SESL is based on

SESL Rules
(adapted from MSWL Rules v12 written by Allan Sellers)

Season 14 & 15 (2005)

http://www.sesl.net/

Table of Contents

[Introduction] Document History............................................................................................................................. 5

10.0 Changes to SESL for Season 10 onwards...................................................................................................... 5

[Part A] OUTLINE OF THE GAME........................................................................................................................................... 6

[A 1.0] Short History........................................................................................................................................................... 6

[A 1.1] Season 14 Overview and Officers.......................................................................................................................... 6

[A 1.2] Leaving the Game..................................................................................................................................................... 6

[A 1.3] Taking a Break......................................................................................................................................................... 6

[A 1.4] Benign Dictatorship/No Replaying of Matches.................................................................................................. 6

[A 1.5] SESL Champions Roll of Honor............................................................................................................................. 7

[A 2.0] The Structure of a Season............................................................................................................................... 7

[A 2.1] Standings................................................................................................................................................................... 7

[A 2.2] Pre-Season BOSMAN PLAYERS (GK, SW, DF, MF, WG, or FW)..................................................................... 7

[A 2.3] Pre-Season Tournaments........................................................................................................................................ 8

[A 2.4] The Regular Season................................................................................................................................................. 8

[A 2.5] The SESL Cup............................................................................................................................................................ 8

[A 2.6] Awards........................................................................................................................................................................ 9

[A 2.7] Promotion/Relegation............................................................................................................................................. 9

[Part B] CLUBS AND PLAYERS.............................................................................................................................................. 9

[B 1.0] Basic Terms................................................................................................................................................................. 9

[B 2.0] Club Features............................................................................................................................................................ 9

[B 3.0] Club Names.................................................................................................................................................................. 9

[B 4.0] Club Finances.......................................................................................................................................................... 10

[B 4.1] Ticket Revenue........................................................................................................................................................ 10

[B 4.2] Healthy budgeting................................................................................................................................................. 10

[B 4.3] Debt/Betting............................................................................................................................................................ 11

[B 4.4] Press Releases......................................................................................................................................................... 11

[B 5.0] Coaching Points (CPs) and Training Points (TPs)................................................................................ 11

[B 6.0] Players........................................................................................................................................................................ 11

[B 6.1] Player Names.......................................................................................................................................................... 11

[B 6.2] Player Positions..................................................................................................................................................... 12

[B 6.2.1] Wingplay............................................................................................................................................................... 12

[B 6.2.2] Multi-position Player Restrictions.................................................................................................................. 12

[B 6.3] Skill Level (SL) and Coaching/Training........................................................................................................... 12

[B 6.4] Age and Aging........................................................................................................................................................ 13

[B 6.4.1] Aging – in SESL aging is more harsh that other MSWL leagues............................................................... 13

[B 6.4.2] Apprentice Youth Players (Age 0 players)..................................................................................................... 13

[B 6.5] Endurance Level (EL)........................................................................................................................................... 14

[B 6.6] The Roster Squad................................................................................................................................................... 14

[B 7.0] Blowouts................................................................................................................................................................... 15

[B 8.0] Team Bonuses.......................................................................................................................................................... 15

[B 9.0] New Clubs for Season 10................................................................................................................................... 15

[B 10.0] Policy on NMR (No Moves Received):.......................................................................................................... 16

[Part C] LINEUPS...................................................................................................................................................................... 16

[C 1.0] Players and Positions (including substitutes and limitations)........................................... 16

[C 2.0] Instructions to Individual Players......................................................................................................... 17

[C 2.1] Instructions Regarding Aggressiveness............................................................................................................. 17

[C 2.2] Instructions Regarding Substitution.................................................................................................................. 17

[C 2.3] Instructions Regarding Penalty Kick Takers................................................................................................... 17

[C 3.0] Team Strategies.................................................................................................................................................... 17

[C 4.0] Restrictions on Lineups (READ CAREFULLY!!).......................................................................................... 17

[C 4.1] Restrictions on GKs............................................................................................................................................... 17

[C 4.2] Restrictions on SWs............................................................................................................................................... 17

[C 4.3] Restrictions on DFs and MFs.............................................................................................................................. 17

[C 4.4] Restrictions on WGs and FWs.............................................................................................................................. 17

[C 4.5] Restrictions on Substitutes................................................................................................................................... 17

[C 5.0] Conditional Instructions............................................................................................................................... 18

[C 5.1] Combination Conditionals.................................................................................................................................. 18

[C 5.2] The G = 0 Conditional.......................................................................................................................................... 18

[C 6.0] Lineup Creation...................................................................................................................................................... 18

[Part D] MATCH RESOLUTION............................................................................................................................................ 18

[D 1.0] Discipline.................................................................................................................................................................... 18

[D 1.1] Bookings and Sendings-Off.................................................................................................................................. 18

[D 1.2] DPs and Suspensions............................................................................................................................................ 19

[D 1.3] Penalty Kicks.......................................................................................................................................................... 19

[D 2.0] Injuries and EL Expenditures......................................................................................................................... 19

[D 2.1] EL Expenditures..................................................................................................................................................... 19

[D 2.2] Injuries..................................................................................................................................................................... 19

[D 2.3] Effects of Injury....................................................................................................................................................... 20

[D 2.4] Substitutes............................................................................................................................................................... 20

[D 3.0] SL Bonuses and Penalties................................................................................................................................ 20

[D 3.1] Types of Match Skill Level (SL).......................................................................................................................... 20

[D 3.2] Marking................................................................................................................................................................... 21

[D 3.2.1] Purpose of Marking.......................................................................................................................................... 21

[D 3.2.2] Effect of Marking on Gameplay....................................................................................................................... 21

[D 3.3] Playing Out of Position (OOP) and Aggressiveness....................................................................................... 22

[D 3.4] Morale Effect........................................................................................................................................................... 22

[D 3.5] MVP Bonus.............................................................................................................................................................. 22

[D 4.0] Team Ratings........................................................................................................................................................... 22

[D 4.1] Area Ratings........................................................................................................................................................... 22

[D 4.2] Lineup Balance...................................................................................................................................................... 22

[D 4.3] OFF, DEF and GP Ratings................................................................................................................................... 23

[D 4.4] Team Tactics and their effects.............................................................................................................................. 23

[D 4.5] Tactical Formulas.................................................................................................................................................. 24

[D 4.6] Tactical Combinations......................................................................................................................................... 24

[D 4.7] Home Bonus............................................................................................................................................................ 25

[D 5.0] Shots and Goals.................................................................................................................................................... 25

[D 5.1] Deciding when shots occur.................................................................................................................................. 25

[D 5.2] Resolving the shot - GOAL ?................................................................................................................................ 25

[D 5.3] Resolving Penalty Kicks....................................................................................................................................... 26

[D 6.0] Referees....................................................................................................................................................................... 26

[D 7.0] Set Plays (Free Kicks and Corner Kicks)................................................................................................. 26

[D 8.0] Weather..................................................................................................................................................................... 28

[Part E] HOW NEW PLAYERS ARE ACQUIRED............................................................................................................... 30

[E 1.0] Pre-Season Bosman.............................................................................................................................................. 30

[E 2.0] Auction........................................................................................................................................................................ 30

[E 3.0 ] Apprentices.............................................................................................................................................................. 31

[E 4.0] Re-Qualification.................................................................................................................................................... 32

[E 5.0] Transfers and Trading..................................................................................................................................... 32

[E 5.1] Trade Restrictions.................................................................................................................................................. 32

[E 5.2] Trading Confirmation Email................................................................................................................................ 32

[E 5.3] Trading Deadline................................................................................................................................................... 32

[Part F] ADJUDICATION OF A SESSION........................................................................................................................... 32

[F 1.0] Format of Instructions/Fines....................................................................................................................... 32

[F 2.0] Match Reports........................................................................................................................................................ 32

[Part G] MODIFYING RULES/CONDUCT & PARTICIPATION..................................................................................... 33

[G 1.0] Modifying Rules and Conduct...................................................................................................................... 33

[G 2.0] Participation.......................................................................................................................................................... 33

Season 14 update notes:

SESL managers must download the free current offline builder (LUFC) at the web site http://www.sesl.info/

Line-ups must be made with offline builder (LUFC). Auction Bids need NOT be created with LUFC.

Auctions are now league-wide. Auctions may consist of players, CP, TP, OFT, SET or other options.

To reduce Commish admin work, press release money is replaced by PRESS POINTS (PP).
PP is earned in much the same way as press release money but will be tallied up and ‘cashed in’ at mid-season and at end of season. PP may buy CP at 50PP and TP at 75PP each at mid season point only. Remaining PP will be allocated as cash at end of season only at exchange rate 1 PP = 1k.

No players can be retired during the season until mid-season point when players may be freely retired.

Players can still be freely retired with new season orders each season.

400 total Skill Level rule does not apply for 2 seasons, with a view to remove it altogether.

Bosmans will be removed for 2 seasons with an option to remove them from SESL altogether after that.

- Play-offs to encourage more mid table meaningful games. One off game at neutral venue.
D1 11th will play D2 6th
D1 12th will play D2 5th
D2 11th will play D3 6th
D2 12th will play D3 5^th

Pre season tourneys will be replaced by the CECIL Cup played in first half of season.
Div 2 and Div 3 teams will have a pre qualifying round of 2 games so get 2 games extra gate receipts. Then it will be knockout over 2 legs, with 1 leg played at a time after each league session on a Saturday. No EL boost for knocked out teams (we don’t reward failure in SESL!)

