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Chris

Stephen McLaughlin Joins On Loan

By Chris, in News,

Irish born Stephen McLaughlin has joined Notts County after agreeing an initial month’s loan deal from neighbours Nottingham Forest.

The 24-year-old started his career with League of Ireland outfit Finn Harps back in 2009 before making a move to fellow Irish side Derry City.

McLaughlin then signed for Nottingham Forest on the 3rd of January 2013, with a reported fee of around £160,000 having been paid to acquire his services.
He had a short spell at League One promotion chasers Bristol City back in 2013, but under Stuart Pearce, McLaughlin has made four appearances from the bench and a further two as a first team player.
He's held with high regard by the former England Under 21 manager, who has helped to spearhead his role with the Reds into a more prominent one within the first team.
McLaughlin featured as part of the Forest team that played Tottenham in the Capital One Cup last week where, after taking the lead, they went on to lose 3-1 at White Hart Lane.
Discuss the arrival of Stephen within our community forum.
Joe Jones
Notts County’s head-to-head history with Crewe Alexandra dates back to September 1893, when the Magpies faced the Railwaymen at the Alexandra Recreation Ground. The result was a 2-0 win for Notts.

After several further meetings in the late 1890s, the fixture would experience a hiatus of 63 years; between 1896 and 1959, the two teams didn't play each other.
Despite our shared history going back so far, there have only been 39 meetings between the two sides. Notts have the upper hand with 19 wins to 13 defeats, and just seven draws have taken place.
The Alex have been on the receiving end of several thumpings at the hands of the Magpies – in 1894, we beat them 9-1 and 5-1, in 1896 we won 6-0, in 1959 we recorded a 4-1 victory, 1970 brought a 5-1 victory, while last season, a 4-0 scoreline at Meadow Lane brought some light to a gloomy first half of the campaign.
The origins of the “Alexandra” moniker in the club name aren’t fully known. Whether they took the name from a hotel, patronised by those connected with the railway works and where they held their meetings, or whether it was after Princess Alexandra of Denmark, who married Queen Victoria’s eldest son, later King Edward VII, is open to speculation.
Crewe is synonymous with arguably one of the greatest and most longevous managers in the English game: Dario Gradi. He is the Alex’s very own Sir Alex Ferguson, having managed the club between 1983 and 2011, with the exception of a hiatus between 2007 and 2009 where he nevertheless took the reins on a caretaker basis for a period. He currently manages the Academy. Speaking of which…
Crewe Alexandra’s academy is one of the best and most renowned in the English lower leagues. The Academy is known to stress technical excellence, which accords with the aim to have the first team play attractive, passing football.
 
Most of the club's achievements in youth development have come from none other than Gradi, and alumni include Geoff Thomas, David Platt, Robbie Savage, Neil Lennon, Steve Jones, Rob Jones, Danny Murphy, Seth Johnson and Dean Ashton and David Vaughan.
Impressively, Crewe’s final fixture of the 2012-13 season, a 2-0 win against Walsall, involved a starting XI made up entirely of Academy players.
In 2013, the club won its first-ever major silverware after beating Southend United 2-0 in the Johnstones Paint Trophy final at Wembley.
Crewe are known as the Railwaymen because of the town’s links to the British train network. Crewe station was completed in 1837 and is one of the most historic railway stations in the world. Nowadays, as well as serving the town of Crewe that has grown near it, it still operates as a major junction on the West Coast Main Line (WCML). It also serves as a major station on the WCML and as a major rail gateway for the North West.
The town of Crewe has an interesting roll call of local legends, including rugby player Mark Cueto, professional BMX racer Shanaze Reade, 1990s heartthrob Adam Rickitt (ask a female friend or relative between the ages of 25 and 30), Olympic gymnast Beth Tweddle, and Jimmy MacDonald, also known as the voice of Mickey Mouse.
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Febian Brandy, the former Notts striker with a not-too-shoddy record of scoring against the Magpies, may be fit to return to his loan club's starting XI after a calf injury.
Aside from the Rotherham United man, Alex manager Steve Davis pretty much has a clean bill of health as the Railwaymen look to bounce back from Saturday's 3-0 home loss to Colchester and a 6-1 drubbing at MK Dons.
Likewise, Notts manager Shaun Derry has no new injury, illness or suspension problems regarding his charges.
Despite a defiant performance away at Chesterfield, the gaffer can call upon the likes of Ronan Murray, Garry Thompson, Taylor McKenzie, Danny Haynes, Drissa Traore and Shaun Harrad should he wish to make any changes to his line-up.
Joe Jones
Another game, another backs-to-the-wall job, another point. Notts County took on local rivals this afternoon and were lucky to come away with a 1-1 draw after a lethargic first-half Chesterfield team were a completely different beast in the second half.

