Striker backs Chesterfield for automatic promotion as he awaits Luton Town decision
Bim Pepple ‘loved’ his time at Chesterfield and says they can challenge for automatic promotion from League Two next season.
The 22-year-old joined the Spireites on loan from Luton Town in January after spending the first-half of the campaign at Southend United in the National League, where his goals and performances attracted the attention of the Blues.
The powerful forward, who has ambitions of playing for Canada when they host the 2026 World Cup alongside Mexico and the United States, scored five goals and notched one assist as Chesterfield snuck into the play-offs but lost to Walsall in the semi-finals.
"I scored a couple of goals, I probably would have wanted a bit more, especially on the final day," he told the Blues News podcast. “The gaffer was brilliant, the whole staff were brilliant with me. Their man-management of me was really good. I had Will Grigg and Paddy Madden to learn off and they were excellent, they are definitely still people who I will message in the future to get more advice. I loved my time there. I would have loved for it to have ended in promotion or a couple more goals but it was enjoyable and I showed I could play in League Two.
"The fans were really good, they got behind the team. It is a great club. I only have good things to say about everyone at the club. Everyone in the club made me feel super welcome, great changing room, similar to Southend – great club and great fans. It wasn’t too hard to get settled down there. Everyone made it quite easy. It was really enoyable. I was living in Chesterfield so every time I went out to the shop to get groceries the fans would be like ‘Bim, can I have a photo?’ They are really great people."
Chesterfield grabbed a play-off spot on the last day of the season and they were the form side going into them but they fell short against Walsall, who went on to lose 1-0 to AFC Wimbledon in the final at Wembley. But Pepple sees no reason why the Spireites can’t finish in the top three next year,
Pepple said: "The play-offs are tough and they come down to moments. We backed ourselves and we felt good going into it. The first leg left us with a lot to do going back to their place. They were comfortable to sit in and soak up the pressure. Their keeper was going down every five minutes to waste time. It was tough and quite disappointing not to go through but, on the whole, getting into the play-offs, considering everything that club had been through, was still exciting. For sure, next season, the goal for them is automatic promotion and there is no reason why they can’t. They have a strong squad, the gaffer is excellent, they will be back stronger.”
Pepple, who said scoring his first EFL goals in the memorable 5-2 win against Doncaster Rovers was one of the highlights of his season, now returns to parent club Luton Town, who have suffered successive relegations from the Premier League to League One, to find out whether he is part of their future plans.
He added: "I am Luton a player. I am going to get back into Luton for pre-season. I have not met the new gaffer yet. Obviously tIhey have just come down to League One and I just played League Two last year and did pretty well. League One is not too far off so we will see. I will sit down with the gaffer and have a conversation with him about what is next for me. The biggest thing for is I want to be playing football. I want to keep developing. I am a Luton player, my future is in their hands, so we will see what the club has planned for me.”