All Div 1 teams will get a morale bonus so they earn slightly more from gate receipts for each Div 1 league game. This helps resolve issue of teams deliberately not trying to get promoted to Div 1 as seen as little incentive previously.

Div 3 get a 200k reduction in 0/5 apprentice cost, and Div 2 a 100k reduction.

No apprentice can be traded unless seasoned (360 minutes of play)

Reminders:-

The ‘dead-wood’ rule: To encourage more youth players and general roster squad management, any player with Skill Level less than half his age will automatically be retired (e.g. 7/3, 6/2 players). This will help remove players sitting on rosters that will rarely play, and perhaps encourage more apprentices into SESL.
The ‘dead-wood’ rule will be implemented at the end of each season.

To help compensate for loss of low SL players from season 12, a SESL Physio will be available to boost EL from season 12 onwards. Physio Boost (or Magic Sponge) will restore EL to 10 for a single player at the end of the following session. Regardless of injury, a Physio Boost would cost 10k per SL. e.g. a FW20 injured would cost 200k to restore to full 10EL. Remember any injured player -5EL or worse is going to miss 2 games (next session) regardless, so that is a slight penalty added to cost of restoring to 10 EL. Managers are allowed 3 physio boosts per season.

If the commish can see injuries/suspensions has weakened a team then the blowout rule may NOT apply.

Clarify noted that a maximum of 3 players can be transferred in a single trade per software restrictions.

Clarify the need for both managers to email trade details direct to the Commish for a trade to be valid. Once both teams confirm the trade, it may only be cancelled if both managers involved agree. Both managers involved in the trade may agree between themselves what minimum Energy Level the traded players should exchange at.

[Introduction] Document History

10.0 Changes to SESL for Season 10 onwards

Here are the key changes for Season 10 onwards:

Ø Added Golden Gloves and Best Playmaker Awards (League only) (see A 2.6)

Ø Updated Morale Bonuses for SESL Cup and League (see B 4.1)

Ø Addition of SET (set pieces) as a Team Bonus. See B 8.0

Ø Modified Aggression SL Modifier from 1.15 to 1.25 (passive stays at 0.75). There is now more risk in playing aggressive (referees, free kicks, etc) and likewise there should be more reward to balance the two. See D 3.3

Ø Shot Multiplier reduced from 7 to 6 due to the addition of Free Kicks and Corner Kicks. Essentially this will result in fewer “normal” shots, however there are now overall likely more shots due to FKs (Free Kicks) and CKs (Corner Kicks). [D 5.0]

Ø Free Kicks and Corner Kicks have been added. See D 7.0

Ø Added Weather. See D 8.0

Ø Added a requirement to submit a minimum of 3 press releases during league season (1 press release per 5 sessions does not seem too much to ask. SESL is likely more fun for all with active managers) See G 2.0

Ø Early Cross and Longball Modifications (see D 4.5). Tim Given and Gareth Cruz had presented some ideas to MSWL supreme Al Sellers on adjusting the Early Cross and Longball calculations. In general, the idea is that Early Cross should be more effective with WGs and Longball with FWs. These changes are for the OFF totals only.

	DF	MF	FW	WG
E (old)	0.125	0.25	0.75	1.75
E (new)	0.25	0.50	1.00	1.75
L (old)	0.25	0.50	1.25	1.25
L (new)	0.25	0.50	1.50	1.25

Ø If a GK is red-carded the program will look for the first MF listed, sub him out of the match, and bring on a GK sub. If no GK sub is available a SW or DF will reposition to GK.

Ø Now that it is harder to score after going up by 4 goals, the blowout threshold has been reduced from 6 to 5. See [B 7.1] for detailed information. This change is not without controversy. We’ll re-evaluate at the end of the season.

Ø Players may now change aggression (just as they can change position) based on Time, Goals or a combination of both. In the lineup entry programs, choose the Time, Goal (or combination) then C (for change) and a, n, or p.

Ø Player’s EL is now counted as a fraction each minute. See [D 2.1] for more information. Also playing aggressive for 90 full minutes means a player loses 7 EL rather than 8 as in early seasons.

Ø As it is a benign dictatorship, the commissioner will intervene if he feels as though a trade is too one-sided, especially when a weaker team gets a poor deal. So…don’t try to take advantage of anyone! In season 8 more than one manager was banned from trading but I’d rather not repeat this action.

Ø Finally, the fielding of a deliberately weakened lineup towards end of season 9 caused the biggest stir amongst managers since the sacking of Michael Fant in season 5! The outcome of this match may have decided the Div 1 title, but no matter what is at stake there is little justification not to play guys on EL10 and to play a SL1 FW as the only attacker, for example. Resting players is OK, but to deliberately try not to win a game is not ‘in the spirit of SESL’.
From season 10 onwards, I will investigate any match reported to me by another manager where they feel a lineup was not in the spirit of SESL. I shall seek comments from the relevant managers involved. The action will be one of the following:-
1. dismiss it; 2. issue a final warning; 3. fine the team upto 200k; 4. suspend manager for upto 2 sessions; or 5. expel manager.

Some key resources this season include:

1. SESL Discussion and Trading Forum: http://sesl.1.forumer.com/

If you want to chat to other managers, trade a player, offer CP/TP for sale, or have a player/CP/TP need, post it here.

2. SESL Mailing List: sesl@yahoogroups.com

Information from the commissioner will be submitted via the mailing list. If you have an *urgent* trade deal or something you think everyone should read then use the mailing list as well. However I'd prefer to see the Trade-list used first. Managers can use this mailing list for general discussion of rules, ideas, good-natured banter, etc. No excessive swearing or repeated personal attacks.

3. SESL Web Site : http://www.sesl.info

[Part A] OUTLINE OF THE GAME

[A 1.0] Short History

SESL is based on the successful Play be Email games of EEFL and MSWL.
MSWL started in 1989. SESL started 10 years later in January 1999.

The Scottish Email Soccer League (SESL) is a Play by Email Football League that is free to play. Each player in the game (manager) takes control of a Scottish football team and competes against other managers to win the cup competition and the league Championship. Each season takes approximately 5 months to play.

The software to sim matches is MSWL Olmec. This is a Windows application developed in Visual Basic by Allan Sellers.
A big thank-you is due to Al Sellers for all his help and support to keep SESL going over the years.

[A 1.1] Season 13 onwards - Overview and Officers

Each manager coaches a Scottish soccer club. A season is divided into "sessions", each of which consists of two or three matches (generally two) for each club. Normally one session is played each week, but there are breaks mid-season for ageing skill loss.

There are three divisions in SESL, each with 16 teams. League season consists of 30 matches, with the SESL Cup being played during the last 5 weeks of the league season, and at the end of the league season for the 32 teams that qualify for the knock-out stages of the SESL Cup.

In most matches, one club is designated as the "home team" and the other club is designated as the "visiting team". The game is governed by a commissioner.

Each manager sends instructions and lineups for each session to the commissioner, who then resolves the matches using the MSWL Olmec software which determines the scores and the effects of the session on each manager's club. These rules are written for MSWL Olmec and, as a result, there may be certain restrictions.

Duties	Commissioner	Email
1^st Division Matches	Mark Creasey	sesl@ukonline.co.uk
2^nd Division Matches	Mark Creasey	sesl@ukonline.co.uk
3^rd Division Matches	Mark Creasey	sesl@ukonline.co.uk
Press Release Editor	Phil McIntosh	beagle@kvmo.net
Trade Co-ordinator	Robin Dewar	challanger@btinternet.com

We may adjust the duties above as the season progresses.

[A 1.2] Leaving the Game

If a manager does not turn in lineups for two sessions in a row or 3 times in a season, the commissioner will, at his discretion, declare the manager "gone" and the team available for adoption.

If a new manager misses either his first or second session, he is also considered gone and a replacement will be found.

[A 1.3] Taking a Break

If you will be unavailable to run your team for an extended period of time, you can send in orders ahead of time, enough sets to cover your entire absence. If that is not reasonable, you can also find a friend to take over your team during your vacation. That person must agree to give the team back at a specified time.
The Commish may also provide a work colleague to run a vacant team in the short term if sufficient notice is given.

Other leagues have had a stasis option or sabbatical but that option can create some chaos. Instead, any previous SESL manager wishing to return to the game (provided he was reliable) will be placed at the top of the waiting list and offered the next available team to re-join SESL.

[A 1.4] Benign Dictatorship/No Replaying of Matches

At times, the commissioner may make changes in the game to maintain the spirit and playability. He will not break the rules lightly, but will do so when needed to maintain overall fairness and consistency. One of the areas where the commissioner will intervene is when a trade is proposed that may either damage a team or one that is too one-sided. Intervention will generally not occur when two long-time managers are making the trade.

Keep in mind that the commissioners “can” make mistakes sometimes. However, we will not replay ANY single matches for any reason, PERIOD! If a mistake is made where a simple TP/CP or monetary adjustment is required, those can easily be fixed, just point them out (do it nicely). If a mistake is made that affects your lineup, the match will not be replayed. The result will stand, but hopefully the reason for the mistake can be identified to prevent it from reoccurring. The software will do weird things sometimes too, but it does not play favorites. If software problems are identified let the commissioner know so the problem can be fixed.

