Welcome back to Riding the Rhine where in this update we’ll be taking a look at how Frank M. Athlete has gotten on in his second season in charge at FC Dordrecht. After a decent start to his managerial career in the Netherland’s Eerste Divisie, Frank was keen to build on his mid-table finish from season 1 and try and push for a top half finish. Would he surpass the Board’s expectations of “be competitive” or would he suffer the ill effects of that dreaded “Second Season Syndrome”? Let’s find out…
Season Summary
Team: FC Dordrecht
Division: Eerste Divisie
Season: 2022/23
Players in: Seydine N’Diaye, Göztepe (Loan); Habib Oueslati, Free Agent (€0); Dylan de Braal, VV IJsselmeervogels (€0); Diego van Zutphen, VVV-Venlo (€0); Joshua Adney, Sparta Rotterdam (€0); Thomas Dickson-Peters, Norwich City (Loan); Luis Pedro, Free Agent (€0); Yahya Boussakou ADO Den Haag (Loan)
Players out: Devon Koswal, Heracles Almelo (€125k)
On reflection of last season, Frank Athlete set about looking to address some of the issues within the playing squad from the previous campaign. Chief among them was the general poor passing ability of his players, but he and his team had also noted that pace amongst the defenders and leadership within the squad were both low and in need of a boost as well. Recruitment began immediately once the season had ended and after the side’s decent league finish the Board had offered a modest transfer and wage budget to help get things moving in the transfer market.
Seydine N’Diaye was retained from his season-long loan last term and he’ll remain for another year ahead, while Dylan de Braal, who left the club prior to Frank’s arrival, returns on a free transfer after the Scouting Team agreed that it had been a mistake to let him go. Both N’Diaye and de Braal add some technical quality at the back but neither are particularly well known for their pace or acceleration. To address this the Director of Football suggested a look at Angolan defender, Luis Pedro, who was available on a free transfer despite a superb season for Nitra in the Slovakian Lower League. Pedro would add some pace at the back and at 30 years old, would also bring some much needed experience to a relatively young side.
Elsewhere, the team were in need of a backup at right wing-back, with this role demanding a player with the right attacking attributes as well as being defensively solid. Joshua Adney would fit that bill perfectly, unlikely to challenge for a regular first-team spot but a worthy replacement should the need arise to change the tactical approach mid-game. Elsewhere, promising 17 year old, Diego van Zutphen, joins and will be retrained to play as a ball winning midfielder, while Oueslati and Boussakou (Loan) both join to give some cover and variety for our inside forwards.
The final piece of the jigsaw was up top, with academy graduate, Thomas Schalekamp, keeping his squad place but in need of competition for places to aid his development. With the budget now very tight, the recruitment team turned to loan signings and unearthed Thomas Dickson-Peters at senior affiliate Norwich City. Having been unimpressed with the two loan signings from Norwich last season, this time the agreement was for 6 months, allowing Frank the flexibility to change things in January if necessary.
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With the squad now assembled nice and early and suitable cover in place for each position, Frank could look ahead to preseason as an opportunity to bed in some of the new players. From a tactical standpoint, he opted to stick with the 4-2-3-1 that had served the side well enough last year, although as Dickson-Peters’ aerial ability is lower than Schalekamp’s, the ‘try floated crosses’ instruction was turned off to offer more variety with balls coming from wide areas. 2 wins, a draw and a loss in preseason was a decent return, especially as three of the friendlies were against higher opposition.
As the season proper got underway, Dordrecht were slow to get going, losing the season opener 3-0 against FC Eindhoven, a game Frank had earmarked as a simple 3 points. A draw followed by an away win in the next two games suggested the side had more to offer, before being promptly put in their place by recently relegated RKC Waalwiijk with a 1-0 defeat on home soil. As September loomed, the Sheepheads would return 12 points from a possible 15 in their next 5 matches, seeing the team climb to 7th place in the league and into the promotion playoff spots. Despite losing the next three in a row, Frank’s men would collect a further 13 points before the end of the year, including a thrilling 5-1 win over VVV-Venlo and a vengeful 5-0 dismantling of FC Eindhoven at home. Their impressive points haul was enough to see the team retain their place in 7th in the league, and despite 1 or 2 injury concerns, it looked like FC Doredrecht were set to continue their climb in the New Year.
With the Transfer Window open again in January, reserve goal keeper, Liam Bossin, made it known he wanted to leave for first team football and so Frank and his recruitment team identified Raphael Kozcor as his replacement on the bench. Elsewhere, Dickson-Peters had bagged 14 goals and 2 assists in 23 games across all competitions and was worthy of a follow up loan deal to see him through to the end of the season. Norwich were agreeable but to Frank’s dismay, Dickson-Peters had other ideas, opting to reject the renewal in favour of pushing for a first team place at his parent club (spoiler alert: he wouldn’t play another game for the rest of the season). Without time to stew on this bad news, the scouting team again turned to Norwich’s pool of potential loanees and opted to bring in Joe Duffy. Duffy’s first touch and passing were an improvement on Dickson-Peters, but came at the cost of the latter’s pace and bravery. Hopefully Duffy could pick up where his predecessor left off.
As the season resumed after the Winter break, Dordrecht would open with a tidy win against Top Oss, which was immediately followed by a win against Telstar in the Second Round of the Dutch Cup to set up a third round fixture against FC Volendam. Sadly this would be the extent of the cup run though as Volendam knocked the team out with an extra time winner on 110 mins.
