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Notts County have returned to the English Football League after a four-year absence, thanks to a thrilling penalty shoot-out victory over Chesterfield in the National League promotion final at Wembley. The Magpies came from behind twice in a 2-2 draw, with John Bostock and Ruben Rodrigues scoring late equalisers in normal time and extra time respectively. Substitute goalkeeper Archie Mair then proved to be the hero, saving two penalties in the shoot-out to seal Notts County's promotion. The

Notts County has made an exciting decision by bringing Stuart Maynard on board as their new head coach.  At 43 years old, Maynard is joining us from Wealdstone, where he made a name for himself with his accomplishments and unique style of play in the National League. As a fellow fan, I couldn't be happier with this appointment, and here's why. Firstly, Maynard has proven that he can do extraordinary things with limited resources. He took the reins at Wealdstone in March 2021 and guided

Euro 2016 has, to some extent, proved a welcome distraction from the ongoing circus at Notts County. However, with the recent appointment of John Sheridan, I am quietly optimistic for the new season and what it might bring. Sheridan has undoubted experience at galvanizing teams - whether bringing sides from the brink of relegation, guiding them to promotion or offering them a shot at the play-offs.   In my opinion, especially after the kick in the teeth of losing Mark Cooper, Sheridan

The recent League Two playoff games between Exeter City and Carlisle United, and Luton Town and Blackpool, have highlighted the narrow gap for error within this division. Exciting as they may be to watch, the playoffs aren’t easy, nor are they straightforward as people may think. Promotion at the end of the day can reap rewards for any club that is successful enough to clinch it - the evolution and step forward can ultimately turn around a club's fortunes too. League Two teams on

Over the next few days, Pride of Nottingham will be publishing Andy Black's account of his journey to discover more about the identity of Tom Gordon Savage, the Nottingham-born man who famously requested for a number of Notts County shirts to be sent to a fledging Italian football club by the name of Juventus over a century ago. Here is part one, where Andy first notices the discrepancy between the established records identifying the man as John Savage and a handwritten note penned by one T

For any football fan who's seen their team get relegated, one positive once you've got over the initial shock is to think about all the new grounds you can visit. And with Notts having previously never dropped down to non-league in their 157-year history, all these non-league grounds seemed like an exotic novelty to a Notts fan who travels home and away each week. So having completed half a season in the non-league wilderness, let's take a look back on the highs and lows of a non league away day

What a contrast to our previous regimes. For all his rights and wrongs – and I think there were more rights over his tenure – Ray Trew found it difficult to stay away from social media and club message boards, often falling into the trap of over promising some new signing. He also seemed pretty keen to hit the fire button as the revolving door rarely slowed down on the manager’s office. Then, of course, we had the ego which took the club out of the league and almost out of existen

Over the years, we've had mixed experiences when it comes to management but Kevin Nolan and Alan Hardy look like being the real deal. Not only have they got a great connection with the fans but they also seem to have a great connection with each other. They both have an understanding of each other with Nolan setting out what he needs in terms of improving the squad and Hardy doing everything in his power to make that happen. From a fans perspective, this is great to see. Both a manager and

Notts County went into the new League Two campaign as one of the pre-season promotion favourites following on from last season which saw the Magpies reach the playoffs defying all expections. There was a real hope last season with Notts riding high up the table, many tipping and even expecting them to go up automatically, but the form after Christmas left fans wondering if they would even make the playoffs, which they did only to beaten by eventual winners Coventry City. But 7 League games

Whilst I want to openly acknowledge that Notts requires strengthening up-top off the bat, one player I believe Ian Burchnall needs to commit to giving regular game time during the 2021/22 National League season is Lewis Knight. Arriving at Meadow Lane from Bradford Park Avenue, the exciting forward who has a blistering amount of pace – described during his debut for the magpies by BT Sports as ‘rapid’ looked to be a real handful. I can only imagine how effective he can become with deve

On this day 23 years ago, Notts County found themselves playing at Wembley for the second season in a row and the fourth time in the decade when they took on Ascoli in the Anglo-Italian Cup final. Having enjoyed Wembley glory in 1990 and 1991, winning the Third Division playoff final and then its Second Division counterpart, the Magpies then fell flat in 1994 when they fell to a 1-0 loss to a Georghe Hagi-inspired Brescia. However, they would be back once again just a year later agains