[A 1.5] SESL Champions Roll of Honour

Season	League Div 1 Winner	SESL Cup Winner	League Div 2 Winner	League Div 3 Winner
1	HIB -- Michael Fant	ABE – Ross Hayworth	LIV – John Milligan	N/a
2	HEA – Robin Dewar	AYR – Dan Black	BRE – Anders Nisula	N/a
3	HIB -- Michael Fant	ABE – Ross Hayworth	QP – James White	ALB – Alon Atie
4	HIB -- Michael Fant	CLB – Allan Sellers	ALB – Alon Atie	BEL – Adrian Nicholas
5	ALB – Alon Atie	MON – Christian Chung	COW – Terry Bray	EDI – Richard Mosher
6	BEL – Adrian Nicholas	ALB – Alon Atie	EDI – Richard Mosher	FAL – Nick Tippins
7	BEL – Adrian Nicholas	ALB – Alon Atie	DEE – Mark Wilkinson	AYR – John Moore
8	BEL – Adrian Nicholas	COW – Terry Bray	HEA – Bruce Allen	ROS – Robin Dewar
9	CEL – Mark Findlay	DEE – Philip Ross	DUM – Martin Fallon	BER – Steve Wright
10	CEL – Mark Findlay	RAN – James White	KIL – Todd Teis	AI – Kevin Hull
11	RAN – James White	ABE – Ross Hayworth	BUC – Sergio Bono	FAL – Jamie McIntosh
12	RAN – James White	ABE – Ross Hayworth	DFA – Michael Suwandi	RR – James Tucker
13	CEL – Mark Findlay	DFA – Michael Suwandi	RR – James Tucker	GM – Andrew MacKie

[A 2.0] The Structure of a Season

[A 2.1] Standings

Clubs are ranked during the season, and during special tournaments described below, primarily by the number of "league points" (Pts) they earn. Clubs earn 3 Pts per win and 1 Pt per draw. Clubs with equal Pts shall have that tie broken using the following criteria (in order):

(1) Goal Differential

(2) Total Goals Scored

(3) Head To Head Record

(4) Most Goals Scored in Head To Head Play

(5) Games Won

(6) Goals scored @ home

(7) Home matches Won

(8) Leading Goal scorer

(9) Flip of a coin

[A 2.2] Pre-Season BOSMAN PLAYERS (GK, SW, DF, MF, WG, or FW)

BOSMAN PLAYERS ON HOLD FOR 2 SEASONS IN SESL SO THIS DOES NOT APPLY TO END OF SEASON 14&15.

In 1995 a Belgian player, Jean-Marc Bosman, challenged his employment rights saying he ought to be allowed to move freely to another club at the end of his contract. The European Court of Civil Rights upheld his complaint and this had a major impact on European football. Players were to be treated like any other worker who could move to a new employer without a transfer fee. European football is now flooded at the end of a season by hundreds of players looking to join a new club for free.

I have implemented Bosman Players into SESL to replace both Trialist Player and a pre-season draft. The main reasons are that new managers often got confused between trialists and apprentices, plus many managers wished to re-name their trialist to that of their favourite real life player. This can now happen with Bosman Players who are named at the time of joining their new team at the start of a season.

The pre-season Bosman Player allocation occurs just before the start of the current season. Each team gets one Bosman Player (always age 1) based on each team's finish during the regular season of the previous season. The Skill Level is established by taking league position finish and adding 5 SL. The minimum Bosman Player Skill Level is 6, and the maximum 16 SL. This means all teams finishing 11 to 16^th place get the same SL of player and prevents teams in the relegation zone just giving up towards the end of a season just to get a higher SL Bosman Player.

Bosman Players are free of charge and may be either a GK, SW, DF, MF, WG, or FW.

[A 2.3] Pre-Season Tournaments now CECIL Cup

Pre season tourneys will be replaced by the CECIL Cup played in first half of season.
CECIL Cup (stands for Commish Early Campaign Inter League Cup) will consists of Div 2 and Div 3 teams having a pre qualifying round of 2 games so get 2 games extra gate receipts. Team pairings will be based directly on previous league table finish – e.g. the team 5^th in Div 2 will play 5^th bottom in Div 3).

Then it will be knockout over 2 legs, with 1 leg played at a time after each league session on a Saturday.
No EL boost for knocked out teams not playing (we don’t reward failure in SESL!)

[A 2.4] The Regular Season

The regular season will involve the 16 teams in the 1^st , 2^nd and 3rd Divisions playing the other teams in their division twice (once at home and once away). The fixture schedule will be published at the beginning of the season.

[A 2.5] The SESL Cup

The SESL Cup is played during the season in groups, and finishes in a knockout tournament after the regular season has finished.

SESL Cup Draw is based initially on team rankings and this creates 8 groups of 6 teams.

So Group A would be teams’ ranked 1, 9, 17, 25, 33 and 41.
Group B would be teams ranked 2, 10, 18, 26, 34 and 42, and so on for all 8 groups.

Games in these groups are now played at Neutral venue and thus each team is guaranteed at least 5 SESL Cup games. These Cup games are played during Sessions 11 – 15 inclusive.

The top FOUR teams in each group qualify for the last-32 knockout stages played immediately after the end of regular season. To encourage teams to compete in all 5 group-games, the format of the Cup is structured all the way through from the Cup Draw. Teams winning their group will benefit from a match-up with a 4^th placed team in the last 32, but after that the Cup pairings are structured in order as set out below. This means it is entirely possible for teams who have met in the group stage to meet again in the knockouts.

For example: The last-32 knockout stage (played over 2 legs, home and away) - Group A winners will play Group B 4^th placed team; Group A 2^nd will play Group B 3^rd placed team; Group A 3^rd will play Group B 2^nd placed team; Group A 4^th team will then play Group B winners, and so on for C and D, E and F, G and H groups. The winners of each game at this stage will become A1, A2, A3 and A4; C1, C2, C3 and C4; E1, E2, E3 and E4; and G1, G2, G3 and G4.

The last 16 match-ups (played over 2 legs, home and away) will be: A1 v C1, A2 v C2, A3 v C3, A4 v C4, E1 v G1, E2 v G2, E3 v G3, E4 v G4. As in all knockout tournaments, away goals will count double if the game is tied on goals after both games, and if still tied the software will produce an automated penalty shootout to determine the winner.

The last 8 match-up (played over 2 legs, home and away) will be: A1 v E1; A2 v E2; A3 v E3; A4 v E4.

The last 4 match-up (played over 2 legs, home and away) will be: A1 v A3; A2 v A4.

The final 2 teams match-up (one match played at Neutral venue) will be: A1 v A2

No players will receive an EL Bonus when moving from the regular season into the SESL Cup knockout stages.

Player suspensions WILL carry over though.
All EL is reset after SESL cup ahead of new season.

[A 2.6] Awards

At the end of the regular season, several awards are made:-

MAN OF THE MATCH (MOM) AWARDS earns his team 2 CP.

PLAYER GOLDEN BOOT (MOST GOALS SCORED)
The player who has scored the most league goals in the regular season in each division earns his team 150k.

BEST PLAYMAKER (MOST ASSISTS) in each division earns his team 100k.

MOST ACCURATE SHOOTER in each division earns his team 75k.

GOLDEN GLOVES (HIGHEST RATED GK) in each division earns his team 100k.

TEAM--FAIR PLAY (FEWEST DP) in each division earns 2 TP.

The “Manager of the Season”, in each division, is voted on by all managers, and while this is mainly for prestige and recognition by your fellow managers, a 2 TP award if given for each winner in each division.

[A 2.7] Promotion/Relegation

At the end of each regular season:

Top 4 teams in Div 2 get promoted to Div 1.

Top 4 teams in Div 3 get promoted to Div 2.

Bottom 4 teams in Div 1 get relegated to Div 2.

Bottom 4 teams in Div 2 get relegated to Div 3.

Play-offs to encourage more meaningful games towards end of a season. One-off game at neutral venue.
D1 11th will play D2 6th
D1 12th will play D2 5th
D2 11th will play D3 6th
D2 12th will play D3 5^th

At the end of each regular season – the manager whose team has finished bottom of Division 3 will automatically retire and be replaced by a waiting list manager. If the outgoing Division 3 manager has shown sufficient effort during the season (despite their unfortunate lowly league position), then the manager will be placed at the top of the waiting list and invited to re-join SESL as soon as a team becomes available – this is at the discretion of the Commissioner.

[Part B] CLUBS AND PLAYERS

[B 1.0] Basic Terms

TACTICS:

Tactics allow strategic planning by altering the basic premise of play.

Longball means long kicks from the defenders to the forwards, Pressing shows little regard for defense. Normal is itself a tactic, showing consideration for all aspects of the game equally. A team tactic adjusts the OFFENSIVE (OFF), DEFENSIVE (DEF), and GOAL PROTECTION (GP) formulas.

TEAM SKILLS:

Currently team skills include OTF (One-Touch Football). OTF is a skill that teams can develop and has general affects, similar to player SL, and applies regardless of tactics. Tactics determine the formula to which OTF applies. SET (for set-pieces) is new from season 10 and rating determines Free Kick and Corner Kicks.

[B 2.0] Club Features

Each club has a name, a bank account (measured in Kilo-Pounds), a number of "coaching points" (CPs) and "training points" (TPs), a captain, a bonus for one-touch-football (OTF) and set-pieces (SET) and a roster squad of up to 25 players.

[B 3.0] Club Names

The Commissioner normally determines the name of every club that plays in SESL. All of the club names should be named after a real-life Scottish Football club, either professional or Highland League. The name of a club may be changed between seasons if it reflects real-life changes to the Scottish game, e.g. Elgin and Peterhead recently joined the Scottish League so these team names became available.

From season 10, club names will likely remain constant however and help build up a league history of each team to be tracked.

