Paul Cook has been blow away by Chesterfield’s growing fan-base.

The Spireites’ average home attendance is nearly 8,500, while their average away following is 1,000. More than 3,000 went to Doncaster Rovers earlier in the season, while they have also had strong turnouts at the likes of Crewe, Port Vale, Grimsby Town, Bradford City and Walsall among many others.

And the support has remained consistent even during a run of seven games without a win on the road, which ended last week with consecutive victories at Salford City and Notts County.

“Our fans turn up every week,” he said. “I am so proud of our football club in times of when it is not going so well. It is easy to be a fan when it is not going well. It is so easy to support your team. Our fans have turned up this season through thick and thin and they will continue to do that.”

Paul Cook. (Photo by Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images)

placeholder image — Paul Cook. (Photo by Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images)

At the fans’ forum earlier this month, Cook said he was made aware of a stat that put the Blues right up there for the number of supporters gained in the last 10 years compared to other League Two clubs.

“I keep going back to when I was here last time and I had a good team,” he said. “We got about five or six thousand. Chesterfield Football Club is a good football club, it is a happy place and it is good place to be. We will grow and get stronger, sometimes not at the pace people want, but that is football. Our identity is clear and we carry that forward.”

The financial cost of attending matches and following the team up and down the country has not been lost on Cook, who used to go home and away to watch his beloved Liverpool, and still does when he is not managing.

He added: "It is really difficult times for people. In communities like Chesterfield and surrounding areas, money is tight for people, it is really tough. And the football at the end of the week becomes a place to go to be happy and if your team is doing well it brings so much happiness to the community. When your football club is a focal point of your community, it can bring so much good to each other. We have had ups and downs but we will continue to smile that is for sure.”