip to FC Oss saw us lose our fourth game in nine. Koyuncu netted a late consolation for us but once again it was too late for us.

We ended the month with Jong Twente coming to us and we beat them four one. Prade netting after two minutes before Karic and Kallah helped to see us three nil up at the break. We conceded second half before Prade had his second in the final ten minutes.


Playoff spots are beginning to be wrapped up now! There are just four league games and it looks like we are in good shape to finish inside the playoffs with Jong PSV obviously unable to go up it stretches to the top ten teams earning a playoff spot at the least! We should be there now but work to be done in the final four games.

Next Post: Excelsior - April 2030

Good luck with Excelsior Dan a mixed bag to start with but I'm sure one which will lead to that desired playoff spot this season. I imagine that worst comes to worst a relegated side needs a new manager offering a better opportunity for promotion should Excelsior fall short or a full attempt next year with the club. It's going to be a pretty tense end to the season either way with the playoffs, looking forward to it.

Finish strong, mate, finish strong! And take the form with you into the playoffs, get that promotion!

Thanks again DP91 we've not been awful since I've taken charge but results definately could of gone better! Not sure what the short term future is for me yet!

That's the plan Gendo however it sure as hell won't be easy with our jaded form lately.

Here it was, the final month of the league, well, until the playoffs should we reach them which we are expected to. We faced just four more league games in our aim to hit that playoff spot. Form has been very up and down as of late, but could we get a run going in April to solidly secure our place...


Our final four league games of the season saw up jaded form continue as we ended the season in poor form with four points from four games and without a win in our final three. We started with a win but it went down hill from then, not a single clean sheet this month though.

We began at home welcoming SC Telstar and won three two, narrowly did it for us. Kersten gave us a first minute lead before we trailed two one at the break. The first minute of the second half saw us grab an own goal to level things before Karic won us the game late on.

No goal scorer for us against Dordrecht in this away game, we lost out one nil.

Then a poor showing against FC Den Bosch who we lost to three one. Again our consolation goal came from Karic but another poor show.

We ended the month with a point at home to high flying RKC Waalwijk. We drew two a piece. Originally one down before Klijn and Prade both scored which saw us two one ahead. Second half we conceded one but grabbed a point.


Cambuur finish top of the table and flew through the table with ease so they've got automatic promotion. We end up down in sixth place but do have a playoff spot for the end of the year, it'll be a long playoff stage though so I don't really fancy our chances of going up this year.


This is the Second Round draw. In the first round we'll face FC Volendam who I've played one game against since I've been here and we won four two, so hopefully we can head into the Semi Finals of the playoffs but there we would face relegation threatened Zwolle should we get through which will be even tougher.

Next Post: Excelsior - May 2030

At least you managed to secure a play-off spot, good luck in the play-off's chum.

Well done on getting the playoff spot, now to see how far you can really go!

We did Shedender, hopefully we can really press on!

Thanks Wilc94

And so we made it, into the playoffs we flew and not in great form either. But with a stroke on luck and few goals, who knows, we could always still win the playoffs. There was also a pretty big milestone for me to celebrate but it was important we didn't get distracted with it.


The big one, before my first playoff game it was announced it would be my seven hundredth game in charge, a huge milestone. So many careers don't even get to one hundred these days so I'm definitely pleased with this one getting to seven hundred, it would be amazing to make it to one thousand games in charge!


Well what can I say! We've done the first part! There are three rounds for the playoffs, the first round has been won which is brilliant. The first leg saw us win two nil at home. A great showing saw Kersten net first for us with Hoekman netting last minute. Not conceding was a huge boost too! Away we drew two a piece. Klein netting a spot kick for us brought it back to one a piece on the night whilst Prade made it two one to us with twenty minutes to go. We conceded a late equaliser but we were through to Round Two.


Wow wow wow! A round I couldn't see us winning has turned out trumps up as we beat now relegated Zwolle in both legs of Round Two. We fell behind in the first leg before Prade levelled before the break. Second half we started fast and bright with Klijn and Kersten both netting sending us three one up before we conceded. Second leg it was Prade who took the pundits again. This time he gave us the lead before we conceded second half, but he grabbed his second in the last nine minutes, sending us through to the Third and Final Leg.


So close but yet so far! We were just one, maybe two wins away from winning promotion but it clearly wasn't to be. We faced RKC Waalwijk and they beat us easily across both legs, so we probably didn't even deserve to win promotion anyway. They beat us four one at their place and then beat us three one at home. Our two goals in this round came from Huurman and Klein.

Next Post: Excelsior - Pre Season Expectations 2030/2031

Wouldn't worry about not getting promotion this season, maybe it could be a blessing in disguise?

Good luck next season, maybe you can go one better and secure a league title all being well, stranger things have happened in football.

I'm not too worried Shedender, just annoyed at how poorly we played in the Final after really playing well in the previous to rounds. Who knows what'll happen this year.