[B 4.0] Club Finances

[B 4.1] Ticket Revenue

Most of a club's income comes from ticket revenue; a club gets a certain amount of income from ticket revenue for every match in which it plays. The amount earned in each match is given by the following formulas:

Home morale = morale + morale bonus

Visitor morale = morale + morale bonus

Normal Match

Gate = 60k * (1 + (2 * home morale) + visitor morale)

Neutral Match

Gate = 60k * (1 + (1.5 * home morale) + (1.5 * visitor morale))

Club morale is a number between 0 and 1 as described below.

Ticket revenue is split evenly between the two clubs involved, and is detailed in the match report that you receive after the game.

A club's morale is updated every match. The formula is:

New morale = (5/6) * old morale + (0 if loss, 1/12 is draw, 1/6 if win)

In general, your morale is higher if your team has done well in its most recent matches.

The following morale bonuses will be applied at the start of the following season for Division 1 teams only now:

Div 1 winners will get 0.30.

Div 1 runners-up will get 0.28.

Div 1 third place team gets 0.26.

Div 1 fourth place team gets 0.24.

Div 1 fifth place team gets 0.22.

Div 1 sixth place team gets 0.20.

Div 1 seventh place team gets 0.18.

Div 1 eight place team gets 0.16.

Div 1 ninth place team gets 0.14.

Div 1 tenth place team gets 0.12.

The remaining 6 teams starting the season in Division 1 will get a morale bonus each game of 0.10

Each club's morale is carried over from the previous season. Morale is computed after each match.

All teams start each season with a morale of at least 0.5.

Starting in Season 10, a team’s morale now contributes SL to DEF and OFF stats accordingly. The morale is multiplied by 10 and rounded down to the nearest whole number, eg. 0.72345 morale * 10 = 7.2345 rounded to 7 SL added to DEF and OFF. The morale bonus is not used to this figure. (See Morale Effect [D 3.4])

[B 4.2] Healthy budgeting

Managers are advised to project their income ahead to ensure they have sufficient funds for next season's coaching staff. This is one of the most important aspects of the game. Bid wisely in the auctions, otherwise you might overspend and not be able to afford coaching facilities for the following season.

Each team will play 30 league games, at least 2 CECIL cup games, and at least 5 SESL Cup games.

Healthy budgeting is one thing, but no team may have more than 4,000K in their team bank at any time. If a team goes above this limit, then the excess money is given to the bottom team in Division 3. This is known as the “Robin Hood” rule – where the rich give to the poor! Managers who approach 4000k+ can ofcourse buy apprentice players or trade money away for other resources to try and remain within the limit.

[B 4.3] Debt/Betting

A club may never go into debt and a manager may never submit orders that require spending more of a resource than he has at the beginning of a game. If you are getting into financial problems, you should consider trading players for cash. Bear in mind that for the end of the season you will need to have sufficient funds to buy your CP allocation (your TP allocation is fixed at 35 TP per season).

Teams will receive your CP/TP prior to the start of the season. Additional CP/TP may be optained in auctions or from cashing in Press Points at mid-season.
Loans between clubs are not permitted. Also, betting on matches is not allowed in SESL.

[B 4.4] Press Releases

Each week when matches are played, clubs may send in a press release statement. Press might include a review of recent games played, your plans for team rebuilding, some healthy joking around with other teams, issuing threats, making predictions or perhaps "blowing your own horn". You can send in a press release for any session (including SESL Cup even when your team is knocked out).

Press release should be emailed direct to:-

Phil McIntosh

beagle@kvmo.net

and deadline is normally 10pm GMT each Thursday (5pm USA Central)

For each RELEVANT press release, the team is awarded upto 50 Press Points. Often 1 team in each division will get 50PP, one or two will get 40PP, and most others will receive 30PP. Even a few paragraphs would normally earn your team 20PP. Ideally keep press releases to one page maximum a session – long winded press is often overlooked and will not necessary gain more reward.

While spirited press is strongly encouraged, the content of press should remain clean and sportsmanlike and within the bounds of good taste (or else you will have to pay 50k to send yourself and your team to a Dignity class). The interpretation of this rule shall be made by the commissioner and/or Press Editor, who has the right to edit (or not print) any press release or content if there is a violation of this rule. The bottom line here is do not write something if it remotely fits the inappropriate criteria.

From season 10, there is a requirement to submit a minimum of 3 press releases during league season (1 press release per 5 sessions does not seem too much to ask. SESL is likely more fun for all with active managers)

[B 5.0] Coaching Points (CPs) and Training Points (TPs)

CPs and TPs are spent to increase the ability of a club's players and to increase the club's OTF and SET bonus. To obtain CPs, a club must hire a coaching staff at the beginning of each season (note that 50 CP is the maximum for a coaching facilities purchase).
Coaching Points are bought in blocks of 5 at the start of a season only. The costs are described in the following table:

CP Staff	Cost
20	750
25	1000
30	1250
35	1500
40	2000
45	2500
50	3000

Note that a club cannot hire more coaching staff once the season is under way (except if CP is offered in the auction). Starting with Season 10, you may allocate TP/CP for any game.

The standard guideline is that a CP is worth about 70k and a TP is worth about 110k (although TP has been traded for 150k before).

The maximum CP or TP a club can hold in their team totals at any one time is 99.

Each team receives 35 TPs at the beginning of the season at no cost.

[B 6.0] Players

Each player has a name, a Skill Level (SL), an age, a certain number of Disciplinary Points (DPs), and an Endurance Level (EL). In addition, a player may either be qualified to play at one position (GK, SW, DF, MF, or FW), or more than one position (SD, DM, MA, and UT).

[B 6.1] Player Names

Managers may use player names from 1 to 19 characters. SESL often names its players after real-life footballers. However, a player can be named by the manager when the player joins the league as an apprentice youth player.

The name of a player may be changed during the close season - the change is free for the first 5 player names changed and 50k per player thereafter.

[B 6.2] Player Positions

Six positions exist in SESL: Goalkeeper (GK), Sweeper (SW), Defender (DF), Midfielder (MF), Winger (WG), and Forward (FW). A player is generally qualified to play at one position when he enters the league. A player may play in a position for which he is not qualified, but he will not be as effective (see [D 3.3]). However, some players are designated as "multi-position players". These players include SD, DM, MA, and UT. A SD can play at SW and DF with no SL penalty. A DM can play at DF and MF with no SL penalty. A MA can play MF and FW with no SL penalty. A UT can play at DF, MF, and FW with no SL penalty.

Note that SD, DM, MA, and UT are NOT match positions and may not be used as such.

[B 6.2.1] Wingplay

Wingplay was added starting in Season 8. Wingplay introduces a method for teams to create some extra OFF production by playing the ball wide and spreading the defensive line of the other team. The way this is done is by introducing a new player position - the Winger - or WG. WG is considered one position removed from MF or FW for OPP purposes. There are no multi-positional WG combinations.

WGs shoot from halfway between MF and FW for offside and on target. There can be no more than a total of 1-4 FW and WG players on the field at any time. There still must be a minimum of 1 FW playing at all times, as without at least 1 FW there is no one to cross the ball to easily. Teams are allowed 0-2 WG on the field at one time.

The main advantage to WG’s over FW’s or MF’s is that WG have a higher SL multiplier for creating OFF. For all match Tactics the WG OFF Production is SL * 1.25. The exception being the new Tactic "Early Cross" where the multiplier is 1.75. And "Finesse" where it is 1.00 (Early Cross and Finesse is explained later on)

The main disadvantage to WG’s over FW’s or MF’s is that WG have a lower chance of getting shots allocated to them. This is because they are often wide of goal in non-scoring positions. The WG’s get credit for OFF production for shot allocation purposes at the rate of SL * 1 / the current OFF production multiplier.

The more players playing at FW/WG at one time, the more the WG advantages and disadvantages are increased. For each FW or WG on the field, the OFF production multiplier is increased by 0.05.

Example:

WG FW WG Normal Tactic

WG OFF production is SL * 1.40 for each WG

WG OFF production for shot allocation is SL * 1 / 1.40 (~0.71)

In this example the WG players are kind of like a MF player that has converted all the DEF production into OFF production.

WG FW FW WG Early Cross Tactic

WG OFF production is SL * 1.95 for each WG

WG OFF production for shot allocation is SL * 1 / 1.95 (~0.51)

In this example the WG players are the core of the teams offense. A pair of SL 28 WG’s would produce 109 OFF. This is a massive OFF production from just two players, but is balanced off by a reduced production in the rest of the team, and the fact that with marking coming into play WG OFF can be quickly chopped down to size. So yes it can be lethal, but also deftly controlled by the right team as well.

[B 6.2.2] Multi-position Player Restrictions

You may acquire/trade as many multi-position players as you want in a season. However, your roster of multi-position players may never exceed 5. If you exceed 5, you must downgrade a multi-position player immediately to a normal position player.

That downgraded position must be one of the positions the player plays at normally. For instance, an MA would be downgraded to a MF or FW but not a GK, SW, DF, or WG.

[B 6.3] Skill Level (SL) and Coaching/Training

Each player has a skill level (SL), which is an integer that quantifies his ability to perform on the field at the positions for which he is qualified. The SL may increase with training (TP) for young players (Ages 0 and 1) or with coaching (CP) of older (age 2+) players. The SL will decrease with age. The effect from coaching or training is an increase of 1 SL for that player, which takes effect at the END of the match (provided that player has played 45 minutes in the match). A club may elect to coach or train more than once per match (if the CP/TP are available) at a cost of 25K per additional coaching/training.

