The Fantasy Football Organisation uses a football simulator called ESMS +. At first it takes time to get use to the way it works but we can explain so everyone can join this league. Where as ESMS experience is preferred we will try and give everyone a chance to be part of the league.

If you would like to join the FFO please email us on [email protected] and let us know the following details.

Name:

Date of Birth & Age:

Where your from:

Club you Support:

Your Favourite Players:

Job Applying For: (Please apply for 3 jobs and list them in rank order with 1 being your most desired choice.)

ESMS Experience?: Let us know what you know about ESMS

Teamsheet Example: Just to prove that you know what to do in the league and how the simulator works please send in an example of a teamsheet. This will be assessed.

The site is not too fussy on employment we just need reliable, consistent managers who will take part on the site. Please make sure you read all the rules and check the jobs page before applying.

If you need help on the teamsheet example all information on how the simulator works can be found below, enjoy reading it.

 

How the Simulator Works

ESMS provides a 90 minute commentary of two teams going head to head. Thats a basic definition but if you look further into the ESMS simulator it is a work of art and so many things can affect the outcome of the score by full time. At a beginners level the best thing to do is to get the players with the highest stats, at an advanced level its about being a mastermind with numbers and knowing how to get the best out of your players.

This is the esential guide to explain all the wonderful things you can pick to make your players play in a certain style that no one can beat.I have been playing on the ESMS Simulator's for over 2 years now and I will be sharing some of my tips. FFO is using the new ESMS Plus simulator, I will be explaining all the tactics that can be used including new ESMS Plus Tactics. To find a new tactic there will be a NEW ESMS + TACTIC banner next to it.

Rosters

The first thing I will explain is all the columns on your roster. ESMS Plus has a few new columns and they will be outlined.

Name - Im sure you will understand this

Age - Age doesnt affect the players performance on the simulator its just to show how close the player is to retirement.

Nat - Nationality, there is a three letter summary of the players nation, eg. ENG is England.

St - The first statistic. St is for Goalkeeping, I dont know why its ST? Maybe it stands for Shot Stopping but this is the stat you look for with a goalkeeper. Stats ranges from 6-12 for goalkeepers.

Tk - Tackling, what you look for when you need a good defender, 1 - 12 stats range from.

Ps - Passing, Midfielders statistic 1 - 12 stats range again

Sh - Shooting - how good the player is for finishing meant for strikers but if you can get midfielders with good shooting stats they will also score a handful in the season.

Ag - Agression - Defines how agressive a player is. This is a good and bad thing. If a player is more agressive then the player he is facing they will be more up for 50-50 challenges and will want to win more. However, the downfall is the player is more likely to lsoe his temper and has more chance of getting booked or sent off. Agression ranges from 1 - 50.

Ability Points - The next four columns are a players ability points in a selected field. Players gain and lose ability points for things they do in a match. Once 1000 points are achieved in a particular stat 1 point is added. Eg, A player gets 1000 Passing Ability Points his Passing stat rises from 7 to 8. Once ability points hit 0 a player loses a stat. Eg. A midfielder gets 0 passing ability points and his passing stat goes down from 8 to 7.

KAb - Stands for the Keeping Ability Points.

TAb - Tackling Ability Points

PAb - Passing Ability Points

SAb - Shooting Ability Points

Games - Amount of games the player has appeared in

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Sub - Amount of the games the player has played he has come on as a substitute.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Mom - Amount of Man of the Match Awards the player has got this season.

Sav - Amount of saves the player has made when playing as a goalkeeper

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Con - Amount of goals the goalkeeper has conceded

Ktk - The amount of vital tackles the player has made in all the games he has played.

Kps - The amount of key passes leading to a scoring chance the player has made in all the games he has played

Sht - The amount of shots the player has had in all the games he has played

Gls - The amount of goals the player has scored in all the games he has played

Ass - The amount of assists (goals set up) the player has made in all the games he has played

DP - Amount of Disaplinary points the player has got in all the games he has played. Yellow card gets 1 point a Red Card gets 10 points, for every 5 points the player gets the player will be suspended for a game. Therefore if a player gets a Red Card an immediate 2 match suspension will have to be carried out.

Inj - The number stands for how many games the player will miss due to injury. So if a player has a 6 in this column he can not play for the next 6 matches. The simulator decreases the number automatically when a game is played.

