The future is bright... the future is Black and White?

When the final whistle blew at Priestfield on Sunday 3rd May, I surely cannot have been the only person who felt numb, drained, disappointed and fearful.

Notts had lost 3-1 to Gillingham despite leading 1-0 until the 88th minute, and following a season that began so promisingly but collapsed quicker than a sixth form leaver on his first lads’ trip abroad after his tenth shot of tequila, the Magpies’ relegation was confirmed.

But not only that, it was also the uncertainty that followed. The rot had started to set in the season before, when survival was also at stake on the final day of the season. In the end we were lucky as we held on with that exhilarating 1-1 draw at Oldham, but nobody can argue that the team built on that reprieve. If anything, the spine of the team was then ripped out as our remaining best players left, and let’s face it, with the exception of Roy Carroll, they weren’t adequately replaced.

And with Notts now slipping into League Two, what chance would we have had to rebuild the mess? What would happen to the team, the finances, and ultimately, our future as a club?

Well, I must say, as I write this at the tail end of June, around two months after the end of the 2014-15 season, I’m a hell of a lot more confident for the future.

First of all, Roy Carroll has signed a contract extension and will be with Notts for another season. I wouldn’t have blamed him at all for leaving the club following relegation and signing for a team in League One or even the Championship. He went above and beyond the call of duty for us – not least for playing for Notts the day after turning out for Northern Ireland – but in sticking with the club despite dropping to the fourth tier, he’s effectively ensured himself a status at the club not unlike that of Gigi Buffon, who stayed with Juventus following their relegation to Serie B nine years ago.

Alan Smith also committed his future to the club, meaning that he will be able to use his experience and know-how both on the pitch and in training as a coach and mentor to help other players out.

The new signings we have made so far have been very shrewd too. Four so far, all very promising – Scot Bennett, Rhys Sharpe, Robert Milsom and now Gill Swerts, who let’s not forget, has played for Feyenoord and Belgium and has won the Eredivisie with AZ. A great blend of youth, hunger and experience between the four.

And the icing on the cake – a two-year shirt sponsorship deal with Ladbrokes described by chairman Ray Trew as the most lucrative in the club’s history. An absolute coup of a deal to have pulled off, which hints at an increased budget and the chance not only to build just for the season ahead, but for the next few years.

In my humble opinion, last season ended up being a bit of a farce, and relegation was frankly deserved, but it looks like the board is doing all the right things in this vacuum that is the close-season / pre-season gap. Gone are the stopgap loans and the friendly team sheets that had four or five trialists listed – this appears to be a real rebuilding process, with the right players coming on board, on decent contracts, and all under a new manager with a great track record who is now looking to stamp his authority on the team after being thrown in at the deep end last season.

I’m not going to lie, I really wasn’t looking forward to the start of the new season back in May, but things appear to be heading in the right direction now and, with another five weeks yet to go before the league kicks off again, I feel a lot more reassured and raring to go. The future is bright – the future is Black and White!