Subs can be trained or coached as any other player can, provided they meet the requirements above. No player can be trained or coached more than 10 times in a season (this is reflected in the Points Used (PU) field on the rosters), however they CAN be trained or coached more than once in a session (BUT ONLY ONCE IN A GIVEN MATCH). To reiterate (as it's a common mistake by new managers): ONLY age 0 and age 1 players may be trained, ONLY age 2 and older players may be coached.

Note that you may only use 4 CP slots and 4 TP slots (total of 8 slots) per match. Using the 8 slots in one game will cost your team 150k extra (6 x 25k), and this is one decision often made by new managers to SESL who may not appreciate the impact this extra CP/TP will have on their team bank balance!

[B 6.4] Age and Aging

Each player has an age, which is an integer greater than or equal to zero. Players join the league with age 0 (unless they are acquired as a Bosman or via the auction). At the end of each season, each player's age increases by one.

[B 6.4.1] Aging – in SESL aging is more harsh that other MSWL leagues

Each player loses Skill Level (SL) as he grows older. This loss depends on his age as indicated in the following table (which may be extended as necessary in future seasons to accommodate older players):

Mid Season Loss: SL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10+ 20+ 30+ 40+ 50+

AGE

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 3 4

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 5 7

2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 4 6 8

3 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 2 3 5 7 9

4 0 0 0 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 4 6 8 10

5 0 0 0 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 5 7 9 13

6 0 0 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 5 6 8 12 15

7 0 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 5 6 7 9 14 17

8+ 0 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 5 6 8 12 16 19

Post Season Loss: SL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10+ 15+ 20+ 30+ 35+ 40+ 45+ 50+ 60+

AGE

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 3 4 6 7 8 9

2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 3 5 6 8 9 10 12

3 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 4 6 8 9 11 12 15

4 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 5 7 9 11 13 14 18

5 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 6 8 10 12 15 16 21

6 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 7 9 11 13 17 18 24

7 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 7 8 10 12 14 19 22 27

8+ 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 6 7 8 9 11 13 15 20 25 30

Thus 10+ in post season aging refers to SLs 10-14. Making the rate of aging depend on a player's SL makes it more difficult for managers to produce and maintain players with SL 20+ and gives weak clubs a break. Players move to the next age level at the end of the season. Mid-season loss occurs at end of the halfway point of the season (the commissioner will indicate when mid-season aging occurs). Post-season loss occurs after the final post-season match of the season, usually the SESL Cup Final. If a player's SL is less than 1 at the end of a season, he immediately retires.

MANAGERS MUST KEEP THEIR ROSTERS AT 25 OR FEWER PLAYERS.
If at any time your roster exceeds 25 players, the commissioner will, at his discretion automatically retire the highest SL player for you.

[B 6.4.2] Apprentice Youth Players (Age 0 players)

An age zero player is known as an "apprentice". An apprentice becomes "seasoned" in the match following his fourth full match (or rather his 360^th minute of play). When an apprentice becomes seasoned, his skill level (SL) rises by 2. If a player ages to age 1 without becoming seasoned, he will not get the seasoning bonus (ever). Seasoning may occur at anytime during league or Cup matches. Seasoning adjustments are handled automatically by MSWL Olmec software.

AGE 0 PLAYERS MAY NOT PLAY OUT OF POSITION.

AGE 0 PLAYERS MAY NOT BE TRADED UNTIL SEASONED.

Apprentice Youth Players may sometimes be picked up via the auction. They may also be freely purchased. These purchased players start at Age 0 SL 1 for standard, or Age 0 SL 5 for superior.

A standard 0/1 apprentice position (GK, SW, DF, MF, WG, FW) purchased in this fashion costs 50K.

A standard 0/1 apprentice multi-position player (SD, DM, MA) costs 100K.

A superior 0/5 apprentice position (GK, SW, DF, MF, WG, FW) purchased costs 400K for Div1, 300k for Div2, 200k for Div 3.

A superior 0/5 apprentice multi-position player (SD, DM, MA) costs 500K for Div 1, 400K for Div2, 300k for Div3.

No apprentice UT are available to buy.

Apprentice purchases must be emailed to your Commissioner no later than 48 hours before any deadline to be included in that week's games. A name for the apprentice must be noted at that time also.

[B 6.5] Endurance Level (EL)

Because of the hectic and exhausting schedule that SESL teams maintain, it is not possible for most players to play every match without being injured. Each player therefore has an "endurance level" or "EL". Each player gains a certain amount of EL after each match (+4) and a player must spend EL to play, as described in [D 2.1]. A player who runs out of EL risks injury if he continues playing, as described in [D 2.2]. Each player gains 4 EL after each match. A player may accumulate unused EL, but the total accumulated may never exceed 10. Players are considered well rested at the beginning of the season (EL 10).

[B 6.6] The Roster Squad

Each club has it’s own roster squad of players. There must be between 16 and 25 players on any team roster. The commissioner will publish the updated team rosters every session. Here is a roster from 1^st Division Champions in Season 13, Celtic.

Celtic (CEL) Captain: Chris Sutton

Manager: Mark Findlay Email: madcyril@blueyonder.co.uk

Player Name Age SL Ps EL DP M Min GS A ST GA SF Su Se PU

--------------------------------------------------------------------

David Marshall 2 32 GK 5 12 7 540 0 0 0 3 25 1 1 10

Dominique Dropsy 1 17 GK 10 12 8 630 0 0 0 11 33 0 0 10

John Kennedy 2 31 SD 5 16 9 675 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 9

Jonny Woodengate 2 26 DF 5 4 10 600 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 10

Bobo Balde 4 16 DF 7 18 10 720 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0

Gareth Smith 5 5 DF 10 0 9 810 0 5 1 0 0 0 0 0

Gary Bean 5 5 DF 8 4 10 900 1 2 3 0 0 0 0 0

Charlie Grant 1 18 DM 7 8 11 780 0 0 4 0 0 0 1 10

Rocco Quinn 0 17 DM 7 4 13 930 0 0 4 0 0 0 1 10

Stilian Petrov 4 16 MF 6 8 11 855 1 1 8 0 0 0 0 0

Juninho 4 29 MA 5 16 8 645 4 0 12 0 0 0 0 10

Alan Thompson 3 29 WG 4 0 11 945 5 1 14 0 0 0 1 6

Shaun Maloney 2 34 FW 5 12 7 525 5 1 13 0 0 1 1 9

Simon Lynch 4 29 FW 5 12 12 930 5 0 10 0 0 1 0 9

Chris Sutton 5 27 FW 5 8 11 855 4 2 7 0 0 0 1 10

Charlie McLean 4 18 FW 10 12 10 840 2 1 9 0 0 1 0 0

Keigan Parker 3 25 UT 4 12 9 690 0 2 10 0 0 0 0 10

ROSTER KEY:

-----------

Player Name: Player's Name (up to 19 characters)

Age: Player 's Age (generally 0 to 7)

SL: Skill Level

Ps: Position

EL: Endurance Level

DP: Discipline Points

M: Matches

Min: Minutes Played

GS: Goals Scored

ST: Shots Taken

GA: Goals Allowed

SF: Shots Faced

Su: Suspensions (number of matches player is suspended for)

Se: Seasoning (when an Age 0 player is seasoned this becomes 1)

PU: Points Used (CP Or TP, Max Is 10)

Note that if a player is listed in team orders to play and has an EL of less than zero he will usually be replaced by the software by a substitute off the list of substitutes in the team's orders for that game. Such a replacement does not count towards the team's limit of three subs for the game.

In addition if a player is suspended, but listed as a starter should automatically be replaced by a substitute prior to the start of the match. Again the software should deal with this automatically.

[B 7.0] Blowouts

To discourage managers from fielding lineups that are too weak, whenever a club loses by 5 or more goals, that club is said to have been "blown out".

If the match was considered a blowout where a team lost by 5 or more goals, they lose some additional resources. If the team that was blown out has at least 2 CPs they lose 2 CPs. If they do not, they lose 125k. Either case should generally be a possibility as if a team uses all their CP early in a season, they generally have plenty of cash later in the season.

This function is now handled automatically by the program and will be executed at any time (including the league and Cups).

The program first checks to see if the match is a blowout. Then it determines if the losing team has the CP to deduct. If not, the money will be deducted.

In addition, code has been added to the software to prevent teams from winning by astronomical margins. During normal play each team has a chance to get a shot called a ShotChance. Once a team goes ahead by 4 or more goals, those chances are reduced as seen below:

Goal Difference	Adjusted Shot Chance
Winning by 1, 2, or 3 goals	ShotChance/1
Winning by 4 goals	ShotChance / 5
Winning by 5 goals	ShotChance / 10
Winning by 6 goals	ShotChance / 15
Winning by 7 goals	ShotChance / 20
Winning by 8 goals	ShotChance / 25

[B 8.0] Team Bonuses

Each club has an OTF bonus, which reflects its ability to work as a team with short, accurate passes. Each club begins the season with an OTF of at least 1. A club may coach its OTF bonus in any match. The effect of this coaching is to increase that bonus by 1 point, to a maximum value of 10. This increase will take place at the beginning of the next match. The cost of coaching the OTF bonus is 2 CP per OTF point. Both CPs must be used in the same match.

The OTF bonus may now be increased by more than one point in a single session, though it may only be increased a maximum of once per match. Note that it does NOT cost $25K to increase the OTF bonus by using 2 CPs in one game. If you increase your OTF bonus in any one match, the cost is 2 CPs, but there is no $25K cost. If you coach a player in the same match, you pay the $25K. OTF bonus decreases by 30% at the end of the season. For instance, an OTF of 7 * 70% becomes an OTF of 5 (4.9 rounded up) for the next season.