Sus - The number stands for how many games the player is not allowed to play in due to Disaplinary Suspension. So if a player has a 2 in this column they are not allowed to play for the next 2 games and another player will have to be chosen. The simulator automatically decreases this number once the game is played.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Fit - This is a new unique idea introduced to the ESMS + Simulator. Each player has a fitness percentage. Once a player plays there fatige decreases as they get tired. Eg. So if a game plays 90 miuntes and is shattered he loses say 49% of his full fitness. So the player began on 100% fitness and lost 49% in the match. Leaving 51% fitness, the player autmoatically regains 25% ready for his next game so the players fitness for the next match is 76%. Therefore as his fitness is 76% he will perform to 76% of his best abilities. At the end of every game once the stats are updated every player in your roster gets a 25% fitness increase, a players fitness will never go over 100% as there is no such thing! If you have ever played Championship Manager it is very similar to the system they use on that.

Teams Style

Now the rosters have been explained you have a rought idea of what to look for when picking your starting 11. When you have to pick your team you need to choose what style your team plays. The styles you can pick from are as follows. Each style has its own code initial that can be found in brackets next to the name of the style.

Normal (N) - Highly recommended for beginners. The players will go onto the pitch and do what they aim to do. Defenders will defend, Midfielders will create and Strikers will score. Your team wont play very exciting football and may struggle if a side attacks it but it will be explained a little bit later on why this is the easiest tactic to use.

Attacking (A) - Players will go looking for goals at the cost of your defense, you may find your defense pushing forward leaving a bigger chance of the opposition scoring but there is also a big chance you can score, I only recommend playing this tactic if you think you have a better team then your opposition.

Defensive (D) - Your team will play deep and do their best to make sure the opposition doesnt score. This means there is less chances for your strikers but if you have a set of good strikers there is always a chance of grabbing a goal. This tactic is recommended if you are playing a team that is better then you, or you are playing a team of a similar standard in an away match.

Long Ball (L) - Your team will bypass the midfield literaly, long passes played up to the frontmen in hope of getting a goal. Recommended if you have poor midfielders and good strikers. Your strikers will need to be aggressive to get to the high passes. Famous for being Wimbledon's tactic even though they havent used it for years. If you want an example of a team that uses this tactic thesedays I would say my team Sunderland use it. It was effective when we had Niall Quinn upfront but with Flo upfront Sunderland have slumped. Thats why you need to make sure you have the right strikers for the job. I suggest a striker with at least 30+ aggression upfront.

Counter Attack (C) - Your team will play deep and once your opposition moves forward if your team gains possesion they will move for a quick attack. None of your players will be caught out of position and this is the style I personally use when managing a team. An example of a team that use quick counter attacks would be Arsenal, they have scored plenty of goals this season where they have ran from one end of the pitch to the other and scored in 10 seconds while the opposition where on the back foot.

Passing (P) - Pretty simple really, your side will try there best to pass there way up the pitch. Not many players will go on individual runs and not many long shots will be made your side will basically try to pass the ball up the pitch all the way to the area then shoot. You will need a very good midfield to get the most out of this tactic.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = European (E) - This is a new tactic made for the simulator. I dont know how to really define a European style it is pretty hard to explain. But the whole point of tactics is how the numbers get multiplied as you will see if you read the next chapter. This is a tactic that benefits your midfield players.

Now each style has had a brief summary I will go into an advanced summary of how to work out which tactic to choose for your team. Now the simulator is run numbers this is how it is worked out through mathematics. So unless you can work it out in your head I suggest you get a calculator.

Basically for each style they multiply the tackling, passing and shooting stat of each player in each position with a number. So here is the chart: Numbers Chart

Now each number on this chart is what you multiply your players stat by. So for example you are playing Attacking style and you have a striker with 10 shooting stat. The chosen style has the shooting stat for forwards multiplied by 1.5. Meaning that the striker will be performing at a standard of 15 shooting stat under this style. Under Attacking style a defenders tackling stat is multiplied by 0.95, so a defender with a 10 tackling stat now performs at a standard of 9.5 tackling ability. So try out each style and see how your players stats will change and decide which style you want to use for your club.

There is also some styles that benefit if played against other styles the added bonuses can be found here: Bonuses

The +0.25 means points this doesnt mean multiply it again by 0.25. So if after you have multiplied a players stat it makes 10.5 well if the bonus counts and 0.25 is added the players stat will now be 10.75.

