'Pride back in our club and genuine goodwill' - Chesterfield fans have 'renewed hope' for future of club after takeover

We asked nine Town supporters for their views and this is what they said...

Phil Tooley

It came as no surprise when the community trust finally confirmed that the charitable organisation had acquired the majority shareholding in Chesterfield FC. The whole process had taken around 10 months from start to a Covid-19 affected finish, but it was still a huge relief to see it get over the line.

The trust has gone along with its business in a quiet but effective manner and helped many people to improve their lives, but many of us felt they didn’t shout loudly enough about it. So now is the time to convert those many and impressive off-the-park successes and begin to transfer the same pragmatic, sustainable and soft-touch approach to begin to change the fortunes of the business finances and the football fortune, along the way making the club a great place to work, support and visit whilst journeying along a very long road back to regaining stability and regaining status.

The local councils wouldn’t have backed the club had it not been in the hands of people made of the right stuff and I, for one, will be at the front of what will hopefully be a long queue of volunteers to help stability and status to return.

The club is the community and the community needs to back the club.

Howard Borrell

The recent takeover by the community trust is a fantastic opportunity to get the club back on the right track instead of living beyond our means and having no workable plan to plug the gap.

I listened to the press conference and was hugely impressed with the new chairman, Mike Goodwin, who spoke eloquently and confidently. No raising hopes but no defeatism either.

We now have the club run by supporters with identifiable skills who recognise the need (and the benefit of) to involve the fanbase and welcome volunteers to add their skills to the mix.

We’ve had years of alienation; instead we now have a coming together of vision and good intention. All of a sudden, there may be a long way to go to achieve success on the field but, there is one thing that is definitely back.....pride in our club and our town along with genuine goodwill.

None of us are sure how long the road back is but we’re no longer travelling in the wrong direction!

Paul Goodwin

I am really pleased that the takeover has finally been brought to a successful conclusion; this couldn’t have been easy particularly given the issues that everyone has faced this year.

The club is now in the ownership of the trust and the board of directors that has been appointed is made up of local people, who are also fans of the club, and care about it like all supporters do; between them they have a range of skills, abilities and experience from a variety of backgrounds which will be invaluable in helping to make a success of this new era for Chesterfield FC. However, if they need assistance in any areas as they take on the task of stabilising the club, and as soon as possible moving it forward in the right direction, I am sure that there will be no shortage of people willing to help them.

I would urge all fans, and the wider community in the area, to support the club in any way that they can. Once we are allowed to safely watch the team again, I am sure that everyone attending will get behind the players in order to try and turn around our fortunes which have been the worst in the clubs’ history over the past five years.

On behalf of the Bridge Inn Blues Away Travel I would like to wish the new board every success, COYB.

Alan Wilkinson

After the takeover was finally confirmed last week I can understand mixed emotions from Spireites fans. Most are relieved the club is now in the hands of people that care and should provide transparency. The others rightly wonder about funding as the club goes forward.

Having attended the press conference Friday morning and spoken to chairman Mike Goodwin one-to-one I am convinced this is the right way to go. I found Mr Goodwin to be an honest man and very capable of turning the club round after the last few years. And I have every confidence in the board running the club.

Everyone involved has the club at heart. Don't get me wrong it's going to be a long hard journey with some bumps along the way. Here's to stability sustainability and a bright future.

Karen Johnson

My first thought on hearing the takeover had finally happened was relief.

Relief for the town in which I was born and bred and which has seen a steady decline in respect and trust in Chesterfield Football Club which had for so long been the heartbeat of the area.

Ten years of rollercoaster times preceded Thursday’s takeover announcement – but around the town now there is a feeling of hope and renewed commitment to the club and its endeavours.

Whilst Dave Allen had undoubtedly bankrolled the club despite his absence he had long since passed the point of no return from many fans. Whilst few would say they were ungrateful for the good he had brought, many would also say he was tarnished by situations which had often come to the attention of the board via diligent fans and often seemed relentless.cUndoubtedly a sale was the best for both parties and after a bumpy ride it was the aptly named community trust who gained control.

For me, the guys who sat at the ‘top table’ on Friday summed their new ethos up with just one word. Dubbing themselves ‘custodians’ told me everything I needed to know – they will respect their eventual part in the club’s history but will take forward their duties with pride and passion and professionalism. For now – that security is enough.

Kurt Bigg

It is difficult to say what will happen for sure under the community trust as Chesterfield have become the first charity-owned football club in the country. However, the sale of the Chesterfield FC could turn out to be one of the biggest moments in the club’s history.

I, for one, haven’t felt this optimistic about the club’s future since the Spireites were promoted to League One back in 2014. Fans have wanted clarity since Chesterfield dropped into the National League and I feel like the owners will now fully provide this.

The new chairman Mike Goodwin has promised stability and efficiency, which is exactly the thing that the club needs in a post-pandemic world. Now is not the time to dwell on the past regime, now is the time to look towards a brighter future. Back the new owners, back the management team and back the players.

Holly Bacon

I am cautiously optimistic about the future under the community trust. It is great to see the club in the hands of people that care and have its best interests at heart. However, it is not going to be easy and I feel like the hard work starts now.

The trust is going to need the backing from us supporters and I think Covid is going to be one of the biggest challenges to overcome.

The words that Mike Goodwin emphasised were ‘transparency’ and ‘sustainability’ which the club lacked under the previous regime. As a supporter these two things are really important and I want the club to still be here for years to come.

It’s no secret that John Pemberton’s budget will be significantly lower than those of previous managers but as long as next season the team is at the right end of the table and the club is sustainable off the pitch I will be pleased.

Marcia Bigg

I want to start by saying thank you to Dave Allen for all he has done in the past 10 years or so. Without his continued financial support, we possibly wouldn’t have a club anymore.

The takeover of Chesterfield Football Club by Chesterfield FC Community Trust is the best thing that has happened to the club in several years. Although we have had some huge successes in the last 10 years, in the last five years we have also suffered some of the worst years the club has endured.

Thanks to Mr Allen, we have the facilities to be able to have a 365 days a year business, but this has not been developed to its full potential.

I believe that the trust has the skills we need to be able to get the club back onto an even financial footing and to hopefully start our progress back into the EFL.

The whole community needs to get behind the club now and show our support for our Spireites.

Danny Hughes

The takeover is the best thing we’ve seen happen at Chesterfield in certainly the last three years if not five.

Every pre-season I feel us fans have a sense of optimism and hope that this season will be the one that things change but the takeover has given us a real sense of buoyancy, one that’ll affect the clubs long-term future and take the club back to where it belongs in the long run.

We know it won’t be easy and there will definitely be ups and downs but I’d rather have a chance of things changing in a positive way with the right people at the helm than continuing spiralling down the football divisions with no sense of direction.

Nobody is expecting an immediate return to the Paul Cook days with glamorous football and Championship quality players but we’re looking forward to having people in charge we can trust and get behind knowing they have the best interests of the football club and community at heart. Hopefully this is the start of something remarkable.