A new Team Bonus, SET is being introduced from Season 10. Set starts at 12 and can be raised by 1 CP per game if you elect to assign a CP. SET increases your team’s chances for converting Free Kicks and Corner Kicks into goals. Like OTF, set decreases by 30% at the end of the season.

With the LUFC (offline) program and the online architect, just choose OTF ONCE under CP. The program knows to deduct 2 CP and add one to your OTF. SET should likewise just be chosen once and one CP will be deducted.

Ø CAPTAIN’s in SESL (aged 5+) can have their SL increased by 10 in a season, be it with CP or the automated Captain’s bonus for when their team wins by 3 clear goals and their club Captain has played a minimum of 45 minutes in the game.

[B 9.0] New Clubs for Season 10

There are no plans to increase SESL beyond 48 teams.

However, four teams changed name ahead of season 10 – (all real Highland League clubs)

GAL became Fraserburgh,

LAN became Nairn,

BEL became Deveronvale, and

EDI became Buckie.

COW, DEV and FAL began as expansion teams received the following resources:

18 players with a total SL of 200.

Age 0: SL 5, SL 5, SL 10, SL 10,
Age 1: SL 10, SL 10, SL 10, SL 10,
Age 2: SL 10, SL 15, SL 15, SL 20,
Age 3: SL 10, SL 10, SL 10, SL 10,
Age 5: SL 10, SL 20,

Generally this would be 2 GK, 1 SW, 5 DF, 4 MF, 3 WG, 3 FW

Teams that are in Division 3 with a manager who feels he cannot turn the club around, may, at the Commish discretion, start over as an expansion team. 18 players with total SL of 200 as above will be on offer, however current actual bank totals, CP/TP, SET and OTF will carry forward to the expansion team (that will be likely named after the same team.)

[B 10.0] Policy on NMR (No Moves Received):

A team that does not send in lineups by the posted deadline or contact the commissioner requesting that the previous lineups be used is considered NMR. If your team is in NMR status for a given session, a NMR program has been created to create lineups for your team. The program balances playing good players with rested ones (hence don't expect your top 11 players to be starting).

While there is no fine for NMR, CP and TP expenditures will not normally be permitted while a team is under NMR. CP and TP will accumulate for expenditure in a later session, at whatever the additional cost.

If a manager does not turn in lineups for two sessions in a row or 3 times in a season, the commissioner will declare the manager "gone" and the team available for adoption. Hopefully this will not happen often. If you see a busy time period coming up, see if a friend can take your team or create lineups well in advance. The commissioner DOES NOT WANT to ever have to declare a manager “gone” but he will if you meet the above criteria.

A new manager missing his first OR second deadline will be considered unreliable and sacked.

Take care in meeting the posted deadlines. If you miss a deadline then contact the Commissioner soon afterwards so he sees that you at least attempted to get line-ups submitted or have a valid excuse. SESL needs 48 committed managers to be competitive, so if a Commissioner sees that a manager is reliable but is simply having PC problems enforcing NMR’s then he may not count these against you as long as contact is made early.

Once again this season, though, we won't wait for anyone! A deadline of Saturday at noon does not mean Saturday afternoon at 4pm. If your lineups aren't in by the time requested, your team will be picked by the software and function as NMR for that session.

The commissioner does not care when the line-ups were emailed and cannot be held responsible for Internet Service Providers delaying the delivery of an email – if lineups do not arrive by the deadline time then your teams goes NMR.

Should a manager wish conformation of his line-ups having arrived safely then he needs send them 48 hours before deadline. That way if they are not included in the Commissioners reminder email then he still has a chance to send them in.

[Part C] LINEUPS

For each match to be played, each manager must submit a lineup. A lineup is a list of 11 players, the positions at which each player will start, special instructions for each player (pertaining to aggressiveness or conditional change of position/aggressiveness or substitution), the position at which they play, team tactics (and team conditional tactics), and a set of 5 substitutes (required). In addition, a lineup must indicate all coaching and training instructions for that match.

You can use LUFC to create your lineups.

Clarify that 16 players MUST be listed in a valid lineup or team may run NMR. Current software allows a suspended player to be listed as a substitute who cannot play, but ideally a team should buy an apprentice if roster is threadbare to make up the available players to 16 for every match.

[C 1.0] Players and Positions (including substitutes and limitations)

Each player in a lineup must be given a position to play. A position is one of GK, SW, DF, MF, WG, and FW (note that SD, DM, MA, and UT are not actual positions in a match). GK, SW, DF, MF, WG, and FW are the positions goalkeeper, sweeper, defender, midfielder, winger, and forward respectively.

[C 2.0] Instructions to Individual Players

Each player in a lineup may be given an instruction regarding the aggressiveness with which to play, an instruction regarding the exact position at which to play, and also conditional instructions as a substitute (or for a repositioning or change of aggressiveness).

[C 2.1] Instructions Regarding Aggressiveness

Each player may be given one of the following instructions pertaining to Aggressiveness: aggressive (a), normal (n), or passive (p). The effects of these instructions are described in [D 2.1] and [D 3.3].

[C 2.2] Instructions Regarding Substitution

Up to three players in each lineup may be sent into the match as substitutes. Substitutes MAY be given conditional orders, however these conditions are only evaluated if the substitute has entered the match.

[C 2.3] Instructions Regarding Penalty Kick Takers

You may choose a PK taker for your match (but it is NOT REQUIRED). If none is chosen, the player with the highest ShootingSL who is on the pitch at the time of the infraction will take the kick.

[C 3.0] Team Strategies

A lineup may be told to use a variety of tactics.

The effects of these tactics are described in sections [D 5.4, D 5.5, and D 5.6]. The choice of tactics may depend on the game situation, or the strength or weaknesses of the opponent. A longball game may be handy if you have a weak midfield and strong FW line, against an opponent with a relatively weak DF or SW area. Building the OTF bonus and SET bonus can also be considered a tactic, although it is more of a long-term strategy. It will cost you SLs on your older players in the short term (as you won't be coaching them), but will cost "only" 6 CPs each season to maintain it at its maximum of 10, once attained.

[C 4.0] Restrictions on Lineups (READ CAREFULLY!!)

The following restrictions apply to team lineups, both at the start of the game and then at every minute in the game after kickoff.

[C 4.1] Restrictions on GKs

· There must be exactly one GK

· GKs may play passive, normal, or aggressive. If a GK is red-carded the program will look for the first MF listed, sub him out of the match, and bring on a GK sub. If no GK sub is available a SW or DF will reposition to GK.

[C 4.2] Restrictions on SWs

· There may be at most one SW.

[C 4.3] Restrictions on DFs and MFs

· You must play between 2 and 5 DF and MF players at all times.

[C 4.4] Restrictions on WGs and FWs

· You may play between 0 and 2 WGs in a match.

· You must play at least 1 FW player at all times.

· You may have no more than 4 WG/FW players in a match at the same time.

[C 4.5] Restrictions on Substitutes

· You may only send on three subs during a given match.

· You may make conditional substitutes at any time if your conditions are met. However, if a player is injured, a sub will come on for that player no matter what minute it is, unless your three subs have been used.

Note that if your lineup does not fall within these min/max rules, the program will adjust your lineup.

[C 5.0] Conditional Instructions

From Season 8, additional functionality has been added to allow managers more flexibility in creating their lineups. Each player may be given 0-3 conditional orders, likewise, each team may be given 0-5 conditional orders.

The conditions may be based on the following events:

· current game time (minute)

· difference in goals between the teams

Possible conditions are:

T [>=] #	When gametime is equal to or greater the time in the condition (and thereafter). For example: “T >= 45 P” is true if equal to min. 45 and after.
G [<=>] #	This is for conditional changes based on the score. In creating this condition, keep in mind that the numeral represents the following formula: (Your Team’s Score - Opponent’s Score). For example, “G >= 2” means that this condition is true if you are winning by 2 or more goals. “G <= -1” is true when you are losing by a goal (NOTE THE MINUS SIGN!). “G = 0” is when the score is tied.
C Pos	Changes the player's playing position. The syntax is "C" then one of the following: GK, SW, DF, MF, WG, and FW. For example, “C FW” will reposition the player to FW for the rest of the match.
C Aggression	Changes the player's playing aggression. The syntax is "C" then one of the following: a, p, or n. For example, “C p” will change the player’s aggression to passive.
S1, S2, S3, S4, S5	Identifies which sub is to come on for the player. CASE: G > 1 S2 MF instructs the computer to bring on the 2nd listed sub and position him at Midfield.

For team tactics, L, S, P, O, B, E, C, F, and N tactical options apply.

NOTE THAT YOU MUST USE >= OR > FOR THE TIME (T) CONDITIONAL. THE OTHER THREE (=, <, <=) WILL BE IGNORED BY THE PROGRAM. Time only goes forwards remember, so don’t try and use T < as it will obviously be ignored by software.

[C 5.1] Combination Conditionals

Starting in Season 8 we have the concept of the combination conditional. Here is an example of the combination conditional: T >= 45 G >= 2 S

List the “T” or “G” conditions (in either order) with the new tactic listed last. The conditional order above will be true, only if your team is leading by two or more goals in the 2^nd half. If you are leading by 2 goals at minute 36, the tactic won’t change until halftime. Likewise if you don’t go up by 2 until minute 60, the tactic will not take effect until then.