I know this is complicated and you dont need to take this advice but if you learn it your team can perform a lot better.

Positions

Here are the following positions your players can play. The positions on your teamsheet tell the simulator how many players of each position you have and by this the simulator works out the sides formation.

GK - Goalkeeper. You know the one that stands inbetween the posts and can use his hands. You can only have 1 Goalkeeper on the pitch at any time.

DF - Defender, put on the pitch to be solid and stop strikers from scoring you can have between 3 and 6 defenders on the pitch at any time.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = DM - Defensive Midfielder. A player in this position will sit ahead of the defense and just behind the midfielder. Good for cleaning up things. You can have a maximum of 3 Defensive Midfielders on the pitch at any time. I suggest playing a midfielder with a good tackling ability as well as being good at passing

MF - Midfielders are on the pitch to create chances to score, a maximum of 5 midfielders can be played.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = AM - Attacking Midfielders. A player in this position will sit behind the strikers providing good passes and in most cases going for goal. A maximum of 3 attacking midfielders are available. You will need midfielders with a good shooting stat to play here.

FW - Forwards, there to score the goals. If a forward has a good passing stat they will also be a supplier as well as a goalscorer.

Tactic Commands

This is were you can really change the outcome of your game if things are going right. Tactic commands provide the chance to make substitutions, change a players position throughout the match, choose how aggresively your club will play and also change your style of play in the game.

Substitutions - You can either choose to make a substitution at a certain time of the match, when the score of the game changes or if a player is under performing or maybe if not enough chances are being made or shots being taken. ESMS + has provided a lot more facilities for substitutions and each command will be explainied.

The main structure of a substitue is:

Eg. SUB 10 16 FW IF (Command)

SUB - Stands for substitute

10 - The number of the player coming off

16 - The number of the player coming on

FW - Position you want the substitute to play

(Command) - Explained later

The players number is decided depending on where they are on the list. So the 10th player down in the starting 11 will be substitued by the 16th player down from the full list.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Substitute an underperformer: SUB MF 14 MF IF (command)

This chosen command means that the midfielder that has had the least impact (least tackles, passes, assists, shots etc.) will be substitued off in the 45th min.

Commands (bits that go in the (command bit) of the code

Substitute a player at a certain time: SUB 10 16 FW IF MIN = 60

This chosen command means the substitute will come on in the 60th minute of the match

Substitute a player with a certain scoreline: SUB 10 16 FW IF SCORE = 1

This chosen command means the substitute will come on oncve your team is 1 goal ahead. -1 would mean if your team went 1 goal behind.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Substitute a player when someone gets booked: SUB 10 16 FW YELLOW FW

This chosen command means that if any forward gets booked they will be substituted to stop them getting a further booking.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Substitute a injured player: SUB DM 14 MF IF INJURED

This chosen command allows you to choose which substitute you would like to come on if a player gets injured. The simulator usually puts a player on automatically but if you want a particular player for a certain role this is what you need to use. The command stands for that once a Defensive Midfielder is injured the 5th substitute (number 16) will come on for the injured Defensive Midfielder and play in Midfield. This will only work if a player of the chosen position to come off gets injured in the game otherwise the substitute will remain on the bench until needed.

You can use several commands to bring on the same substitute a maximum of three subs can come on in a game.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Combined Commands: SUB 10 16 FW IF MIN = 60 SCORE = -1

This command means that the substitute will come on in the 60th minute only if your side is losing by a goal at the time. If you put SCORE = >-1 The player will come on if your club is behind by 1 goal or more at this time. In the old simulator BOTH would be placed in the command however this has been REMOVED in this simulator and wont work!

Team Agression

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = AGG 15

The Agression command is a new tactic where you can pick the agression of how your side would play. A good time to use this is if you are playing a team with better stats then yours. If your players play more aggressively they will scare the opposition. The downfall of playing aggressively is you raise the cahnces of red cards for your players. Aggression can be defined between 1 - 20. 1 will mean your team will walk about like a bunch of pansies, 20 means they will go on the pitch like Mike Tyson and there may be a few cards heading there way. But if you can scare the opposition you may stop them from scoring. 10 is the default nuber set for teams aggression and if you choose not to use this command 10 will be your set number.