After missing out in the playoffs this year it was hard to motivate the team at the end of the year trying to tell them we'll aim for playoffs again next year, but it won't be easy, we'll have some good teams in the league but if we were to play like we did against Zwolle in the playoffs then who knows. But anyway, onto what happened this summer...


So the board wanted me to achieve at least a playoff spot again come the end of the season, but that should be easily expected when there are eight or so playoff spots up for grabs this year. The board rewarded us financially to with good transfer and wage budgets at my disposal this year.

*Throughout the summer I rejected interest in the following jobs: Feyenoord, Roda JC, Sparta, Vitesse and Crystal Palace.


Little to report here really, a poor summer off the pitch for outgoing. Everyone that left decided to leave on a free, either they didn't want a new contract or they weren't worth giving a new one, we had to ship some of the deadwood out afterall.


Incomings, not many again but I'm still searching for a few more gems to really liven up and strengthen this side. We haven't spent a penny, already extended a couple of loans as well as returning to Joris Zwann from parent club Feyenoord who played for us last season. *If you wish to see any players attributes just ask.


Here is our squad, its not looking too bad in places but I do feel for our defence and keeper at the moment, this appears to be the area where we really lack potential and current quality so I will continue trying to adjust that in the coming weeks before the transfer window slams shut. *If you wish to see any players attributes just ask.


So many testimonials this summer, not a bad showing on the pitch though. We lost just once in our six pre season friendlies and that was to parent club Feyenoord. We grabbed three wins and two draws in the remaining five games, no clean sheets this summer though!

Next Post: Excelsior - August 2030

Unlucky in the playoffs! If your form can continue from last season there's no reason you can't push on and win the league this time round!

Unlucky in the playoffs Dan was always going to be a tall order on the back of the season and form going into them. A good couple of signings in Wilson and Daniel will hopefully make quite the impact bossing the midfield, should make for a good campaign.

Thanks Wilc94, clearly just wasn't meant to be, this is a hard league to get out of with the playoff structure but we will give it another shot!

Thanks DP91, when I took the team over they weren't even in the playoffs so to get to the final and lose out there was just hard luck I suppose, but we will go again. I'm heading with what we've done to date in the transfer window and have a few more faces here coming in.

And so the competitive season is about to kick off once more. Into August 2030 and almost a year in charge here now. I took over in the last week of September back in 2029 and its been a good eleven months, be better if we start the season well. We had five games to play in the opening month whilst also making a few more transfers throughout the final month of the window, a thing I've rarely done on this career but there were a few more gems to pick up.


Firstly the transfers and as I said, there were a couple more dealings which ended up being into and out of the club. Disappointed we lost our back up young keeper who had a bright future, they offered him a contract and he accepted, they were forced to pay just under six hundred thousand pounds in compensation. I went on to bring in four more free transfers though and I've got a trailist in the squad who I'm trying to negotiate an appropriate wage with.


The squad now looks like this, I' very happy with the additions we've made, a few players have been promoted from the reserves and youth squad but I feel they can play a big part in this seasons playoff hunting run. Strengthened the defence a little more which I thought was the weakest area and I am still looking at a deal for Nacho Sanchez to turn his trial into a full deal. We lost our keeper with good potential, this could be a weak spot now, but the way Abel started this season I'm confident in his ability.


Green, green, green, green, green! Get in! What a way for us to kick start the new league season, five games played in the league, five games won and hey, four clean sheets from our opening five games! Where has that come from! Superb start from the team. We have absolutely flown out the blocks in August.

We began by welcoming FC Oss and recorded a well earned two nil victory. Wilson netted on his debut to put us ahead just before the break. Prade made it two nil nineteen minutes from time which helped wrap up all three points.

A trip to last season strugglers Achilles'29 saw us win three nil. A goalless first half paved the way for a super showing in the second half for us. Karic netting four minutes after the restart before Hoakman and Prade both netted in three minutes of each other.

Back at home we welcomed FC Eindhoven and ran to another three nil win and our third clean sheet of the season, it could of been a higher score here though. All three of our goals came in the opening fifteen minutes as Kersten netted one and Karic netted twice in eight minutes.

A trip to Fortuna Sittard saw us finally concede this season but we won three two here after a late winner. Karic and Wilson both netted in the opening twenty minutes which sent us two nil up. But goals either side of the break saw the host come back into the game and grab it level. However there was a late strike from Karic to secure back to back braces and win us the three points.

We ended August with our fifth win and fourth clean sheet from our opening five games as we welcomed Almere City and ran to a three nil win. Prade netting after two minutes before Wolters made it two nil a minute before the break. There was a third and final goal in the second half which came from Mothoana to secure the perfect start to the season.


Top of the table and in control of the league but not by a lot thats for sure. Zwolle, who were relegated from the top tier last season are hot on our heels having also won five from the opening five games in the league. Go Ahead, De Graafschap and Sparta are also all unbeaten in their opening five games of the season.

Next Post: Excelsior - September 2030

What an opening month! Plenty of goals, and only dropped one clean sheet so far! Fantastic stuff!

Good luck for the new season.It'll be interesting the promotion fight with Zwolle : ) .