[C 5.2] The G = 0 Conditional

With MSWL Olmec there has been a change in the G = 0 conditional. Previously, G = 0 only evaluated to true if someone has scored in the match and the game is later tied. However, that has been changed such that G = 0 is True IF the score is 0-0.

[C 6.0] Lineup Creation

Orders should be created using offline LUFC or the on-line SESL/MSWL Lineup Architect via www.sesl.net

[Part D] MATCH RESOLUTION

The match is resolved on a minute-by-minute basis (rather than in one big set of calculations as it was in Seasons 1 and 2).

[D 1.0] Discipline

Players may be booked (given a yellow card) or sent off (given a second yellow card or one red card). Bookings and dismissals occur randomly with a reasonably low probability, but this chance is raised for players playing aggressively and lowered for players playing passively.

[D 1.1] Bookings and Sendings-Off

The chance that a given player is booked (shown a yellow card) depends on the aggressiveness with which he plays:

Aggressiveness	Code	Probability per min
passive	p	0.0005 (5 in 10,000)
normal	n	0.0010 (10 in 10,000)
aggressive	a	0.0030 (30 in 10,000)

If a player is booked, the player has an additional chance of being sent off at the same time (ie. of being shown a red card). This chance is equal to half the chance the player had of being booked in that particular minute. If a player is sent off, he immediately leaves the field and gets no substitute. If a player receives a second yellow card, he is also sent off. The probability per minute of a second booking is half that of the original booking chance.

Note that GKs may now play aggressive (thereby increasing their EffectiveSL). Although this might mean the opposing team getting a PK if a GK is booked (presumably for a hard foul in the penalty area).

[D 1.2] DPs and Suspensions

Each time a player is booked, he receives four disciplinary points (DPs). Each sending-off earns an additional six DPs (for a total of 10 DPs). Every 10 DPs in a season carry suspensions with them as follows:

DPs	Number of Matches Missed
10	First match of next session
20	First two matches of next session
30	First three matches of next session
40	Next four matches (starting with the following session)

All DPs are cleared from a player's record at the end of the regular season. Suspensions become effective at the end of each session, even though a player may earn sufficient DPs to be suspended during the second or third match of the session. Check the league report for a list of suspensions (if there are any). There is no fine for attempting to play a suspended player as the computer will now select one for you.

[D 1.3] Penalty Kicks

If a team has one or more player’s playing aggressive, a penalty kick has a chance of occurring. This probability is set at .0010 or a 10 in 10,000 chance each minute for each player playing aggressive (if there are three players aggressive, there are three chances of giving up a PK). Once a penalty is determined, the opposing team's designated PK taker gets the shot if they are on the pitch. If they are not in the game, the highest ShootingSL player gets the shot. A team should give up almost NO penalty kicks if all their players are normal or passive.

[D 2.0] Injuries and EL Expenditures

Because of the hectic and exhausting schedule that SESL teams maintain, it is not possible for most players to play every match without being injured. Each player therefore has an "endurance level" or "EL". Each player gains a certain amount of EL every session, and a player must spend EL to play. The amount of EL the player spends depends on the aggressiveness with which he plays and the length of time he plays. A player who runs out of EL risks injury if he continues playing.

[D 2.1] EL Expenditures

A player must have at least zero EL to enter a match, and must "spend" EL to play in a match. The amount of EL the player spends depends on the amount of time he plays and on the aggressiveness with which he plays:

Aggressiveness	EL loss per minute	Total EL lost for 90 consecutive minutes
passive	.055	5
normal	.066	6
aggressive	.076	7

New for MSWL Olmec software and starting in SESL Season 10 is the concept of fractional EL. This will allow you to change aggressiveness at varying times and still perhaps shave off an EL.

All fractions are rounded up (whether an EL counter is 6.011 or 6.51, it rounds to 7). For instance if you try to take off a player playing passive after minute 2, his EL “counter” at that time would be .110, which rounds up to a loss of 1.

The match report lists each player's EL at the end of the game. Note that ALL players receive an EL bonus of +4 after the match (this +4 is NOT reflected in the match report, but IS seen in the followup roster as the actual +4 bonus is added just AFTER the match report is printed.)

[D 2.2] Injuries

Players are checked for random injuries. This function totals the number of aggressive players for each team and then draws a random number to determine if there is a random injury. Note that there is a small chance of random injury even if no players are aggressive.

In any match, the chance per minute for each team of having a player injured is between .0001 and .0044 (or 1-44 in 10,000). This number is at the higher end of the scale when many players are playing aggressive.

If neither team has a player playing aggressive, then the chance is .0001 per team, per minute. Each team is checked for this type of injury each minute. The player injured is randomly selected.

If a player’s EL drops BELOW 0, and they are in the match, they are then checked for an “EL Injury” due to exhaustion. A player's chance of getting an EL exhaustion injury is .0011 x (-1 x EL). So if a player's EL is -1, they will have a .0011 chance of getting an injury in that minute. However, if they remain in the match uninjured and their EL gets to -5, for example, they incur a .0055 (55 in 10,000) chance of taking on an injury.

[D 2.3] Effects of Injury

If a player is injured, he immediately leaves the match. A substitute may come into the match, as described in [D 2.4]. The injured player also loses additional EL, depending on the extent of the injury. The chance of each type of injury and the effect on the player's EL is based on one of two tables, depending on whether the injury was "random" or caused partly through exhaustion (ie. EL dropping below 0).

Random Injury

% Chance	Injury	EL Loss
01-75	Bruise	-4
76-94	Bad Sprain	-8
95-98	Muscle Pull	-12
99+	Torn Ligament	-20

Exhaustion-induced injury

% Chance	Injury	EL Loss
01-50	Sprain	-4
51-75	Concussion	-8
76-90	Bad Muscle Pull	-16
91-99	Badly Torn Ligament	-32
100	Broken Leg	-96

[D 2.4] Substitutes

In the course of a match, up to three substitutes may enter to replace players. When a player leaves the match, a substitute enters the match. The software currently requires 5 CHOICES for substitutes. If a player is ineligible to start a match due to lack of EL (probably due to injury in a previous game in the session) the program uses a substitute in his place. This is done prior to kickoff and does not count towards the 3 subs allowed. Note that subs may have conditionals, though any player conditional will ONLY be evaluated if the player is on the pitch.

[D 3.0] SL Bonuses and Penalties

For Season 8 and beyond we now have different types of SL in a match as discussed below.

[D 3.1] Types of Match Skill Level (SL)

NormSL – This is the SL a player has listed on his roster.

EffectiveSL - This is a player’s modified SL based on Out of Position (OOP) and aggression rules.

ShootingSL – This is a player’s SL when they are assigned a shot on goal. It is based on their NormSL and is adjusted based on their normal position. Shooting SL is, essentially, how accurate the shooter’s skill is no matter what position they are playing on the field. For example, a DF might be assigned a shot (though they will get fewer shots than a FW), but if that DF’s base position is UT, then they will shoot like a FW.

ShootingSL is equal to:

100% of NormSL for FW, MA, UT

90% of NormSL for MF, WG, DM

80% of NormSL for DF, SD

70% of NormSL for SW

45% of NormSL for GK (PK shootout in Cup match)

MarkingSL – MarkingSL is generally the same as EffectiveSL UNLESS a player is marking or being marked. See the marking section for more info.

[D 3.2] Marking

Marking rules are now applied. If a player is playing DF, is in the match AND the first player they want to mark is playing MF, WG, or FW, then the player is considered marking that opposition player. When this happens, the DF’s MarkingSL goes to 0, and the marked player’s MarkingSL is reduced in the following manner:

MarkingSL = MF/WG/FWs EffectiveSL - DFs Effective SL.

Note that the offensive player’s MarkingSL drops to no less than 25% of their EffectiveSL. A player can “fight marking” by playing aggressive. If that happens the offensive player’s MarkingSL drops to no less than 50% of their EffectiveSL.

Note that if the first player listed as marked does not meet the above criteria (perhaps that player is playing DF rather than the assumed MF/WG/FW) then the program will check to see if there is a 2nd player listed as marked and process that. Note that this marking check is done every minute, so various changes in the game will affect if a player is marked from minute to minute.

For a good discussion on Marking see Tim Given’s article called Marking Time at the MSWL web site www.mswl.org under MSWL White Papers.

[D 3.2.1] Purpose of Marking

In the past, all teams played a "zone" defense. In other words the DF’s make a line across the field, and each DF is responsible for defending his area from the ball being advanced into it. So a Left Back will play on the left side of the field, a Center in the middle and a Right Back on the right side. When marking, a DF sticks very close to a particular opposition player, and seeks to deny him access to the ball at all times. More of a "1 on 1" defense while the rest of the DF’s play a "zone" defense.

The benefit of marking is that the defending team can greatly reduce the chance of a star FW getting to take shots. The downside is that the overall "zone defense" is weakened somewhat, and the defender will give up more shots overall - but hopefully to worse shooters than they would have without the marking.

In order to make this "good news, bad news" effect for marking, we have tweaked a number of rules a little. This is because marking, GP DEF OFF production, shot allocation an shooting are all tied into together. We have to make marking have positives and negatives, because otherwise the game doesn’t get any better, and every team will just start marking all the time.

A DF who is marking (only DF’s can mark) will have his EffectiveSL reduced because he is not attempting to do anything else but trail an opposition player. As such he will not add anything to GP DEF or OFF production. So a DF that is marking will have a MarkingSL of zero.