With Notts County piling up with fixtures back in December, the club managed to pick up 10 points from a possible 12; it highlights how beneficial mixing up what was becoming a stale squad can be. The previous month as we all know, Notts struggled to pick up points and fans including our very own Chris and ARLukomski called for the introduction of fringe players. Tom Crawford who hadn't appeared for Notts since the away defeat in 2018/19 to Mansfield, has managed to be called upon and

What a great bit of business by Notts County in extending Cal Roberts’ contract at Meadow Lane to the end of the 2022-23 season. As a declaration of intent, it doesn’t get much better as he seems to be the talisman and when Roberts plays well, Notts are very difficult to hold. I guess that could be said about several players throughout history but what helps Roberts stand apart is that more than not since he joined us, he has actually played well. It’s fine to have some tricks and

Go on, hands up if you thought Kyle Wootton would turn out to be this good when Notts County signed him on loan from a struggling League Two side at the end of August? Granted, one of the things fans have constantly complained about is the lack of a big, strong target man. Someone who can hold the ball up, bring other players into the game, win the headers and generally lead the line in a way which helps the poachers like Kristian Dennis and Wes Thomas find the space to play their own game.

The nineties were a mixed decade for Notts to say the least, starting with two trips to Wembley and a return to the top flight. However, the five years after relegation from the first division were marked by bewildering sackings, even more bewildering managerial appointments, a cost-cutting drive overseen by Colin Murphy and, finally, relegation to the fourth division in 1997 (at that time the third division, now known as League Two. I know). This was our first relegation to the fourth divi

(Nearly) 30 years of hurt 4 days, 6 weeks and 29 years ago was the last time Notts County were in the playoffs. Back then the Division 2 playoff promotion spot was won under Neil Warnock. That was the 1990/91 season, over nine years before I was born. Since then only one (arguably anti-climactic) playoff attempt- in the 2017/18 season- was made. It is probably an understatement to say: “The club's results in recent years have not lived up to the high expectations” (Reedtz brothers, 2019). O

So as I write this on the 26/08/18 Kevin Nolan has been sacked following a termination of his contract by the NCFC board following a 3-1 loss to Lincoln City. After around 18 months in charge it was with Mr. Hardy’s best interests to part ways with the ex- West Ham, Bolton and Newcastle midfielder. I am writing this article to understand the thought process behind his sacking, will we miss him? And is promotion still achievable? During Nolan’s time with the Magpies he managed 85 g

Everyone is no doubt entitled to an opinion, no one can take opinions away that's fair enough.  Do I agree with the Neal Ardley out crew? No. Do I see some of the points they make? Yes. Do I believe they expect too much? Yes. Here's my thought process - Ardley arrived at the club last season which can be described as an absolute mess. We had a chairman who couldn’t keep quiet or leave social media alone, which resulted in us losing loan deals from our nearest neighbours Nottingham Forest th

Usually, at the beginning of the season, managers rotate their squads a fair amount – this was no doubt the same for Neal Ardley. While many fans called for him to settle the squad down, myself included, it is quite natural to switch out players here and there. Sometimes, it’s a little concerning when it’s five or more and when it’s never allowed to settle. Yes, sometimes it’s due to fitness concerns, tactical reasons but you know when there’s too many. For the most of the 2019/20

Fans were divided when Kevin Nolan was sacked as Notts County manager. Many fans believed he should have been given more time to turn things around at the club following a winless run of 6 games with many saying it is the players to blame as opposed to Nolan himself. But there were also fans suggesting it wasn't just the start of the season that was the tipping point it has been the clubs poor run of results since Christmas.  Kevin Nolan guided Notts County to the Play-Offs last season, onl

A lot has been said about the policing and stewarding of Notts supporters at Mansfield on Saturday. Now I'm not for one second going to claim that our fans are all angels, although find me a club that doesn't have it's fair share of idiots, but year in year out when we go to Mansfield we get treated like absolute dirt, and it's becoming a joke. When we go to Mansfield, we're banned from the town centre and pubs. When they come to us they get free roam of the city. There was a pub near the s