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Interview with a Legend

Written by HF2004

I don't think the man needs an introduction: Darkdagon has been the best manager in Cambodia for a while now and he still seems untouchable. In this exclusive interview we learn a bit more about darkdagon, his team, the road to his success and how he copes with all of that.

1) You have won the Cambodian Premier League 11 times and the Cambodian Cup 7 times, how does it feel to be the best ever?
Hey don’t forget the UCCC titles!! :-p As a Hattrick manager I’m very proud but as a human being.. Well.. it’s not really a subject I can discuss with my friends as they keep saying it’s ludicrous and childish. But they can’t make the difference between Hattrick and Candy Crush so perhaps I should change friends! My wife learned to live with it, she listens to me when I speak about lost and won games but I see more pride in her eyes when I cook than when I tell her about my digital “exploits”..Hattrick is definitely not for the vainglorious! :)

2) What was for you the best moment so far in hattrick, your biggest achievement?
The Vottamazza chapter is a bit a special story to me as I directly fought against him for the title and I contributed to the end of his reign. I remember especially one game during Season 11(my first season in Premier League): I luckily won my first game against the legend! His ratings were way above everybody else’s ratings, nevertheless I could “steal” that game. He slapped me in the following game but it didn’t matter to me anymore. After that it took me (and everybody else) another three seasons to catch him back ratings-wise, it was during Season 15: I won my both games against him and my first title. After that he slowly faded away until he quit, I don’t really know why as at that time there was almost no activity on the local forum.

3) After all your successes, do you still have goals in hattrick or does it become harder to keep motivated?
Motivation is still there and always has. I must say that lately I’ve had less time to dedicate to my team compared to a few seasons ago but the pleasure I have to see my team evolve and my young players grow is intact. Being the “public enemy N°1” also keeps me motivated and I like to interact with other managers. I’m still here for a few seasons at least! ;)

4) What is your ultimate goal, the one thing you still want to achieve in hattrick?
The Masters!.. but I’ve never managed to go beyond the fifth round. A few seasons ago I had the right team and ratings to go to further, perhaps even a title with some luck. Since then, super-strong teams got even stronger while I’ve capped. Now I’d need a divine miracle to make it to the top 4, especially with such a small amount of transfers!

5) Before you became almighty, was your experience of hattrick different, have there been moments where you didn't know what you were doing?
Yes it was very different! I first got some help from the friend who brought me here but he was a very occasional player hence he could only give me the basics. After that I was on my own. I’ve tested many softwares and plugins trying to optimize line-ups but I quickly abandoned them: there is nothing like the Hattrick Community to get the best advice!
And yes, sometimes I didn’t know what I was doing but spending time in the forum, discussing with experienced managers helped me to understand the game engine and some of its subtleties.

6) Who is the actual man behind this succesteam, tell us a bit more about you!
I’m just the president of the club, the real stars are the players! ;)
I prefer to maintain some distance between my digital activities and my personal life but I could say that, as most of you know, I’m a man and that I’m old enough to listen to Led Zeppelin and way too old to truly appreciate One Direction!

7) In 2013 hattrick introduced 2nd teams, how did this change the game for you and what's your opinion about 2nd teams?
I really appreciate this feature. It gives me the opportunity to have a different approach of the game. My own second team, the Mekong Raccoons, is currently dedicated to grow local talents, mostly with the youth academy, but one day I might change for another goal or purpose. That’s the beauty of it: while my primary team is strictly “success-oriented”, my second team is more some kind of playground, allowing me to have fun in various ways.

8) How long do you think you'll still be the best in Cambodia, and more importantly: how can we beat you?
My economical system should allow me to remain in the Top 3 for another few seasons but it will mainly depend on you guys! The profile of the league is also getting more interesting: a few years ago the championship was boring because it had defender/challenger profile. Now I see several teams with a solid potential to beat me.
How to beat me? Find the person who did it and ask her: srey_nak! What she is actually doing seems full of sense: patiently building a killer-team with young talents, some of them from her own youth academy.

9) You've also been U20 coach for 2 terms, what was your experience with that and can we expect you going back to the National teams one day?
It really was time-consuming but I enjoyed it! When I started the game, I didn’t think I’d ever candidate for a U20/NT position but at some point the U20 got in pretty bad shape and I felt I could do something to help. Winning games was a secondary goal. What I wanted was to build a structure that would remain after I’d quit. The U20/NT coach position is not a one-man job, even for a small country like ours. Only Borderliner could do that alone, but as you know, “Es gibt nur ein' Borderliner”!

10) As a final question: do you have any tips for the other teams who try to become as good as you?
The advice I’d give would be to master your economy. For instance I see too many teams with super-high salary charges. In my opinion Hattrick is a 90% economical game and a 10% strategy one. Master the economy and you’ll master the game. Also, you have to be patient. It takes time to build a killer team and if you lack patience and don’t have a long-term plan, you might squander your resources in vain.

I wish you all the best, and I hope you'll be still around for a long time in hattrick. Thank you!
You can definitely count on me ;)