A MF-FW-WG who is being marked will be denied the ball fairly often, and will suffered a reduced OFF production (and therefore shot allocation). A MF-FW-WG has a MarkingSL equal to his EffectiveSL less the EffectiveSL of the marking DF. However a player cannot be "marked down" to less than 25% of his EffectiveSL. A player can try and "break away" from being marked. If a player is playing aggressively, the player cannot be marked down to less than 50% of his EffectiveSL.

[D 3.2.2] Effect of Marking on Gameplay

When players are playing OPP or passive or aggressive, their ability to shoot and score remains constant.

When marked, players suffer a reduced shot allocation, but when they shoot they will still shoot at their normal shooting ability.

When marked, players will still produce as much DEF as they would unmarked.

When marking, a team will usually give up more shots, but have them go to worse shooters.

FW’s and GK’s will become slightly more valuable. GK’s because they will likely face more shots, and FW because they are now the most effective shooters.

"Third Shooter" becomes important to a team. Generally most teams would have enough at DF to heavily mark the best two shooters on any given team. The ability to put a "Third Shooter" on the field is an issue.

Multi-positional players become more valuable. A UT will shoot as a "FW" even from the DF position, and is unmarkable at DF.

Very high SL DF’s decline in value as they lose a fair amount of goal scoring ability. But on the other hand even poor 5/5 DF’s can play a role in marking off that last 5 SL off a 3/28 FW from SL 12 to 7, and so gain a little value. Mid range SL DF’s won’t "steal shots" if they are marking.

MF’s lose a little goal scoring ability, but may take more shots and actually score more often than before if they take the Third Shooter roles on.

Decreased offsides because FW’s will likely shoot less, and more SW’s fielded.

Maybe more use of passive play by FW’s as they "walk around" rather than "run around" when heavily marked. They would still get slightly less shots, but would also still have a ShootingSL as equal to their BaseSL.

[D 3.3] Playing Out of Position (OOP) and Aggressiveness

OOP is checked for all players. If a player is OOP, their EffectiveSL is modified from their NormSL. A player's EffectiveSL can be determined using the following chart. For example, a GK whose NormSL is 20, but are playing in the match at SW will play at Effective SL 10 or would play DF at Effective SL 6.

Roster Position	Match Position
	GK	SW	DF	MF	WG	FW
GK	100%	50%	30%	10%	0%	0%
SW	50%	100%	80%	60%	40%	40%
SD	50%	100%	100%	80%	60%	60%
DF	30%	80%	100%	80%	60%	60%
DM	30%	80%	100%	100%	80%	80%
MF	10%	60%	80%	100%	80%	80%
MA	10%	60%	80%	100%	80%	100%
WG	0%	40%	60%	80%	100%	80%
FW	0%	40%	60%	80%	80%	100%
UT	30%	80%	100%	100%	80%	100%

After OOP is processed, aggressiveness is used to modify the Effective SL. EffectiveSL is raised or lowered using the following chart:

Aggressiveness	EffectiveSL Adj
Aggressive (a)	125%
Normal (n)	100%
Passive (p)	75%

Note that for both of these, decimals at .50 or greater are rounded to the next highest whole number.

Players set to play aggressive will increase the chances of yellow and red cards.

[D 3.4] Morale Effect

Starting in Season 9, a team’s morale now contributes SL to DEF and OFF stats accordingly. The morale is multiplied by 10 and rounded down to the nearest whole number, eg. 0.72345 morale * 10 = 7.2345 rounded to 7 SL added to DEF and OFF. The morale bonus is not used to this figure. (See Morale Effect [D 3.4])

[D 3.5] MVP Bonus (weeks 1 – 15)

To encourage managers to try and do well in every match, a club is rewarded with an MVP bonus whenever it earns six points in a 2-game league session, or seven+ points in a 3-game session.

Number of MVPs	Bonus
1st	1 TP + 25k
2nd	1 TP + 25k
3rd	1 TP
4th	1 CP
5th (and up)	25k

[D 4.0] Team Ratings

[D 4.1] Area Ratings

The total effective SL of all a lineup's players in each of the six positions (GK, SW, DF, MF, WG, and FW) is called that area's rating.

[D 4.2] Lineup Balance

The effectiveness of players at any given position depends, in part, on the effectiveness of the players playing behind them. (Somebody has to give them the ball!). Therefore, the rating of the MF area may not exceed twice the rating of the DF area. If this rule is violated, then excess MF rating is lost. Similarly, the rating of a FW area may not exceed twice the rating of the MF area. Example: A lineup has a DF rating of 12, an MF rating of 30, and an FW rating of 50. This is a violation of lineup balance, and so the MF rating is reduced to 24 and the FW rating is reduced 48. Note that for this balance, the SW DOES NOT count towards the DF area.

EXCEPTION: If a club uses Early Cross (E) or Longball (L) tactics, the FW rating may not exceed the DF rating by more than a factor of two, but may exceed the MF rating by any amount.

If a team violates this rule, his area ratings are adjusted to meet the rule. Any SL lost by this rule is lost while the imbalance continues in the game. Example: If a club has 48 SLs in the FW area, 35 in the MF area and 15 in the DF area, the MF area has an effective SL of 30. The 5 extra SLs are lost. Lineup balance is applied, and must be obeyed, every minute of the game.

[D 4.3] OFF, DEF and GP Ratings

Each team is given a rating for offense (OFF), defense (DEF), and goal protection (GP). Under normal circumstances the values for each of these ratings depend on the total SL in each of the areas SW, DF, MF, WG, and FW as follows:

GP = SW + 0.5 * DF

DEF = SW + DF + 0.5 * MF + OTF

OFF = (0.25 * DF) + (0.75 * MF) + (1.25 * WG) + FW + OTF

(where "OTF" is the club's One Touch Football rating.)

However, if you choose to NOT play a sweeper, the OFF and GP are affected as follows, regardless of tactic employed:

GP *= 1.2 (ie. a 20% bonus to DF contribution to GP)

OFF -= 0.05*DF (ie. a 5% penalty to DF contribution to OFF)

If you have 4 SL10 players, here's how the figures come out:

Configuration	GP	OFF
4 DFs SL10	1.2*(0.5*40) = 24	0.2*40 = 8
1 SW SL10, 3 DFs SL10	10 +(0.5*30) = 25	0.25*30 = 7.5

[D 4.4] Team Tactics and their effects

There are team tactics that a manager can employ, which may suit the team's playing staff or be geared to a specific situation. These tactics can alter the above OFF/DEF/GP formulae, if applied by either manager. Read this section and the next very carefully! A manager may use no more than one of these tactics at any one time, and does not have to use any of them (except at least Normal)!

Brief summary of the tactics

Athol Kay has written up a short description of each tactic and has authored three new tactics. This information is found below.

Managers have the choice between playing one of nine possible overall match tactics to create GP, DEF and OFF. Each has its good and bad points. From the most defensive to the most aggressive the tactics are:

STALL - The team is hardly trying at all to score, and is simply defending the goal as much as possible. If you have no hope of winning a match, or are desperate to hold on to a 1-0 lead, Stall is often the best option. Against a better team you may get a draw, or at least not suffer a slew of goals against you. A Stall team would rather kick the ball into the stands than upfield.

OPPORTUNISTIC - The team is still defensive, but tries to make a few counterattacks to score. This may seem like a weaker version of the Stall tactic, but in fact against some of the more aggressive tactics and teams Opportunistic may have just enough of a bite to overall improve the defense against them. Opportunistic is the one tactic where having a very high SL SW is worth the investment as even the SW’s get to create some OFF.

COUNTER ATTACK - This is a modified Opportunistic Tactic, but instead of hoping to see if offense kind of just develops, Counter teams actively seek to rush en mass upfield while the other team is still in the "wrong half" of the field as soon as they get the ball. Against a defensive minded team Counter teams will find little chances to actively counter attack and flounder, but against unbalanced aggression counter teams thrive. Counter Attacking will shred a "bad" Press team.

NORMAL - A balanced approach with an even attack and defense. If you have no special plan, Normal is usually a okay option. There are no real weaknesses to Normal, and likewise no real advantages. "Simple" soccer is sometimes the best plan of all.

LONGBALL - Slightly more aggressive than Normal but not much. A good tactic if you have a weak midfield and a few solid FW’s on your team. Suffers a little against teams with SW’s, but usually has a good shots taken to goals scored ratio with good FW’s. If you plan to play Longball often, investing in OTF is a waste of time. Use that extra CP to create 1-2 really standout FW’s, or shore up the DF line.

EARLY CROSS - This is a modified Longball Tactic. Like Longball Early Cross ignores the MF area for 2:1 rules, but instead of firing balls upfield "up the middle" it fires balls upfield "out wide" with the aim of quickly spreading defenses, and constantly making quick crosses into the box for volleys and headers. This requires a pair of standout WG’s to make work, and can produce awesome OFF production, but is weakened more than any other tactic by marking. Also could do with a good FW in the middle to collect crosses and score.

FINESSE - This tactic is not so much aggressive as it is arrogant. Based on a Normal Tactic Finesse teams try and "out skill" the opposition based both on individual flair and retaining possession through higher OTF. Think of the Brazil national team toying with New Zealand in the 1982 World Cup. New Zealand barely touched the ball, and the mighty Zico spent half the game trying to score from a backheel. (Brazil won 4-0 by the way) Finesse teams will attempt to play the ball out of their own penalty area rather than clear the ball. IF the Finesse team does in reality have a good advantage in SL and OTF then they can easily control the game at both ends of the field, and reduce the opposition to rubble. If SL and OTF is EQUAL or less than the opposition team, then all that fancy footwork can go awfully sour.

BALL CONTROL - An op