CHAMPIONDHIP MANAGER 2:
FREE TRANSFERS GUIDE.

BY MILLERS C.

CONTENTS:
1:INTRODUCTION
2:PLAYING THE FREE TRANSFER MARKET
3:TEAM LISTINGS
4:DISCLAIMER
5:SPECIAL THANKS

UPDATE HISTORY:
VERSION 1.0: The First Version ever. 15/9/2001. 

VERSION 1.1: Added Team Listings and recommendations plus non-league 
teams. A few bits have been polished up.

FINAL VERSION: Just one final version of this FAQ to draw a line under it
and update a few bits and pieces.



1:INTRODUCTION: 
This FAQ Is for Championship manager 2, 96/97 editions. You'll have the 
right one if Hereford and Doncaster are in Division 3. Now why write 
this FAQ? The free transfer market is superb and easy to use. When 
you're the manager of a decent small club, getting value for money is 
all that matters.


2:PLAYING THE FREE TRANSFER MARKET:

Where do you start? You may well ask that, but first you will need to 
pick a team. If you want the free transfer market to pay off best on 
your team, manage a small division 3 club. Lets take Exeter City.
As Exeter City manager, you will only have about £800 a week to offer 
New players, and if this is the case, go for the older. The older the 
better here!

Some players may retire Before Their contract is through. Don't worry 
because they are giving you invaluable experience and dedication for 
one season. But which players to get? Organize a friendly match. Go To 
Fixtures and results option and choose full season calendar. Now go to 
HOME and arrange a match with anyone. Try a Small club Like Chester and 
see how good your players are. If players come back with 4's and 5's, 
you'll need urgent help in those departments.

How to sign them?
Go to player search and transfers. Go to transfers and use the side 
buttons to toggle the parameters.

Young Players:
TIP: If you are a good team, and I mean good like Sheffield Wednesday, 
Get DEAN CLARKE! He is the best free player out there so snap him up 
quickly!
If you're a small club, search for recommended by LEAGUE SCOUT 1 and 
the search will come up with all the best players. Try and see.
You will then approach to sign him.
This happens.
1:The player will decide if he is interested.
2a:He will decline your offer.
2b:He will accept your offer.
3:Agrees to discuss terms.
When you get to stage three, see how much he wants. If it is more than 
you can afford, you can get away with lowering his price a bit. About 
20-100 pounds is best.
4:Agrees To join. SELECT YES.
And now you've signed a player.


Old Players:
It is very rare for young players to join small clubs so go for the 
older players. There are some superb old players, which most team can 
buy. Snap them up ASAP.
Tony Gale, Defense
Mike Hooper, Goalkeeper
Robert Rosario, Attack
Clive Allen, Attack
Graeme Tomlinson, Attack (Highly Recommended)
Joe Gallen, Attacking Midfielder (Highly recommended)
Mark Ward, Midfield (Ex Wales and Everton star).
There may be more. These players will all be there in your first 
season, so if you can't find them, do a search.

The highly recommended:
If you wish, you can simply go on without signing a single player, 
teams such as Wigan have an excellent team, and others have small 
squads that need experience.
You can, do a search for highly recommended ETC, and usually they are 
right. But they normally don't focus on the really good players.
ADVANCE WARNING:
The players I recommended have paid off when I signed them. Some always 
do well; others can be pretty bad.
All right, Graeme Tomlinson is an ex Manchester United Youth player and 
you should find him on the Transfer list to start with. If you are a 
small club get him! Especially if you have a very small squad. He is 
young and will probably pay off. Try It!

I signed Joe Gallen for Shrewsbury Town (who incidentally were the club 
that released him), and he was an instant revelation (David Walton is a 
great Shrewsbury Player, too!) and after a few seasons, his average 
ratings were well in the 7.40's (Excellent) and his value got to 3.2 
million. He may pay off, he may not but play him in his right position 
(4-4-2 Attacking, with him playing left attacking midfield) and he may 
well be a good asset.