Now that's a cracking start to the season Such a shame you got beaten in play off last season

Thanks Wilc94, its been a great start to the new season!

Thanks TheMazeRunner it sure will be an interesting and exciting season!

It was a shame Johno but it clearly wasn't to be, hopefully with that start it'll be our season!

After the perfect start to the league season I was left pleased with my dealings in the transfer window, clearly it had all come together and we were proving ourselves as a force to be beckoned with this year, just hoped we could keep that form up. Come the end of this month I have been in charge of Excelsior for a year.


Well, just one slip up from producing another perfect month, five games in total and we went on to pick up four wins and one defeat whilst playing across four league games and our first appearance in the cup this year which saw us advance to the Third Round, the board wanted us to reach that round which is pleasing. Oh, three more clean sheets too!

We began on the road at Helmond Sport and claimed a two one victory. Both our goals came early on with Kersten netting after six minutes and Kiracan making it two nil in thirteen. We conceded in the second half but was mearly a consolation goal at most.

Welcomed Jong Twente saw us run to a brilliant four nil victory. We played very well. Kersten gave us the lead eight minutes before the break before sending us two nil up with twenty minutes to go of the second half. An own goal followed five minutes later before Gabriels wrapped up the game with our fourth.

Our first defeat came at Go Ahead, a trip to them saw us narrowly lose out one nil.

We welcomed FC Oss in the KNVB Beker second round and won three nil with another great showing. Kersten gave us the lead just before the half hour mark. Gabriels made it two nil late on in the second half before Karic netted in injury time.

We wrapped up another good month at home, welcoming Dordrecht who we beat one nil, our seventh clean sheet of the season in nine games. Zwaan netted the only goal of the game coming a minute after the restart.


Playoffs secured for the end of the season! Having won our opening seven league games, which made up period one, and outscoring Zwolle we have indeed scooped the first playoff spot for the end of the season, however I want that top spot with the way we've started this year. Zwolle have been superb since their relegation last season and won all nine games this year. It'll take something special to stop them, we face them next month!

Next Post: Excelsior - October 2030

It's such a strange system for securing playoff's but an impressive start to the season Dan the 7 straight wins is brilliant and even after 9 games having only dropped 3 points is still some feat. Good luck against Zwolle next month, big game and could make the difference in the race for that top spot as you say. By the looks of it as long as Kersten stays fit the goals should keep coming!

Quality start to the season and well done on securing the playoff spot.With the playoffs being ridiculously hard it counts for hardly anything though.Top spots what you need.Good luck to you mate.

Great Start Dan

massive career, well done! keep goin'

Just spent a considerable amount of time reading your story Dan - what a journey you've been on so far!

It is strange DP91 but gaining the playoff spot at the first chance is vital for us, of course the top spot is our aim.

Thanks SBR obviously we'll aim for the top but see what happens!

Thanks Jamie3

Thanks Seedorf22

That must of taken some time Karl Johnston, appreciate it though!

Its been a pretty good start here to the second year in charge of Excelsior and with the playoffs spot already wrapped up for the end of the year it would allow us to focus a little less on the competition. However saying that, I'd much rather finish in the top spot and avoid the potential three rounds of playoffs and potential six games.


Yes back to another perfect month! Five games and five wins including a home victory over title chasing Zwolle and a huge win over Jong Ajax, we also pushed through the cup despite playing top tier side Roda JC.

We began on the road at MVV who we beat two one. We went behind in the twentieth minute but soon came back as Wilson levelled before the break. Karic went on to net our winning just twenty five minutes from time.

A trip to De Graafschap saw us win five three and this game. Gabriels netted twice, his first six minutes into the game with him also netting our last goal, four minutes into injury time. Prade also grabbed a brace with goals in the thirty fourth and seventy third minutes whilst Wilson also netted for us.

The biggest game of the year to date saw us welcome Zwolle, unbeaten to date until this game at least. We triumphed two one as we came back from behind. We trailed just after the interval before Karic netted and Prade went on to net nine minutes from time as we finally beat the former league leaders.

I love player the 'reserve' teams. Welcoming Jong Ajax we triumphed with a superb eight two victory! Orcadio netted in the first minute for us before Karic netted a sixteen minute hatrick. Kiracan nette one, an own goal went in and Wiegerink netted two in four minutes which helped secure the massive win.

We ended the month with a trip to top tier side Roda JC, who I got linked with in the summer, but a late goal, sixteen minutes from time it came as Karic netted sending us through to the Fourth Round.


Well, this title race is going to be a belter it would seem. We sit top, by a 'four goal difference' better than second place Zwolle. Both sides have lost just one of their opening thirteen league games, keeping high scoring games and low on the conceding end. Both teams sit seven points clear of third and fourth place sides Go Ahead and Volendam. Volendam coincidently are set to scoop a playoff spot having won six from six in the second period to date.

Next Post: Excelsior - November 2030

Great month Dan and good to see you have progressed in the Dutch Cup as well.

Smashing result over Ajax reserves

Good to see you're through to fourth round.