Changing your Style

You may have the urge to change the style of the way your team play in different situations. You may wish to go defensive when your team takes the lead, or if one of your players get sent off you may want to shuffle the side around. Please refer to the above information about Styles to understand which styles can be picked

Change Style at a certain minute: TACTIC A IF MIN = 30

This command means your team will change to attacking in the 30th minute.

Change Style after a certain Scoreline: TACTIC A IF SCORE = >-1

This command means your team will change to an attacking style if your team goes behind by anymore then 1 goal. TACTIC C IF SCORE = 0, This would change your teams style when there is an equaliser

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Change Style after a player gets sent off: TACTIC D IF RED FW

This command means that if one of your forwards get sent off your team will change to a defensive style.

NEW ESMS + TACTIC = Change Style if there hasnt been enough Shots: TACTIC A IF SHOTS = -8

This command means that your teams style will change to attacking if the team your playing has had 8 more shots then you.

Teamsheets

You need to play 11 players and have 5 substitutes. There is no limit to the amount of tactic commands you play and a teamsheet usually looks like:

wim (these three letters is to tell the simulator which club is playing.)
C (the tactic you want your team to play)

GK P_Schmeichel
DF J_Charlton
DF S_Pearce
DF M_Sammer
DF S_Bruce
MF G_Best
MF P_Gascoigne
MF R_Baggio
FW M_Van_Basten
FW Maradonna
FW Pele

GK D_Seaman
DF P_Maldini
MF C_Valderama
MF M_Platini
FW G_Linekar

PK: Pele (the penalty kick taker)

AGG 18
SUB 8 15 MF IF SCORE = 3
SUB 8 15 MF IF MIN = 75
TACTIC D IF SCORE = 1
TACTIC C IF SCORE = -1
SUB MF 14 MF IF MIN = 70
SUB DF 13 DF IF SCORE = -2

The teamsheet must be perfect or else it will not work. If you make a mistake we will fix it and inform you what you did wrong so you can correct it in the future.

So thats it the esential guide to the ESMS + Tactics, I hope this has been useful to you and if you use it wisely your team could be turned into a championship winning side. Their is no limit to the amount of commands you use and if you can work out a good style of play for every situation your team can be unbeatable. So good luck.

Written by Chris Waters

The Official ESMS + Website Stats Help

This might be an easier explanation of the new Tactics.

AGG command- this is the team aggression command. It can be between 1 and 20, The default and average is 10, so if the user doesn't use the command they will have 10.

It is used as follows:
AGG 15

1 is the lowest setting, 20 the highest, 10 the average. 10 will see the aggression as the same as in the old ESMS engine.

The SUB command has been expanded now so you can bring off the worst performer in a certain position. If its not used in conjunction with the INJURED command then you will see the worst performer, or if the worst performers are equal the lower skilled of the two come off.
Usage: SUB <pos off> <number on> <new player pos> followed by the condition for it to be executed.

Example:
SUB MF 14 MF IF MIN = 66

SHOTS- the SHOTS command is used the same way as the SCORE command with the difference between the teams shots being used.
Usage: SHOTS <sign> <number>

Example:
TACTIC A IF SHOTS <= -8

INJURED command. This is used so the manager can choose what happens if a player in a particular position gets injured.
Usage: INJURED <pos>
If used in a SUB command then it can be used like: SUB <pos> <number on> <new pos> INJURED

Examples:
SUB DM 16 MF IF INJURED
TACTIC C IF INJURED FW

*NOTE*
SUB DM 16 MF IF INJURED MF
The command will only work when a MF is injured...

RED card command. This is used so the manager can choose what happens if a player in a particular position gets sent off.
Usage: RED <position>
Example:
TACTIC D IF RED FW

YELLOW card command. This is used so the manager can choose what happens if a player in a particular position gets booked.
Usage: YELLOW <position>
Example:
SUB 11 15 MF IF YELLOW FW

Complex orders
All of the conditions can be combined, and this is ok as long as each part of the order is correct. The IF command must be used after the instruction no matter how many orders are used.

Examples:
TACTIC A IF MIN => 65 SCORE =< 1 SHOTS =< -9 RED FW YELLOW MF INJURED DF
TACTIC C IF MIN => 45 SCORE => 2 SHOTS => 2

The hardest part is the SUB combining with the INJURED. The rest follow a very simple logic:
<command> IF <condition1> <condition2> <condition3>
for as many conditions as you wish