Nothing wrong with a 2-stroke. Less parts to break and easy to set up. I fly the OS 160 in my 2-meter Pattern ships. If money is a little tight right now, I would recommend the Venus 2, OS 120AX with the stock muffler and some good coreless servos or maybe even the Futaba 3152 digitals. They're not too expensive (about $30.00 each). You can use a precision mini servo for the throttle - saves weight and $$$. A Venus 2 is fine for Sportsman and even Intermediate. You don't need anything too fancy yet. Simple is better at this point. Get something that's reliable and fly it as much as possible. When you get some experience flying Pattern you'll have a better idea of what defines a "good" airplane. At that point you may want to pick up a used 2-meter bird. Pattern planes usually last a long time so a used airplane is a viable option. The Venus is fine for now though, and the build quality is pretty good since it's from Great Planes. It's covered with Monokote so you can repair it easily should you have a mishap AND the covering will stay on. Some of the Asian ARFs have really poor quality covering. There may be other lower cost alternatives but I've personally flown a Venus 2 so I speak from experience. Two of my students are flying them in Intermedaiate now after a successful campaign in Sportsman last year. They both moved up after their first year and they're still flying the same airplanes.

John Pavlick
Team Black Magic