TheSkipper

Chris Buckley, the owner of Pride of Nottingham, has been a lifelong supporter of Notts County Football Club. In this interview, he shares his journey from attending his first game with his grandfather in 1993 to starting the Pride of Nottingham website in 2009. Growing up in Aspley, Nottingham, Chris was initially drawn to football through his father, a Derby County supporter, who would occasionally take Chris's brother to games. However, Chris was deemed too young at the time and they only had two tickets. Seeing his disappointment, Chris's grandfather Ray decided to take him to see Notts County instead. From then on, Chris became a regular attendee at Notts County games, making every Wembley visit except for the playoff final against Brighton and Hove Albion. The concept for the Pride of Nottingham came about in 2006 when Chris decided to start a small forum on the domain notts-county.co.uk. However, it wasn't until 2008 that he started thinking more seriously about the project and decided to call the site Pride of Nottingham. The site went live in 2009 with a small number of posters, but it was only really pushed in 2013 when Chris's children and family gave him the push to hand out flyers. Chris's background in websites comes from poetry and art – his first site was quite popular in the days of MySpace. He also had a site that gave tips on how people at home could make a living from various sites before it was common for people with good writing abilities to land remote jobs at home. Unfortunately, that site ended up being hacked by a cyber group that tried ransoming him for its release. One of the biggest challenges he faced early on was dealing with negative comments that were abusive and threatening. He felt surprised that he would attract such negative emails and felt like he needed to win people over. Learning what interested fans and focusing on improving has been a rewarding challenge for him. He has always put effort into keeping fans engaged and the site grew throughout difficult circumstances. Over time, he has learned to improve his writing and has enjoyed giving fans a platform where more than one person can have their say. He is thankful for the assistance of Joe Jones, a qualified journalist who helped him improve his writing skills. His support for the club has evolved over time and he now sees himself as playing a role in representing fans and keeping a sense of togetherness within the community. He feels that it is important for the club, especially during difficult times. He has become more focused on helping other fans and has met some wonderful people online over the past 10 years. Chris's advice for someone who wants to get involved with the club or make a difference in their community is to join an existing part of the community and get to know people while keeping an open mind about what the community around Notts does. He suggests joining Facebook groups, Twitter pages, and the Pride of Nottingham website.

It’s good that Luke Williams is keeping us informed because it prevents misinformation from being spread or rumours from starting to speculate that certain players might already be on their way out. There hasn’t been too much of that, but Junior Morias’ ongoing injuries and absence might start to raise questions. As I said, it’s good to know and everything seems to be transitioning well towards the actual season. We have a few big games, with Stoke and then Forest, but I think we have the depth and squad to be competitive in those without risking injuries.

I like horror films, especially around Halloween. I prefer those from the 80s and 90s compared to the newer ones. The reboot films seem to miss the point of the originals, such as Halloween - Michael Myers is not as intimidating in the remakes. It’s sort of pandering to younger people, so it’s not as shocking, but it takes away the horror feel.

It was great to see the youth players included. I am not sure why we have a trialist keeper. I hope he’s just warming up because, with how good Aidan Stone looked, we have more than enough cover with Tiernan Brooks and the experienced hands of Sam Slocombe. I think it would be a waste of money to bring in another keeper, which could be spent on a centre back.

Luke Williams knows what works. He’s a good talker and can get the players to understand the importance of his message. I think the depth and ability to rotate will help us out no end. It’s important to be ready for anything, so at least we have covered those unknowns and can go into the season with a full squad ready to take on League Two.

It’s good to read the thoughts of the fans. I think we are right to be excited about the return, and if we work hard enough this season, we might have a real chance at achieving back-to-back promotions. The signing of David McGoldrick adds a bit of a fairytale element to our story, along with our promotion last season and all the well-wishes from fans of other clubs who are happy to have us back. It’s also good to see Alice Kellett mentioned; she is someone the club can’t replace and is missed. I am looking forward to the season and seeing how it pans out, but first, we have pre-season to enjoy.

Mick Vinter had a successful career playing for many clubs, and it’s interesting to learn about his time at Notts and elsewhere. The history captured in this article is appreciated, as he had a great stint with Notts. It’s unfortunate that he wasn’t able to maintain his place at the club, but he went on to prove himself elsewhere. This article provides a very good insight into Vinter’s career.

This is our first chance to see some of the new signings. I hope we throw a couple of youngsters into the mix because one of them may fit the roles we still have open. It’ll be interesting to see how differently Notts may play and if Luke Williams will adjust anything to get the best out of the players.

I enjoy the way Luke Williams brings in players, allowing them to settle while selling his philosophy and ideas. He allows existing players to expand on what they may expect. It's apparent that we will lose key players at times, but how we replace them is a big factor in avoiding setbacks. Everything Luke Williams does makes the club the way it is. He has a great rapport with the players, and it's clear they respect him.

