A week has gone by in real time but my first season at the helm of Brechin City has come to an end in Football Manager (FM). It was a season full of ups and downs but sadly it was a year of disappointment.
The first game of the season would give me some false hope with a decent 2-0 win over Annan. Both of my strikers, Andy Jackson and Connor Higgins, got on the scoresheet. Wins would be a rarity during the season. A goalless draw with Albion Rovers followed then it was time for the Tunnocks Wafer Cup. We got absolutely thrashed by Peterhead even though we dominated a majority of the game. The Blue Toons 4-1 victory meant that we were knocked out another cup competition.
After thrashing we put in a decent run of 2 draws and 2 wins with the highlight being a 2-1 win against Edinburgh City. Striker Higgins scored again for us and midfielder McCabe, who is by far my star player, also got his name on the scoresheet. A dominant 4-1 win against Cowdenbeath kicked off this decent run of form. 2 draws with Queens Park and Elgin City concluded the 4 game undefeated streak.
We then went three games without a win. A goalless draw with Queens Park was followed by two 2-0 losses to Cove Rangers and Stirling. Facing significantly weaker opposition in the Scottish cup 2nd round offered us the chance to put a halt to our poor run of form. Edinburgh University were our opponents and we easily shrugged them aside.
This win kickstarted a very short run of good form but this quickly came to a screeching stop. A 3-1 defeat at the hands of Edinburgh City began a four game losing streak. The most humiliating defeat was a 4-2 disaster against bottom side Cowdenbeath. This losing streak was the moment I realised winning the league would be impossible. Getting a play-off spot would be considered a fantastic achievement at this point.
A win against Queen’s Park was followed by a mixed run of form. Two losses to Stirling and Cove Rangers meant the hopes of a play-off spot were slim. Three wins meant we were holding onto a play-off spot by a thread. The wins against Stenhousemuir, Annan and Cowdenbeath meant we were 5th with 16 games to go. Next came a five game losing streak which dashed all hopes of promotion. The worst defeat came against league leaders Stirling. Stirling pummeled us 4-0 which pretty much doomed the club to another season in League 2.
I only won three of the final eleven games which really shows that the side weren’t ready for the step up to League 1. Stirling were shock winners of the league holding a 15 point lead over Edinburgh City. Queens Park finished 3rd but were promoted via the play-offs defeating Stranraer in the final meaning they dropped down to League 2. Forfar finished last in League 1 meaning another decent side were now competing in League 2. We finished 6th place with 12 wins, 8 draws and 16 losses. We were 11 points off Cove Rangers who held the last play-off position.
For this challenge I can’t afford to spend a third season in League 2 so it was time for a major player overhaul. My main goal for next season is to completely dominate the league with the aim of automatic promotion.
NE98 