It's happening!!!! To commemorate the greatest management game of all time and its ten-years anniversary this is a tribute to a legendary era of football, the final period in which 90 k/contracts were intimidating and when several of Europe's top leagues still were rather unpredictable.
Picks will start once the 90's players' draft is finished and so long as we have at least 12 signups to fill the whole top flight! So, when you notify your sign-up, please do tell which club you'll pick. Whoever wins the most SPL's + CL's is the "draft winner"!
The idea is relatively simple. Choose any player in the world not active in a Scottish club at the time of the 2009-10 season, to take part in the SPL for seven or eight seasons that I will then simulate in the game. Once the teams are completed, I will jump onto my FM10 editor, insert each player into each Scottish club on a ten-year contract worth £1,000/week and guess what you then get? Apologies for bad cellphone camera after nightfall but
"looking to see out the remainder of his playing days at the club." Editor magic!
Yes. Messi at St. Mirren and looking to end his career there! This is so that none of the picks can leave the clubs during their spells in this draft simulation.
Safe to say, I will absolutely not coach my team, each of them will be left in the hands of the incumbent manager. I will simulate the seasons in rapid succession using the holiday mode and thus be able to quite quickly report on the progress.
The draft order is such that due to the uneven standards of the league and thus the top teams retaining a much stronger depth should any XI player be out, I intend to let the weakest teams go first in each round. I hope everyone's fine with that?
Trendisnotdestiny has asked to be Hearts already so the wish is my command. Thus, he will be 10th among the SPL teams in the pecking order.
Here are the teams playing in the SPL that season by reverse order from the 2008-09 season ranking and the preferred formation their manager at the time used in the game:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008%E2%80%9309_Scottish_Premier_League#League_table1. St. Johnstone (Something Worse)
2. St. Mirren (XabiArt)
3. Falkirk (stoa)
4. Hamilton (Red Viper)
5. Kilmarnock (KillieRed)
6. Motherwell (Max_powers)
7. Dundee United (Gerry Attrick)
8. Hibernian (mikey_LFC)
9. Aberdeen (Linudden)
10. Hearts (Trendisnotdestiny)
11. Celtic (deFacto)
12. Rangers (JSteve)
4-5-1 variety teams: Celtic, Hamilton, Hibernian.
3-5-2 variety teams: Kilmarnock*, Motherwell, St. Johnstone*
4-4-2 variety teams: Aberdeen, Dundee United, Falkirk, Hearts, Rangers, St. Mirren
* Both Kilmarnock and St. Johnstone frequently vary with 4-4-2 so you can pick whatever formation you choose out of those for your picks.
The general rule is that attacking midfielders + wingers also play well and get suitably trained to play in standard midfields.
Keep in mind that managers may still be sacked during these seven years so just pick the players you think would benefit the team.
I can also open up for Division One entries if there's greater interest, although preferably only one or two spots. My preference would be to select as Aberdeen, but if people want me in D1 due to my experience I could go for Queen of the South instead and if people want me to, even forsaking the #1 draft pick would I do so. I'm signing up for Aberdeen in the meantime and would stay unless there are complaints
Which Division One clubs were there then?
Airdrie, Ayr, Dundee, Dunfermline, Inverness, Morton, Partick Thistle, Queen of the South, Raith and Ross County.
Either way, all the major stars of 2009-10 are ready to be shipped to Scotland for an epic draft so let's get it started!