NEXT SEASON:
The next season, more players will become released.
Leicester City releases a lot of players who do well in lower leagues.
Look Out for these players:
Simon Grayson (Leicester)
Jimmy Willis (Leicester)
Colin Hill  (Ex Northern Ireland/Leicester)
Kevin Poole (Leicester)
Tony Cascarino  (Ex Eire and Marseille)
Tony Cottee (Ex England and west Ham)
Juergan Sommer (Ex USA and Luton/QPR)
Gudni Bergsson (Iceland and Bolton Wanderers)
Ian Marshall (Ex Leicester and Ipswich Town)
Laurens Ten Heuvel (Dutch, Barnsley)
Gerry Creaney  (Ex Scotland and Manchester City)
Tommy Coyne  (Eire and Celtic)
Owen Coyle (Scotland and Dundee United)

PUTTING THEM IN THEIR POSITIONS: 
Don't play them all at once I recommend buying about 4 free transfers. 
Too many old players upset the balance. Make sure they are in their 
right positions, and go for it.


LOANING PLAYERS: 
Loaning Players Is Good. You will always loan a player from a top class 
club and usually get them, even if you are Exeter City (My apologies to 
any supporters!).

A LIST OF DECENT PLAYERS: 
PAUL ARNISON (Celtic) 
MICHAEL BALL (Everton) 
STUART GRAY (Celtic) 
PAUL DALGLISH (Liverpool) 
STEVEN CARR (Spurs)
JAMIE SCOWCROFT (Ipswich Town) 
ANDREW COUZENS (Leeds United) 
NICKY SOUTHALL (Grimsby Town) 
PAUL MCKNIGHT (Celtic) 
MARK NICHOLLS (Chelsea) 
JOHNATHAN HUNT (Birmingham City)
VANCE WARNER (Nottingham Forest) 
FRANK SINCLAIR (Chelsea) 
CHRIS CASPER (Manchester United) 
LEE BRADBURY (Celtic)
They will be good for a season or so, and there is always the option to 
buy them at the end of the season, should they do a good job.


FREEING PLAYERS:
At the end of some seasons, some players will be out of contract.

BOSMAN RULING: 
This is the rule that if a player is out of contract and decides to 
leave he will, on a free transfer. This will happen to Unhappy players 
or players Transfer listed at their own request. Beware, as this will 
happen to players who want to move to a bigger club. Secure them on a 
long-term contract ASAP.

OUT OF CONTRACT PLAYERS:
Do a search for out of contract players. Search for SORT BY AVERAGE 
RATING and try and buy the best player it will cost you nothing. 
BEWARE, Don't try and signs Steve Mcmanaman as Exeter, Go for someone 
like David Lowe or Scott Eustace.


OUTGOING OUT OF CONTRACT PLAYERS: 
When players are out of contract, Use the sort by Contract on Your Club 
page. Use the ones with OUT OF CONTRACT Written on them and see their 
performance. If one player has 4.72 as an average rating, go to manager 
Options and choose release on free transfer. You won't pay 
compensation. If there is a player with 7.47, Re signs him quickly.


FUN WITH OLD PLAYERS:
Just before the new season starts, it will go to a screen that prompts 
you to save the game. Press the asterisk button and you will return to 
DOS Mode. Get a really old player and offer him a new contract. Geraint 
Williams and Clive Allen work best. Players that normally retire will 
be about 36 and upwards. Bruce Grobelaar and Geraint Williams and Ronny 
Rosenthal (Spurs and Israel) and Cyril Regis (Chester City). Their 
respective clubs towards, the end of the season will normally release 
them. Keep a look out. Now continue. You wont re sign an old player; 
you will sign their replacement when they retire! Have Fun!

CHEATS:
You can cheat if you want. I don't recommend it, but If you press the 
Asterisk you can quit to DOS mode and Restart.

3:TEAM LISTINGS
This will be a list of all division 3 clubs and an outline of their 
squad size and whether they need experience. These clubs need the most 
value for money, so a Division 3 manager will need to know which clubs 
are the best and which need the frees. I will also compile a list of 
all the Non-League teams in the game and their likelihood of being 
promoted. Non-League teams need free transfer experience more than 
Division 3 teams as they have a tight budget and No players to begin 
with! So lets start.

IRL means their current status 'In real life'. Just so you know if you 
don't follow Soccer that closely.

ASPIRATIONS means how your club normally does, how they normally 
perform in the game, so you know just how Good/poor your team is. NOW 
lets start.

