Southport, Saturday 25th October - David Steel

AGE – 47

HOW LONG FOLLOWED THE CLUB – Since late-1989. My first two seasons were 89/90 and 90/91. I assumed every following season would be the exact same as those two…

DARLO RELATED ANECDOTES/THOUGHTS…

The very first time I stepped foot into Feethams was on Boxing Day 1989; a tense 0-0 draw with Barrow in front of a big Christmas crowd. Dad and I went back four days later to watch us wallop Chorley 3-0. Gary Gill made his debut for us, having signed from Boro in the week. Paul Emson was superb that day. I was hooked.

I always find it difficult to pick out one player or one manager from such a long period of time, but for various reasons I'm extremely fond of Brian Little and that squad that got us out of the GM Vauxhall Conference in 1990 and then won us the Division Four championship the year after. Mark Prudhoe, Frank Gray, Kevan Smith, Jimmy Willis, Mick Tait, Gary Gill, David Cork…too many great names and memories to share.

Obviously, the likes of Steve, Hodgy, Dave Penney, Mark Cooper and Martin Gray have all 'achieved' for the club in different ways down the years. Not necessarily winning trophies in all cases, sometimes just surviving or building teams/signing players that were great to watch. Dave Penney would have taken us up were it not for the financial rug being pulled. Steve and Terry did an exceptional job in those first 12 months at the club, taking us from certain relegation to the play-off spots in that time. Remarkable really. That home game against Farsley Celtic back April 2024 that secured survival was celebrated just as much as any promotion winning game over the last 12/13 years, I'd say!

I'm writing these notes in the days that followed the Telford United FA Cup defeat, which was extremely hard to watch and hard to take for us all. A real dark day. I still have lots of faith in Steve and Terry – the task they faced in January 2024 was a lot more dire than this – though I also recognise that this is an important season where we need to evidence further progression on the pitch from 2024/25 and 2023/24, so they have got an important few weeks and months ahead to both help banish that Telford defeat and get us up the table as quickly as they can.

Graeme Armstrong has been my favourite player since the 2012 rebirth and his hat-trick away at Whitby to secure the 2016 title still gives me goosebumps now…

I have sat on the DFCSG board since January 2020, becoming Vice Chair in 2022. I love it and to be involved in the club I've followed for 35 years in that way is a total honour. I'm very proud to be a part of the very talented team that has built YOURCLUB and (hopefully) made fans feel more engaged with the club, as well as being able to buy match tickets, 50/50 tickets, make donations, vote in polls, etc, etc, at the click of a button.

Those who know me know what I think and feel about fan ownership. I recognise that it means we're not the wealthiest club in the world and that it can sometimes temper aggressive ambition, but in this day and age stability and sustainability are both key and – for someone who grew up following Darlo in the 90s/00s – those two factors were very rarely at the top of owner's agendas. I'm excited about the next few years, the opportunities the new stadium will bring and ultimately pushing on to achieving Football League status again. We have a brilliant club that we should be very proud of.