Name and Team ID: Oliker (45384)
Username: HT-Sarah
Real Name: Sarah
Age: 26
Favourite Football Team: The National Team of Sweden :)
Playing Hattrick since: 09/11/2003

1. Who is HT-Sarah in real life and where were you born?

I was born in a town called Skövde in the southern part of Sweden. I moved to Stockholm in -97 to do a master's degree in engineering physics (where I specialised in computer science and discrete mathematics). While studying I worked extra as a programmer for a number of companies and I've been working as a programmer for five years now. In my spare time I spend time with my friends, photography and dancing (electric boogie, breakdance and other funky stuff at the moment :) ).

2. Your team name Oliker, from where came it up?

When my sister was little she renamed our family and called my father Oliker, my mother Mmak and me Sua (herself Fideli). I liked the name Oliker because it's a combination of several different swedish words which gives it a sense of being a combination of 'different' and 'accident'.

3. Your team is a recent one in Hattrick, what are your ambitions for the near future?

To get to the top, of course. But I'll be happy if I make it to the 6th at the moment :)

4. Besides your team, do you have another favourite one in hattrick?
I support five teams and keep track of them. My favourite at the moment is 'Gäddträsket' (plays in Allsvenskan) since it's a great team and a funny team name.

5. What training type do you use for your team and what advantages do you get from it?

I have mixed around a bit and planned to train playmaking but decided to go for scoring since my team doesn't have much money to buy players and I could get a couple of midfielders and defenders cheap and hence needed better scorers..

6. How do you study your opponents? Any special tactic used?

Not really, I check their result in past games and what tactic they used then.

7. What makes you like Hattrick so much?

I especially like the community side of hattrick with the people behind the teams, conferences and guestbooks. All team managers have their own thoughts and tactics on how to play the game and it's fascinating to see what people think.

8. What are your plans on short/mid term?

To have won or, at least, not to have lost all matches.

9. In your opinion, which national team has stronger probabilities of winning the World Championship AA? Why?

I don't feel qualified to answer that actually - there are so many great teams and I haven't had the time to take a close look at the details yet.

10. Now, speaking a little bit about your post as a Hattrick programmer, is it an arduous task? How did the idea of belonging to HT team came up?

It is pretty hard work, since we always have a lot to do. A friend of mine told me that one of the HTs were quitting and I applied for the job since I was a bit fed up with the work I was doing at the time. I went on an interview with Björn and Mattias and got the job a couple of days later.

11. Hattrick is a world phenomenon that has reached 500.000 users recently! How can you explain this?

I think it's a combination of many things; a great concept at the right time directed at the right people.

12. The profits of Extralives (the company which manages Hattrick) in 2003 were approximately 650.000 euros, do you confirm that?

That's not completely right; The revenues - not the profits - of Extralives in 2003 was about 650 000 euro. The profits were around 30 000 euro.

13. In economic terms, what is hattrick's progression during its existence, in percentage?

As Hattrick grows the turnover of Extralives grows, at least it has so far. But I´m not really the right person to answer such a question, since I only work as a developer and I have only been on the Hattrick team for about two months!

14. Many people, certainly, would wish to have your work. Do you feel privileged for being part of ht's team?

I am, of course, privileged to have gotten the job here but it is important to keep in mind that it's a hard job with many things to do. I don't just play the game and read conferences all day - there are always requests to consider and hattrick is always evolving.

15. How would you describe the working environment amongst the HT team?

Well, there are usually a couple of us in the Stockholm office but most people work from home in different cities. It's not much different from other workplaces I suppose. We get along well and help each other as much as possible.

16. Many hattrick users would like to see the creation of the so desired International Competitions, what do you have to say about this?

It is a very interesting idea, but a very complex and complicated matter and it is not our top priority for the time being.

17. Are there any relevant new features to be applied on hattrick soon? If so, which ones?

As I said earlier, Hattrick is an always evolving game. Some changes might not show much but they play an important role anyway. There are always new relevant features being implemented and added. Unfortunately I can't give you any details until each feature is official.


18. Do you think hattrick might end someday?

Most things come to an end some time, but I can't see why that shouldn't be in a loooong time from now. It's more of a question on how the game evolves rather than if it might end.


19. How do you see the feminine side in Hattrick? Do you think it has evolved?

I consider hattrick to be an androgynous game which welcomes both men and women. Most users might be men, but that is more a reflection of our society than the game in itself being "male". I believe and hope that the percentage of female users will increase but I don't feel that it's a major issue since it's free for everyone to play the game. I'm happy as long as the people who plays it likes it.

20. What message can you give to all the women who read this interview but who haven't yet registered in hattrick?

I don't want to give a special message to women - I'd advise EVERYONE who hasn't registered for a team to at least try it out! So, what are you waiting for? www.hattrick.org - go sign up! =)

21. To end this interview, describe in one or two sentences what Hattrick means to you, in your life.

I have many friends in the hattrick community and it's very exiting to see the game evolving and be a part of its future.

HT-Sarah