Hereford United
Star Players: Ian Foster, Dean Smith, and Chris Hargreaves.
There is a small Squad here, so if you fancy taking this team to the 
premiership, you better find decent players! Go for some youth player 
But there is no real source of goals in this team, so find a decent 
goals corer like Robert Rosario, he's on the transfer list.
Aspirations: Has been known to get to Division 2, but usually 
languishes in Division 3.
IRL: Were the first team to be relegated to the football conference 
since Halifax Town, back in 1993.

Wigan Athletic
Star Players: Graeme Jones, Jesus Seba, Roberto Martinez, Isidro Diaz, 
and David Lowe.
A very big squad size in this team means no free transfer activity is 
necessary. There is A LOT of quality here. Try to keep hold of the 
Spaniards for a while, get them on long-term contracts. The best team 
in the league.
Aspirations: Gets to Division 2 normally and even Division 1.
IRL: Comfortable in Division 1.

Leyton Orient
Star Players: Sam Ayorinde
Medium squad size. There is a lot of Quality and experience In Sealey 
(RIP), Garland, Inglethorpe, Ling and Martin. Get in a decent Goalie as 
Sealey retires soon.
Aspirations: Usually gets to Division Two.
IRL: In Division 3. Promotion chasers, though.

Hartlepool
Star Players: Ian Gallagher and Joe Allon.
Another Medium-Ish squad size, But with enough quality to survive. Get 
someone to partner Allon, as he is your source of goals. Midfield needs 
a little work.
Aspirations: Likes to get to Division 2, but sometimes struggles.
IRL: Promotion chasing Division 3.

Fulham
Star Players: Robert Herrera, Mike Conroy.
Squad Size IS Big, with not much quality. Release some of the useless 
over 32's and bring in fresh talent.
Aspirations: Surprisingly struggles. Relegation is a real threat.
IRL: Premiership.

Cambridge United
Star Players: Jody Craddock, Tony Richards and Micah Hyde.
A big squad size, and promotion is usually expected. There is enough 
quality to do well, you just need the balance. Loaning is a good 
option.
Aspirations: Promotion to Division 2 and even Division 1.
IRL: Division 2, Comfortable.

Exeter City
(My apologies to supporters of this club, I've used them as an example 
many times!)
Star Players: Nicky Medlin
Small, not much cover and virtually no source of goals. Get a striker 
and cover in immediately as they are a very hard team to master.
Aspirations: Surprisingly gets to Division 2 quite often.
IRL: Struggling in Division 3.

Hull City
Star Players: Roy Carroll, Ian Wright
A big Squad (so you've got cover) but filled with no hopers. No source 
of goals again. Be careful, as they are one of the worst teams in 
Division 3.
Aspirations: Have been relegated before and sometimes come back.
IRL: Promotion chasers in Division 3.

Colchester United
Star Players: David Gregory and Rob Reinelt.
A medium Squad and it is filled with quality players. Steve Whitton may 
be old, but he will score. Play him often. Get some loan players.
Aspirations: Stays in Division 3, but sometimes goes down. Shame, 
really.
IRL: Comfortable in Division 2.

Darlington
Star Players: Paul Olsen
A small squad, that needs urgent improvement if you want to survive in 
division 3. Get a decent Free Striker/Loan player immediately. Another 
hard team to master.
Aspirations: Usually struggles and has been relegated a few times. BE 
CAREFUL!
IRL: Division 3.

Northampton Town
Star Players: Andy Woodman, Ray Warburton.
Again a small squad, with not much quality. A striker is needed 
urgently and so is a Midfielder who can run the show. Mark Ward or 
Geraint Williams perhaps?
Aspirations: Got to Division 1 once.
IRL: Got to Division 1 I think and got relegated back to Division 2. 
Comfortable. 

Lincoln City
Star Players: Shane Westley and Gerald Dobbs.
A Big squad with not much quality (Repetitive Stress disorder). Get a 
decent Goalie and defence.
Aspirations: Usually stays in Division 3.
IRL: In division 3.

