Community » Hattrick Press

Interview with bails

Written by bails

HPE-Bink286 took the opportunity to ask bails from Oceania a few questions ahead of his big Round 6 Cup Match against #1 Ranked Shakhtar Donuts.

1. You acquired Boulevard River Boys in Oceania (West Australia) in March 2015 and then All The Very Best FC in England (Worcestershire) a couple of months later. Please tell us a little bit about this, are you a returning user, or new, and how did you find out about Hattrick?

I stumbled upon Hattrick while I was on Youtube actually... I'm a big fan of grand strategy games and whilst watching a 'Lets Play' for a game, I think it was Europa Universalis IV. It still continues today on his channel, Alfapiomega, although I must admit I do not watch as regularly as I used to, I still check in on his team occasionally.

As soon as I started I was careful not to rush into anything and made sure I read the rules and the forums and studied the transfer market before my first purchases. I think this is great way Hattrick can improve with an upgrade of the Manager's Licence to include a pop up style tutorial?

Long story short I wanted to have two teams with vastly different styles, but both with the goal of making it to the top. My first team training forwards and my second team defenders.

My family has a long family tie with the Midlands and so I couldn't think of a better place to start my second team than Worchestershire.

2. You've made steady progress with your primary team, winning your IV series last season with an excellent coach, reaching R6 of the Cup for the last 2 seasons, playing a II side this week, whilst in England with a solid leadership solid coach, you have finished top 2 in V77 for the last 4 seasons, reaching R5 of the Cup last season, and this week in R6 you face the Champions of England. What's been the key to your progression?

I believe the best way to challenge your skill as a manager is to try to beat the best. I have always tried to do this in the cup as it's a rare chance each season to see how you've progressed and to see the benefit of your training. It can be a hard slog down the bottom and I put my progression down to focussing on maximising training in the lower divisions to make sure I get the most out of my players.

Both teams have had U20 players for Oceania feature since I started and hopefully I will have a midfielder play for U20 England in a few seasons (432133802). Now my core group of trainees are now 21-26yo in both sides the trick is to make the progression to the higher divisions when they are at their peak.

3. Your manager page tells us that you are a fan of Perth Glory and Cardiff City. Please tell us a little bit about this and what have been the best matches you've been to for either club?

I'm a big sporting nuffy so I follow pretty much anything. My main two sports would be cricket (4-0) and Aussie Rules but I love my football too. Perth Glory are my local team and I try to get to a couple of games each season. They are going pretty poorly this season and are struggling to keep their best players on the park which is frustrating. Hopefully in the coming seasons they will win their first A-League championship as we were a dominant team in the old NSL (National Soccer League).

My English football team should really be West Bromwich Albion as thats where my Dad and his family all grew up. But I never could get into them and nearly 20 years ago when I first went to high school a mate was a passionate Bluebirds supporter. I have followed them ever since and have been 3 times when they were based out of Ninian Park. I would love to go to Wales in the coming few seasons (maybe next year if they make the Premier League) to watch a game at the Cardiff City Stadium!

4. What's your favourite tipple and place to imbibe?

I love a good scotch. When I was in Edinburgh in 2010 I did the Scotch Whisky Experience which made be appreciate the Islay whiskys even more. I love a Laphroaig or Lagavulin, neat or on the rocks, depending on the weather or my mood.

I just had a pub open just at the end of my street. Usually to enjoy a glass of red wine from the Margaret River region here in Western Australia. You'll usually find me drinking a Shiraz or Grenache.

5. Please could you tell us about the last book you read and whether you'd recommend it?

If you knew me you would know if not a big reader. I really struggle to concentrate reading anything fictional so all you will find on my book shelf is sports books, cook books or travel books. These are my three main interests and take up most if not all of my spare time.

I am grateful my partner reads though as it gives me time to jump on Hattrick while she reads her novels.

6. Do you have a favourite building or architectural design?

I love buildings with plenty of history and interesting stories. At the end of November I was lucky enough to be in Vienna and had the chance to visit the Schönbrunn Palace. What an incredible building and the history behind the Austrian Empire still intrigues me. The scale of the building and the amount of wealth throughout this part of Europe only a few hundred years ago is astonishing. If you get a chance to visit Vienna I would highly recommend going during the Summer to see the Palace and the gardens.

7. Last week in the Cup, you set Damien Morrissey (413655663) the task of man marking a Premiership striker (381468056) who dropped from 11.5* to just 3.5*, also wiping 3% off Frankies' centre and left side attack ratings (and 1% off the right) to help make your CA tactic work more effectively. I guess this makes you a fan of this recent evolution to the game?

The new man marking tactics have been an interesting addition to Hattrick especially for All The Very Best FC. As a team with highly skilled defenders, Morrissey a Powerful, and with many Premiership teams still using TDFs. I saw this as the one predictable gameplay I might be able to capitalise on. It allowed me to block out most attacks and get my midfield closer to Frankies which was a nett win for my ratings. I believe the win was still lucky however the introduction of MM and with the right player ready to go I had a way to get an advantage over a much higher rated team that I never had before.

It my belief that as managers get wiser to the new MM that squads will carry less TDFs, maybe UDFs could feature more? Powerful and non-specced defenders could become more valuable, (especially Powerful with their existing value Pressing) and this may have more impact on U20/NTs as it adds another layer on to their tactics and squad selection.

8. Please tell us how your significant other feels about your addiction to this game and about him/her and how you met?

My partner is a fan of Hattrick, it allows her to get a rest from me as I can be pretty annoying. She would never play herself as she gets frustrated easily at things she doesn't understand which isn't a great match for this game. We met on a night out in Perth at a bar that has since closed down. She was wearing my favourite colour blue, which is the best way to get my attention. I bought her a cocktail and the rest is history.

9. Please provide us a link to Youtube or Vimeo to one of your favourite of all time tunes, and something you liked from 2017 as well?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbkOZTSvrHs)

John Farnham - You're the Voice. An Aussie classic, I grew up listening to this song and his music and still love belting this out at any party with all the actions.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBkHHoOIIn8)

Portugal the Man - Feel it Still. A short track but this song gets me in the mood to have a good time. Catchy tune and although I love most music genres I can't go past a dance track.

10. What are your medium term aspirations for both your Hattrick teams, in terms of achievements and training?

For my English side I need to start promoting. I think my cup run proves and I think it is capable of a few back to back promotions so I am looking forward to seeing where I can get by this time next year. I have completed Defending and Set Pieces training so the next two phases will be playmaking to the required level then some passing training to finish off.

For my Oceanian side I am in a tight battle in division III after promotion last season. My defensive forwards are looking good and only need a few levels here and there to be triple titanics by 26yo. I am just assessing now whether 3/6 trainees being Techs is overkill so maybe a slight reshuffle before pushing to the higher divisions.

11. Is there anything else I should have asked that you'd like to answer?

I would just like to thank you Bink for the opportunity to answer a few questions and thank anybody who was interested enough to read this far for doing so. I am very busy with my work as a travel agent so Hattrick is a great way to tune out from work and discuss tactics and sport with a friendly online community. If anybody has any more questions I'll be happy to answer in the forums when I get a chance.

Kind Regards,
bails