Hello there! Throughout January I will be looking back over 10 years of running this very blog. Last week we started with my ten favourite blog saves and this week we’ve moved on to my top 10 cult heroes.

A cult hero is somewhat of an unlikely hero, so you won’t see Ronaldo or Zidane on this list but more people who have given us some laughs and unlikely successes.

Let’s get down to business…

10. Kevin Gallen (Brits Abroad)

We start with Kevin Gallen. The Brits Abroad was a fun save where I had to buy all British players for Benfica. Sounds easy but they really aren’t that big of a pull in 1997 so you are kind of fishing in a pond full of Gallen’s and Sinclair’s – good players but not necessarily top players. Thankfully they can grow and become world beaters and Gallen was there to the bitter end, helping not only Benfica but also England to great success. That season he got 45 in 48 was absurd. I guess he makes the list because when I started that save I really didn’t expect Gallen to be there when we were winning everything.

9. Niclas Alexandersson (Podcast, various saves)

The poor man’s Luis Enrique?

The absurdity here is that he actually came on the podcast. A World Cup goalscorer gave up his time to speak to me on Skype during my lunch break to talk about how his Sheff Wednesday team mates would play Champ Man on the bus. I have so many questions. Anyway he celebrated by unfollowing me and never speaking of it ever again, and I respect that.

8. Freddy Leon (Blackburn Short Story)

Freddy Leon is one of those players who always ends up in the Premier League usually playing for one of the upper mid-table clubs. His potential is massive though and it’s often a gamble to get him as you don’t know what you’re going to get. In the Blackburn short story, I chose him to lead the line and he was a sensation. It’s always pleasing when you get a player with a better than 1:1 goals to games ratio, he only just managed it but a pivotal part of winning the league with unfancied Blackburn.

7. Natipong Sritong-In aka Natigol (Mulhouse)

Natigol! His name was a bit of a legend to me, whenever a thread would pop up about CM9798 there was always somebody saying his name. I’d never had him but Mulhouse, floundering in Ligue 2, turned out to be the perfect home for the lad from Thai Farmers. Look at that goal return…

He was able to keep his place even in Ligue 1 and went on to win the league, Champions League, French Cup…and 3 caps for Thailand. A great signing for £275k.

6. Faustino Mendoza (Waregem, Scotland Save)

Waregem was the Belgian club I took on after leaving Aberdeen. They’re not big hitters and you have to take a punt on a lot of left field options. When top scorer Andrew Buchanan inexplicably stopped scoring, I had to find a new option and landed on Faustino Mendoza. In hindsight, he might be a regen of Freddy Leon, if Freddy Leon had cause to retire very early.

What this did open up though was a chance for a Simpsons reference, which long time readers will know I like to drop in every now and again. Shall, we for old time sake?

Half of a beautiful season…maybe we will revisit it one day.

5. Frederik Bild (Retirement Home)

The Retirement Home was really a save of two (maybe even three) parts. Well it was 50 parts but you know what I mean. Frederik Bild a bear arrived in Part 39 when the Retirement Home were battling relegation from the Premier League. In part 40, we won the FA Cup and it really did all turn around from there. He was a brilliant asset in the middle of the park and seemed to be the missing part of the old knackered jigsaw. He was the skipper who lifted the FA Cup and heralded a new era for the Retirement Home which of course culminated in winning the whole lot.

4. Glenn Pennyfather (Mulhouse)

This one is more silly than anything. Basically, Mulhouse were desperate for signings and I took a chance on this old chancer. Because of his name, I assumed he was some sort of refined English gentleman who would finish training and then get on his penny-farthing and go home. It became a running gag but he got 40 assists in getting us out of Ligue 2 along with 21 goals and that makes him and unlikely hero.

3. Bjorn Heidenstrom (Many saves, Legend)

Bjorn! This guy is just the man in the CM Community. He featured in many saves, predominantly Aberdeen, Darlington, Cowdenbeath and many others.

His involvement in the wider CM Community though is great to see. He signed books for me despite the obvious expense of shipping them back to me from Norway, even including a letter of encouragement to keep writing. He’s given up his time not just to me but with a number of people/publications to talk about playing a handful of games for Leyton Orient and becoming a CM legend, and he’s real life friends with Tommy Svindal Larsen which is just too perfect.

Deano even made the Heidenstrom song!

We had Bjorn on episode 2 of the podcast which you can listen to here. We love you Bjorn, thanks for putting up with us nerds!

2. Peter Beardsley (Blog Save)

An easy one this. Peter just wouldn’t retire. Towards the end of the blog save, it wasn’t that interesting with 99% of the cast regens but Peter kept us going.

He also taught us that the physical stats can become so poor they are…worse than 1. No strength, no stamina, no pace. 55.

Somehow he had improved massively by 65.

He provided the ultimate narrative when he scored the winner with the very last kick of the blog save as England won the 2026 World Cup in front of 108,000 people. Some boy.

1. Mick “The Micker” Quinn (Various saves)

Here he is. Mick “The Micker” Quinn is my choice as the ultimate cult hero from the blogs. He’s available on a free transfer and absolutely lethal in the lower leagues for reasons I don’t fully understand, that off the ball and shooting goes a long way.

The Micker took his first steps into legendary status with her performances for the Retirement Home, staying with the club from the Division 3 days right up until we sealed promotion to the Premier League in 2006.

I was sad he didn’t stick around for one more go at the big time but he, along with 15 others, called it a day.

Since then he has featured in the Retirement Academy, Cowdenbeath, Bologna and probably others. I even tried him at the mighty Mags one day for a laugh, with sexy results.

He has of course delivered the CM Cup Quinn’s Speech the last two editions, which I’d like to think he would do for free if I didn’t pay him a small fee via an agency. To be fair, he delivered the second one within a hour of me ordering. What a guy.

Anyway, long live the Micker.

Thanks for indulging me in my top 10 this week! Next week we’re going on to the top 10 frauds in CM9798, players who are meant to be good but I’ve never been able to get much out of them. Toodles for now!