Chester City
Star Players: Andy Milner and Julian Alsford.
Medium Squad size. Like Lincoln City not much quality. A decent striker 
is needed, Cyrille Regis retires soon. Loaning is a possibility.
Aspirations: Stays in Division 3, Comfortably.
IRL: Relegated to the Football conference.

Barnet
Star Players: David McDonald, Alan Pardew and Sean Devine.
A Very small squad, however, you have 3 good players here. Devine is a 
Goal machine and Pardew the marshal in midfield. I think that 
Goalkeeping needs a bit of work so loan someone in. Cover is required 
and a partner for Devine. What happens if he is injured?
Aspirations: Usually stays in Division 3. Hold on to Sean Devine.
IRL: Relegated to Football conference.

Doncaster Rovers
Star Players: David Byng, Kerry Dixon.
Yet again, a small squad, however it seems to do them some good. Always 
Play Kerry Dixon (He's an ex Luton, Chelsea and England Man) Up front 
and you may want to consider getting a young loan player to partner 
him. Kim Grant of Luton Is sometimes available, or you may want to go 
for a Youngster. You could do a search, also.
Aspirations: They Surprisingly do excellent, and fit comfortably into 
Division 1.
IRL: Fell out of the League trap-door, and are currently looking for a 
way back in.

Scarborough
Star Players: Stuart Hicks, Jonathan Sunderland and Andy Ritchie
Like Darlington, a small squad, but there are some quality to play 
with. Ironside is not an Ideal keeper, so go for someone younger ASAP; 
he leaks goals left right and center. Ritchie (Ex Oldham) is a decent 
goalscorer, but he retires soon. Raid the Free transfer list at the 
season end and remember to renew the contracts of your star players! 
Cover will be needed as well.
Aspirations: Got to Division 2 once, but normally stay in Division 3.
IRL: The Plug hole sucked them down as well (Football Conference).

Torquay United
Star Players: John Gittens, Rodney Jack, Paul Mitchell.
Uh, Small squad again, and there is quality here! Get some Cover in and 
a Striker to partner Jack. Rodney Jack Is a Goal Machine, hang on to 
him for as long as possible and play him as often as you can. Hook him 
up on a Long-term contract at the start of the season. John Gittens 
will last for 2 seasons normally and is the marshal in defence. Wilmot 
is a decent goalie, and overall you've got a decent team here. Cover is 
also needed.
Aspirations: Stays in Division 3, sometimes in Division 2.
IRL: Picture this: Last day of season. Barnet need a win to survive. 
Torquay need a Point or win. What's the final fixture? Barnet v 
Torquay! Luckily For Torquay, they won.

Scunthorpe
Star Players: John Eyre, Phil Clarkson.
Medium squad here, and the goalie needs a bit of work also, but an 
overall good team. John Eyre Is a Rich source of goals usually, but 
underperforms, often. Not much to shout about this club, really, no 
real Match winners. Free transfer list perhaps? You really need someone 
to rule the midfield. Mark Ward would click nicely.
Aspirations: Stays In Division 3.
IRL: Still in Division 3.

Cardiff City
Star Players: Lee Jarman, Steve Flack.
Simply put, Lee Jarman Is brilliant. He will be a regular in the welsh 
team soon, and average ratings will be over 7.30. Secure his future 
with a long term contract. One of the best in this division. A Medium 
sized squad allows for a little depth, but you need someone who can 
score on a regular basis. Read some other listings for ides. You never 
know, they may be Available.
Aspirations: Goes up usually.
IRL: look likely to be the new Fulham/Crazy gang, with Sam Hamman in 
charge. Watch them.

Carlisle United
Star Players: Stephane Pounewatchy, Andy Caig and David Reeves.
A medium squad, with a lot of quality, certainly to survive and even to 
go up. Caig is a good Goalkeeper and Reeves Scores Over 20 every 
season. He is quite old, which works to your advantage as no one wants 
to buy him! Superb, you've got a Goal machine for a few seasons!
Pounewatchy is a Frenchman and seems to Bring flair to Brunton Park. 
Watch the clubs try to snatch him off you at the end of the season.
Aspirations: To get promoted.
IRL: Narrowly missed Relegation. In Division 3 still.