It is fantastic news that Aaron Nemane has signed a new two-year deal. This offers us the opportunity to progress further with this talented group of players. Luke Williams has brought in a lot of quality, but the fact that all players except for Ruben Rodrigues have been retained speaks volumes about the direction in which the club is heading. Nemane is a significant part of our success. He is a challenging player to play against, and on his day, he is exceptional beyond our level.

It's good to see the players back in training. The video of them training is great because you can see their enjoyment. Their spirits still seem quite high, but as Luke Williams says, players are talking and new recruits are hearing what's expected and what it's like at the club. I bet each of them is excited to play their first game at Meadow Lane against Stoke City. It's important that we continue to approach the season with a focus on high-demanding training, with the gaffer doing a great job ensuring that the players meet his high standards.

It’s a good insight into a lifelong fan, the backstory about being born in Stapleford and being part of a Magpie family. I bet he has seen many happier times watching Notts, so I’m pleased that we are on a new projection due to our ownership rebuilding the foundations to strive for success on the pitch. Fans like Nigel will have had those times when this peaks. I have seen limited success myself, but I do hope to be in the position when I’m older to share my story of being a Notts fan. This is fantastic - how he met his partner Sue is just one of those things that seems to be destiny rather than a coincidence.

Good thought for the day, @Fan of Big Tone. I think it’s the perfect quote for a lovely Sunday like today. We have to focus on the positives.

Most of those shops I don’t know about, but I do recall Dixons being a close alternative to Argos. The variety these days is limited to one shop. Toys R Us was a nice shop to go and look around or pick up some toys. Smyths has a warehouse feel to it; toys and items are stacked on huge shelves that don’t come across as inviting or fun to look around.

It’s great to hear that Crowley wants to add goals and assists to his game. It’s always important to have players who can contribute offensively, and if he can do that at Notts County, it will be a huge boost for the team. He sounds like he has all the ability to make a positive impact at the club; he’s such an exciting signing.

I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but the fixtures do look promising and I am pleased with the depth of our squad. There are some challenging matches close together, but I have confidence in this team. The away trips seem largely favourable and there are some great home ties. My only hope is that we can avoid any postponements during the critical stages of the season.

I think his time in the Netherlands will aid his development, as adapting to different leagues is a useful skill for players. He sounds like he has a lot of quality, and while comparisons aren’t always negative, I believe he will shine as his own player for Notts. I wish him all the best with the birth of his children; moving to Nottingham makes a lot of sense for this reason.

It is indeed amazing to see how far the team has come over the past four years. Notts has used their time within the National League to go from strength to strength. I can understand why you feel this is the best the club has been in during your lifetime. It’s exciting to see how we can learn from the experience of dropping down to the Non-League. This is brilliant.

This is a signing that should excite all fans. He’s an excellent player and someone who has been considered by fans as a realistic target. He has the ability to play at a much higher level; he just needs to settle in and find what works. I believe we will see the best of him at Notts - it’s one hell of a signing.

I’m glad it hasn’t ended yet. There was a brief point early in last season when I wondered if Jim would reflect on retirement at the end of the season, considering how the squad was taking shape and with his contract being up. Being the only surviving player from our relegation squad speaks volumes about him. He worked tirelessly to get the results we needed to stay up and then did the same when it came to trying to gain promotion to the Football League. It’s been interesting, but there’s still at least one more chapter in him. It would be great if we could add another promotion to it.

I’ve just gone through and made sure to follow people. I didn’t realise I didn’t follow the gaffer or even Liam! I should have paid more attention to users’ profiles, but with all the talk being inside the forums until learning you can post in a member’s profile, I just never thought about following people. I had some followed, like Super Ram etc. I must have thought I followed others at some point but hadn’t.

Jim O’Brien is a key player for Notts County, there’s no doubt about it. Some fans may think he’s past it because they’re moody, but it takes a great level of fitness and skill to keep going. Michael Doyle’s legs had gone the moment he arrived, but he was worshipped and I can’t understand why it isn’t the same for Jim. He’s by far the better player. I think if we had him from the beginning of the season we wouldn’t have been relegated. Yet, he fought for us in those four years when we were non-league and he’s helped to take us back. We can credit every squad player or just our favourites, but I for one will credit Jim’s loyalty and dedication to our club. He is a fantastic squad player and I look forward to seeing him in the upcoming season.

The Skipper has signed on for two years, which is fantastic. Cameron has improved the club in big strides; as captain, I don’t think we could ask for anyone better. He leads by example and just works tirelessly. I am pleased the defence will mostly be the same as last season; going into games with those existing partnerships and communication will only be a blessing.

It does feel like a dream; then again, the past two ownerships felt like a nightmare. It’s been a good 4 years; we have turned things around and it’s down to all the hard work people have put in from the players to the staff and coaches. Even the fans deserve credit because we didn’t allow the club to do it alone.

There are some fantastic times supporting Notts, even the dark times make us thankful for the club we have. Tony’s story is interesting and serves as a reminder of how diverse our fan base is in terms of the memories we all have and what encourages us to move forward. This is brilliant, thanks Tony! Will it be another Tony next time, gaffer?