Asunto: [NT]Cometer

The last time you guys beat us was the 25th of April 2009. Six consecutive wins since =]


Time to end it then :p.


cometer, your campaign appears to have the momentum of a runaway freight train. Why are you so popular?

Are you being forced against your will to use that quote ;).
I guess you might say the fact that atm there are very few candidates (if any) advertising in the forums outside of myself, it makes it a bit easier to gather momentum :p.

Cometer.

What went wrong?

I'm liking the fact you have to go back to a friendly in 2007 to find the last time and I think the only time you beat me :p.

The obvious answer was I lost a friendly ;).

(editado)

Against a team with a similar skill level, what balance of Defs/Mids/Strikers do you generally prefer?

How about a team with a superior skill level?

How about a team with an inferior skill level?

Has your opinion on any of those balances changed with the more recent match engine changes?

A few difficult questions there because it obviously depends heavily on what I think the opposition will do and the players I have at my disposal.

When I get the chance to against an even side I'd like to look at 4-4-2 or 4-5-1 but that in itself opens problems at the back if they decide to use wingers. At NT level leaving wingers free is a risky move and whilst you can safeguard using carefully placed midfielders or increasing gaps between the outside and central defenders, sometimes as a result a 5-3-2 or 5-4-1 is a better option.

Against a superior side I'd tend to be more towards 5-3-2 or 5-4-1 simply because it's one way of reducing the chances they can generate and gives them less options to cause damage. Again though if it was possible to use a 4-4-2 or a 4-5-1 I would certainly consider that as outplaying the opposition in midfield is a key factor in whether you end up with a chance of winning or not.

Against an inferior side (depending on how inferior they are) I'd like to go in with a 4-4-2 or 3-5-2 to dictate the play a bit more and put them under more pressure such that your superiority dictates the result and you leave minimal chance of them scoring once and stealing points or the match because you were a bit defensive.

I've stuck to what your question seeks but I suppose just because it looks like 4-4-2, 4-5-1 are my preferred styles, inside that there is a lot of choice for scope, how many wingers 0,1 or 2? Should strikers be focussed together or spread? Should they be targetting particular spots such as wide or central? How many defensive midfielders should I use? 0,1,2,3 etc. So a 4-4-2 could quite comfortably be 4 defenders, 2 dms, 2cm's and 2 strikers or 4 defenders, 3 central mids, 1 winger, 2 strikers or 4 defenders, 1 dm, 3 cm's, 2 strikers etc.

So obviously a large part of my thinking is different ways of using the same players to produce something different.

My opinion has changed with the recent match engine change. I'm of the belief that this current match engine favours sides who play a little bit more aggressively whereas past match engines have often favoured stacking and hitting on the counter. As such that is why some of my answers are focussing towards the 4-5-1,4-4-2 over that of the 5-3-2. As a realistic example of that, a tactic that did work well (4-3dm's 1winger and 2 strikers) in previous editions is now not nearly as successful if the dm's stay deep as midfielders are now able to knock the ball around quicker which eventually leads to an opening.

The game seems very much now a case of controlling the ball and forcing the opposition to do a lot of chasing resulting in you controlling territory. So from that angle more emphasis is on the midfield and allows some flexibility in the midfield you wish to use. I feel those that have naturally more aggressive midfield tactics are the ones that are benefitting from this change. Fortunately for Australia, we have a number of strong players in midfield positions which in theory should make us more attractive to watch.

Overall I like the change. I'm finding it challenging to adjust, given how long we played under the old formats which were quite similarly stacking/pressing minded. One aspect that I probably don't enjoy so much is the increasing number of sides using 2 wingers which forces you to make a decision to either use 5 defenders to cut them out (restricting your attacking options and therefore giving them more of the ball and play) or using 4 defenders and running a huge risk you'll get burned on the outside and concede from a well placed cross. In saying that it's given me an opportunity to try a few new things to see what the limits of the match engine are now.

I'll end this off by noting that my preferred styles and what ends up getting used don't always match up as I'm of a strong opinion that every game is different and requires a different strategy.


(editado)

i like how you mentioned my tactic, must have left quite an impression on you :P

Given the U21 already has a brains trust, of a few of the active managers in Australia, are you going to rely on them to help you out, take on the whole job yourself, or make your own, senior brains trust, from those outside the U21 circle?

And if it is the later, how do you plan on developing enough interest in those not normally involved in the NT for them to want to put the time in?

I'd be more than happy to work with those already in the U21's as an extended part of uniting both our NTs. Obviously I haven't explicitly asked for any help or assistance either so there's no expectations on any of those involved to assist but they are more than welcome and we'll see where we end up. I've always been open to anybody with ideas/suggestions and will continue to take on board comments. I'm even happy to cop criticism (I'd be a bit hypocritical if I was happy to dish out but not take back, so I'm expecting a lot of that this season :p).

As for newer people coming into the frame, I don't have any special plans to force them in. I intend instead to build their interest in the NT and hopefully we can kickstart our community again with a few newer faces coming into the ranks. Obviously there are a few ways of doing this, tailored communication to our active/semi active users, regular discussions and interesting activities and also various match formats (albeit this season might not have a lot of time if we end up in a 7 team group).

Should this work, they might then become interested in wanting to build up their knowledge in the NT groups and whilst initially I'd be a bit hesitant to include new faces in tactical decision making, I'm always happy to hear their thoughts on the Australia Association on what they'd like to see, what they think is good, what they think isn't etc and so build up their exposure to the NT's that way.

My aim is to do the most that I can to try and encourage more users to be active in forums and interested in our own NT's which brings out more future superstars and could keep users in the game long enough to become a new threat for some of us older teams. Whilst I can't necessarily bring people into the game, I can certainly try to keep those already in the game interested.

Thanks to those who voted for me. I'm excited to have the buttons again for another season, it's been a while.

I hope that I'm able to put some sense of purpose behind the NT and to satisfy the needs of the Australian community.

You'll no doubt be hearing a lot from myself over the course of the season but I'll start off posting off what I intend to do over the next week or two with the intention of keeping that as an ongoing thing so that everyone is aware of what's happening with the NT.

Thanks again and I hope you enjoy the season ahead.

Congrats mate. It feels like you were never gone :)

Cometer Congratulations for what you did for National Australia, you did very good things here, but in case you will not run for this office will urge everyone to vote for national dragos95 Australia, I wish all the best for the national, game sokker two years, I tried many tactics to prepare myself for a moment like this, for me to specialize can do something good in a national team.

I have some reasons to want to lead this national:
1.Am more free time, so I can handle very well for your team.
2 I love the game and I want to do more than prepare me for my team.
3 And three because I really want to do something good for the Australian national

Please create your own topic! Thanks

I'd like to let people know that I've decided to re-apply. I think I can improve upon last season and I'd like to be given another shot. Primary goals would be to gain ranking points in the hope that we might reach a 2nd seed though it's unlikely. I'll post more details a bit later but if you have questions at this stage fire away.

Good move....last season was more like a transition after the debacle of previous absentminded managers. :-)

I had to read your post twice...
It first read "last season was more like a debacle after the transition of previous absentminded managers" :)

Just kiddin again..

anything to stir Comet hey! ;-)