Brighton
Star Players: Kevin Mcgarigle.
A medium squad. Maskell is your source of goals, so think of a suitable 
partner with experience. Rust is a decent goalie as well.
Aspirations: To get Promoted.
IRL: Top of Division 2 as I write this!

Rochdale
Star Players: Keith Hill and Mark Stuart.
A big team here but barely any decent players. Get a Defender, Striker 
and loan players. This is a hard team to work with.
Aspirations: Usually stays up.
IRL: Division 3. They seem consigned to it.

Mansfield Town
Star Players: Simon Ireland and Scott Eustace.
A small Team but with good quality. Mark Sale and Ex Leicester City 
man, Eustace should be your attackers and Ireland is also great. 
Goalkeepers need work.
Aspirations: Gets to Division 2 usually.
IRL: In Division 3. Looking for a way out.

Swansea City
Star Players: Steve Torpey and Jan Molby.
Houston, we have a problem. If you become manager, current player 
manager Molby goes. Re sign him ASAP! He will do great. There is a 
Medium squad on offer, but with little Depth up front. Buy an attacker 
to partner Torpey.
Aspirations: Gets into Division 2 and even Division 1 once, amazingly.
IRL: In Division 3 and are struggling at the moment.


And that brings us to the end of the Division 3 club-by-club synopsis. 
This should help you pick which teams are good, which are bad and which 
needs work. Lets hope you survive and get promoted!


Non-league Teams:
Following is a list of all the Non league teams that are in the game. 
Some will be promoted to the league, and the others will just go into 
the FA Cup. I hope it is possible for all teams to be promoted, so in 
my experience, some teams have a certain Possibility of being promoted, 
and I have tried to put that here. Newly promoted teams are the teams 
that need the most Free Transfer activity, so here is the list of all 
possible (Known to me) teams.

The Numbers Next to the teams refers to their Likelihood of being 
promoted.

Kidderminster Harriers 5/5
Macclesfield Town 5/5
Halifax Town 4/5
Altrincham 4/5
Colwyn Bay 3/5
Bishop Auckland 3/5
Runcorn 4/5
Woking 4/5
Bath City 3/5
Gateshead 1/5
Stalybridge Celtic 1/5
Slough Town 2/5
Sutton United 1/5
Cheltenham Town 2/5
Bromsgrove Rovers 1/5
Chelmsford 1/5
Dover Athletic 1/5
Farnborough 2/5
Kettering Town 1/5
Kingstonian 1/5
Leek Town 1/5
Yeovil Town 2/5
Boston United 1/5
Halesowen 1/5
Marine 1/5 
Southport 3/5

If there are any teams that have been missed of this list Please 
Contact me! Mrwhite@btinternet.com is my address and any team that you 
KNOW IS IN THE GAME, Please tell me. Also tell me the likelihood (Out 
of Five) of them Getting promoted. If you leave Your Gamefaqs Name or 
any other Alias, I will acknowledge you in the Special Thanks section, 
and next to the team you have contributed. Thank you for making this 
FAQ more Extensive.




4:Disclaimer.

This Free Transfer Guide is copyright Millers C 2001 - and I 
reserve all, the rights. This guide may not appear on any website other 
than www.gamefaqs.com. You can contact me at millerscrossingfaqs@hotmail.com
if you want to use this on your site. I will not tolerate junk mail. Also, 
I will no accept Rip offs. 

Championship manager is a trademark of Eidos.

NOTE: After this game was published, two players have recently died, 
Les Sealey (Leyton Orient) And David Rocastle (Chelsea).
I thought I should mention it.


Due to the recent events in the United States, I would like to Dedicate 
this guide to all those who died on Tuesday. My heart has been with the 
victim's families.

FOR THOSE WHO DIED SEPT. 11th September 2001.

Good Luck In playing the free transfer market and I hope the tips on 
survival in Division 3 help. Feedback would be nice on features; My E 
mail is millerscrossingfaqs@hotmail.com


5:Special Thanks
This section is for people who have contributed to this guide in 
someway or another.

CjayC for creating the greatest Games Site ever.

Eidos for publishing the game,

And Finally, The developers!

Will this get any bigger?


Thank you and Good luck in surviving and playing the Free Transfer 
market!

COPYRIGHT MILLERS C 2001-