This should have meant more time to focus on the league, but instead it turned out to be the catalyst for a complete collapse in form. The next 14 fixtures amassed a total of 9 points and just one win as Frank and his side slid down the table to 15th, their worst position all season, and the dream of reaching the playoffs was all but gone with three fixtures to go. It would take a mathematical miracle to qualify, with the Sheepheads in need of three wins from three and other results going their way, but against all odds Frank delivered, beating Jong Utrecht, Den Bosch and Telstar to bag a 12th placed finish and a place in the first of three of the promotion playoff rounds.
In truth, promotion was not something this team were at all ready for, but qualifying for the playoffs was an important stepping stone for the club and for Frank’s stature in the game. The lads were comfortably beaten by ADO Den Haag in both legs and graciously bowed out with a little more experience under their belts, ready for another season ahead where they might hopefully push on once again.
Despite a pretty dire end to the season, the Board had been mightily impressed with Frank’s leadership on and off the field and so proposed a 1 year contract extension that would allow him to continue building on what he’d started. Needless to say he accepted. This was a season of experience gathering and lesson learning as, on reflection, the premature departure of Dickson-Peters was undoubtedly the main reason the side bagged so many draws instead of wins in the second half of the season. It gave renewed focus for the year ahead though, with Frank eager to continue what he’d started and push the team to become playoff contenders instead of mid-table mediocrity.
Results Overview
Dutch Cup
Prediction: Second Round
Actual: Third Round
Summary: Surpassed all expectations by progressing to the Third Round having defeated Den Bosch and Telstar to tee up a tricky tie against FC Volendam. Having taken an early lead and then being pegged back late on, the boys showed tremendous courage to equalise and were unlucky not to take it all the way to penalties.
Best moment: A deserved equaliser in the 79th minute of the Third Round gave the lads real momentum and was enough to set up extra time where anything is possible.
Low moment: Conceding such a late winner in extra time of the Third Round having fought so valiantly for the majority of the match. It was a bitter blow and a tough one to take.
Eerste Divisie
Prediction: 11th (excl. Jong clubs)
Actual: 12th (excl. Jong clubs)
Summary: It was a superb first half of the season, with the team proving what they’re capable of. Ultimately though, a poor second half led to a sharp decline and descension down the table, with a late flurry of wins enough to secure a playoff spot. All told, hard to be disappointed and gives plenty to build on for 2023/24.
Best moment: Turning on the magic when necessary to secure three wins from three and bag a play off spot with the last game of the season.
Low moment: The departure of Dickson-Peters in January was hard to recover from with a large proportion of our goals coming from him before the winter break. Hindsight is a beautiful thing (apparently).
Key Facts & Figures
Last year FC Dordrecht found themselves excelling in certain aspects of their play, with their aerial ability posing the greatest threat to their opponents each week. Fast forward 12 months, and the team have performed at a very average level in almost every metric. Consistency is a key attribute of any successful side but perhaps the absence of that X-factor was the real cause for their slump in the second half of the season. One area that shows potential is in our possession stats, where among our league rivals we were one of the best at recovering the ball, but the numbers also show we were unable to capitalise on it.
By contrast, the team’s passing ability was severely lacking last year, something that Frank had tried to address this season by bringing in better passers of the ball. This change certainly had an impact, with the side attempting more than 500 passes per game (compared to 450 approx. last year), while the passing completion had increased from 86% up to 87.5%. These marginal gains could be key to the club’s continued growth in stature over the next few seasons.
From a financial standpoint, the club are in a very healthy position. Frank’s tendency to sign players on free transfers or on loan, rather than for cash, has meant that the vast majority of last year’s and now this year’s sponsorship income is very much intact. Giving the club a solid financial footing is essential if they are to start pushing for promotion in the next year or two, and with the risk that immediate relegation might pose if things don’t pan out, it’s great to have money in the bank to help us out of a tight spot if it comes to it.
As Frank looks ahead to the 2023/24 season, he’ll be looking to bring in some quality recruits that can help to build on what he’s started. In particular, finding permanent replacements for some key positions that have been filled by loan players this year will likely be crucial.
Around the Grounds
In this section we share some of the other stories from elsewhere in the FM universe that have caught the eye this week…
Notes from Poznan and Twin Cities Idea - FMRensie drops his eagerly anticipated save reveal as he heads to Poland, while incorporating his brilliant idea of twinninghis club with others around the world.
“Welcome To Miami” - La Plata: Vice - the long awaited update from the world of FM_Grasshopper doesn’t disappoint as he reveals how the first half of season one with Inter Miami has gone.
Fénix 1.01: The Beginning, the End - FromElevenOne returns with the first instalment of his new series as he ventures into Uruguay, and shares a jam-packed first campaign that seems to have it all.
PAS Lamia 1964 - 1.4: Three Peat - PAS Lamia’s hunt for glory is still on as DGear86 looks to further develop their fortunes on a shoestring budget.
Védelem! - 8 - Two Steps Closer - It’s been non-stop success for FM Stag so far, but can Glenn Árnason keep the good times rolling at Honvéd?
The Nordic Journey | #4 | Expect The Unexpected - evidently success breeds more success on this journey for Oaky-FM, and what a journey it’s been so far.
The 2022 Season - the latest update from the ever expanding world of the Black Crow Corporation, with news from some of the franchises other clubs as well
Thanks for reading this update, I really hope you enjoyed it. You’ll find more updates from me, as well as blogs from some other fantastic writers at CoffeehouseFM so make sure you check them out. Feel free to leave a comment below, or you can message me @fm_athlete if you feel like getting in touch.
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