What’s this website all about then?

A very good question and one I often ask myself.

I suppose it's only right that I should tell you a bit about myself, after all I’m the one asking you to share your stories with the rest of us.

My name is Dean Mansell and let’s get the most important bit out of the way first - I’m a Chesterfield FC fan. I was born in the town most famous for its Crooked spire and lived there for the vast majority of my life. Currently living in exile in a North Lincolnshire village with my wife and our two boys, my affinity with the club has grown even stronger.

One of my golden rules regards following a football team is you have to support the team from the town where you were born. I can already hear friends of mine shouting at the computer screen "what about Chelsea then?". Well I have a confession, I did have a brief affair with Chelsea from about 1984 to 1997. As I suspect the majority of supporters of lower league football clubs do, when you are a young football fan you always pick a second more glamorous team to follow. This provides an escape from the disappointment of losing a league game away on a wet Wednesday night in December.

This affair however ended during Chesterfield’s now legendary 1997 FA Cup run which ended in a semi-final replay defeat at the hands of Middlesbrough. During the cup run, I discovered that I could never replicate the feelings I had following Chesterfield, with that of following another club. Ironically that replay defeat (and David Ellary not seeing a ball cross the goal line by a foot in the first semi-final at Old Trafford – I’m not bitter!) cost us an FA Cup final appearance at the old Wembley against you’ve guessed it - Chelsea!

The mighty Spireites are therefore the team I support. Myself and 4 year old son have season tickets at the new home of Chesterfield - the B2Net stadium. It’s a very exciting time to be a Spireite with the recent new investment coming into the club in the form of Dave Allen (former Sheffield Wednesday chairman) and a new football ground to try and provide a springboard for promotion and the start of a new era for the football club.

I decided to create a website that allowed football fans far and wide to share stories from following their team. We’ve all got them and it’s what’s great about the game we are all so passionate about. Reminiscing down the boozer with friends about the good and bad times traveling around the country watching football.

Finally, if you have any comments on the site please feel free to send them in via the email address on the contact page. I hope you enjoy your stay and spread the word about the site, the more people we get visiting, the more stories and laughs to be had!