Category: Retro

CM99/00 Revisited: Cult Icons – Part 1

Published on by Chris Fuller2 Comments

Every version of Championship Manager and Football Manager has its cult icons – those must-buy players whom you can often turn into superstars. Championship Manager 99/00 is, of course, no exception.

We all have our own favourites, whether it’s one of those Swedish wonderkids everybody knows about, or that hidden gem you discovered in Indonesia. But for every Zlatan Ibrahimovic who lived up to their superstar billing in real-life, there are at least a dozen who had rather more… modest careers.

I’ve identified 36 of the brightest stars in the CM99/00 database and have tracked their careers to see where they are two decades later. Their names all appear on the title image above, and I’ll look at each of them over two separate posts.

In Part 1, I’ll be looking at players such as Kennedy Bakircioglü, Mads Jørgensen, Johnnier Montano and the legendary Tonton Zola Moukoko. Continue reading “CM99/00 Revisited: Cult Icons – Part 1” →

CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 7

Published on by Chris Fuller

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Hello there, ladies and gentlemen. I hope you’re not feeling too hungover after the madness that was last night, when England were crowned European champions for the first time after a shock victory at Wembley against the mighty Finland. Who honestly expected Jordan Pickford to score a 90th-minute winner with a header from the halfway line?!

Or at least that would’ve happened but for some virus which has absolutely nothing to do with an Irish rock band.

Anyway, seeing as it’s the day after what would’ve been the Euro 2020 Final, my Championship Manager 99/00 story with Scotland has reached quite a fitting moment. The previous chapter saw us qualify for Euro 2004 – and that tournament will be the main focus in today’s installment. Enjoy!

Continue reading “CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 7” →

CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 6

Published on by Chris Fuller

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My Championship Manager 99/00 story gets back underway now on Fuller FM. I’ve already rewritten history by taking Scotland to one major tournament, and now we’ve got another in our sights.

You join us midway through the Euro 2004 qualifiers, where Scotland are battling England and three other teams for a place at the upcomining continental finals. If you want to see how we got on in our earlier matches, you can read Part 5 right here.

When you’re ready, let’s get going…

Continue reading “CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 6” →

CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 5

Published on by Chris Fuller

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I’m back with another chapter from my Championship Manager 99/00 adventure with the Scotland national team. I’ll admit it’s still a little strange as a Londoner to be managing our neighbours north of the border, but I’m really getting sucked into this career now.

Of course, our recent exploits at the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan have played a big part in settling me in – and answering my biggest critics. I won’t spoil anything in this intro, but if you haven’t yet caught up with the story (or you just want to relive our Asian journey), you can read Part 4 right here.

In today’s post, I’ll be playing through the first half of our Euro 2004 qualifying campaign. Again, no spoilers, but excitement levels are about to kick up a notch…

Continue reading “CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 5” →

CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 4

Published on by Chris Fuller

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My Championship Manager 99/00 adventure with Scotland continues right now on Fuller FM. And let me tell you – things are about to get very, very spicy!

Remember the last chapter, where we had to get out of a World Cup qualifying group with Denmark and Spain? Well… if you’ve read that, you’ll know what’s coming up in today’s post. If not, then please check that out first, because there will be obvious spoilers below…

Continue reading “CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 4” →

The Counties Championship: THE FINALS

Published on by Chris Fuller

This is it: the final installment of my Football Manager 2017 project.

Over the last couple of months, I have simulated a full season of an English league featuring 48 county teams who can only use players and staff from their local area. Those teams have done battle in the main Counties Championship as well as the knockout County Cup – and now those trophies are about to be won.

Today’s post will have full match reports from the Counties Championship and County Cup Finals. I will then wrap things up by handing out the end-of-season awards in all four divisions.

If you haven’t read my last post yet, then please do that before reading this to avoid spoilers. Don’t forget, also, that you can find links to every chapter in this series right here.

Continue reading “The Counties Championship: THE FINALS” →

CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 3

Published on by Chris Fuller

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Welcome back to my Championship Manager 99/00 challenge with the Scotland national team. Last time round, I began to rebuild the team after our failure to qualify for Euro 2000 – and now it’s time to find out if that work has reaped its rewards.

I’m subtitling this article “2001: A Scotland Odyssey”. I don’t like to exaggerate, but if today’s story sees the Tartan Army successfully qualify for the 2002 World Cup, it would surely rival even Arthur C Clarke’s greatest epic fiction.

More likely, though, is that it’ll end in the sort of British ultra-violence you’d expect from another classic Stanley Kubrick film.

Continue reading “CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 3” →

The Counties Championship: Play-Offs Quarters & Semis

Published on by Chris Fuller

Hello again, ladies and gentlemen. The Counties Championship play-offs have begun, with 16 teams being whittled down to eight after the first round of matches, which you can read about right here if you haven’t yet.

Today, we’ll be going through the Quarter Finals and Semi Finals. By the end, we will know which two teams will be doing battle at Wembley for the right to take home that glittering prize (Simple Minds not included).

Continue reading “The Counties Championship: Play-Offs Quarters & Semis” →

The Counties Championship: Play-Offs Round 1

Published on by Chris Fuller

After eight months of thrilling league action, the Counties Championship season has entered its final stages. 16 teams have qualified for the play-offs and remain in contention to lift the national title at Wembley on 20 May.

In today’s post, I will recap the results from Round 1 and reveal which eight sides have moved a step closer to glory. In case you haven’t caught up yet, you might want to read about April’s final round of league fixtures before you continue.

Continue reading “The Counties Championship: Play-Offs Round 1” →

CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 2

Published on by Chris Fuller

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Welcome back to the second chapter of my new retro challenge – or “fàilte don dàrna caibideil den dùbhlan retro ùr agam”, as Scottish Gaelic speakers might say on BBC Alba. Sadly, I’ve just found out that BBC Alba isn’t a TV channel dedicated to the actress Jessica Alba, so you’ll have to put up with seeing Don Hutchison’s pretty face instead.

In this challenge, I’m managing the Scotland national team on Championship Manager 99/00. I’m hoping to erase 20 years of hurt by leading the Tartan Army to success – which, in their case, would be getting out of the group at a major tournament.

In Part 1, I took the reins for the closing stages of the Euro 2000 qualifiers. Today, we’ll be entering the new year, where you’ll find no millennium bugs – except the one that turns Championship Manager goalkeepers into supermen, perhaps.

Continue reading “CM99/00 Revisited: Fitba’s Coming Home – Part 2” →