The Magpies made a bright start when Curtis Thompson's long throw fell to Haydn Hollis, who flicked the ball to an advancing Zeli Ismail. However, the 20-year-old's header was well saved by Spireites goalkeeper Tommy Lee.
The pressure continued as Nicky Wroe's drive following a poor clearance was deflected behind for a corner.
With just 15 minutes on the clock, the visitors broke the deadlock when another bad clearance fell to Adams just outside the box. The defender, deployed on the wing for this game, blasted the ball low and hard past Lee to put his side a goal up.
Just seven minutes later, the same player struck the post, the ball rebounding and ending wide.
With 38 minutes gone, the beleaguered Spireites registered chances courtesy of Arman Gnanduillet and Eoin Doyle, but neither striker was able to hit the target.
 
The second half saw Chesterfield a different proposition, as the home side powered forward at every opportunity. Jordan Cranston had to be at his best to thwart a goalmouth scramble in the 55th minute, while moments later, Daniel Johnson curled a ball just wide.
Despite an impervious performance by the Notts back line and goalkeeper, the equaliser duly came on the hour, when Georg Margreitter thumped a towering header home past Roy Carroll.
Just over ten minutes later, Doyle was put clean through on goal, but the Northern Ireland stopper did enough to thwart the chance, while Johnson's rebound was blocked by Cranston.
The visitors were under siege in the latter stages of the match, but ultimately held on for a draw.
Joe Jones
Notts County have played local rivals Chesterfield a total of 64 times over the years, with the first meeting coming on the 29th November 1930 in the FA Cup.

The game took place at the Spireites' old ground, Saltergate, and finished 2-1 to the Magpies.

The head-to-head record favours Notts, with 27 victories, 19 defeats and 18 draws.
The highest amount of goals scores in this fixture is six: on the 26th September 1964, the Magpies beat Chesterfield 5-1 in the old Division Four, while on the 15th November 1987, the two teams played out a 3-3 draw in the FA Cup.
Nobody knows the date when the first incarnation of Chesterfield Football Club was formed.
 
A Derbyshire Times newspaper report from the 2nd January 1864 noted a scheduled game between "Chesterfield and Norton football clubs", suggesting that a club in the town was active from at least 1863.
By contrast, club historian Stuart Basson had placed a formally constituted Chesterfield F.C. as being established as an offshoot of Chesterfield Cricket Club in October 1867.
The early history of the club is dotted with tumult and instability - the club lost the right to play at Saltergate following worsening relations with Chesterfield Cricket Club, while in 1915 the subsequent incarnation of the club, Chesterfield Town, was put into voluntary liquidation.
To fill the footballing gap left in the town, Chesterfield Borough Council reformed the club on 24 April 1919, giving it the name Chesterfield Municipal F.C.
After the Football Association and Football League made it clear that they were against a council-run club, the entity became independent, reflected in the name change to Chesterfield F.C. in December 1920.
The club have been successful in terms of minor silverware, winning the Fourth Division (and its subsequent reincarnations) a record four times, while also claimin the Anglo-Scottish Cup in 1982 and the Football League Trophy in 2012 (and finishing runners-up in 2014).
 
The 1996–97 season saw Chesterfield beat six clubs including Nottingham Forest to reach the semi-final of the FA Cup for the first time. The semi-final match against Middlesbrough was drawn 3–3 after extra time; Chesterfield lost the replay 3–0.
The club's nickname, The Spireites, comes from the Church of St Mary and All Saints in Chesterfield, famous for its crooked spire.
Legend goes that a virgin once married in the church, and the church was so surprised that the spire turned around to look at the bride. It is said that if another virgin marries in the church, the spire will return to true again.
The more realistic explanation is more of a scientific nature, however. It is now believed that the twisting of the spire was caused by the lead that covers the spire.
The lead causes this twisting phenomenon, because when the sun shines during the day the south side of the tower heats up, causing the lead there to expand at a greater rate than that of the north side of the tower, resulting in unequal expansion and contraction.
This was compounded by the weight of the lead (around 33 tons) which the spire's bracing was not originally designed to bear.
Famous Chesterfield players include Ernie Moss, Kevin Davies, Gary Stone, Jason Lee, Walter McMillen, Sam Hardy, Gordon Banks, Herbert Munday, Steve Ogrizovic, Barry Sunday, Freeman Hardy and Willis Edwards .
Famous fans include glamour model Jo Guest, presenter Robert Primrose Wilson, and ex-Arsenal goalkeeper John Lukic.
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Chesterfield midfielder Sam Morsy is doubtful after picking up a knock in the defeat at Doncaster last Saturday.
Boss Paul Cook is hopeful that winger Gary Roberts could come back into contention after recovering from a hamstring injury.
Notts defenders Blair Adams and Hayden Mullins could both be involved after injury.
Kyle Dixon is nearing fitness after suffering an ankle sprain but fellow midfielder Reece Brown has returned to parent club Birmingham City to receive treatment for after getting himself injured.
Joe Jones
Well, this afternoon's game will not go down in the annals any time soon, that's for sure. Notts County scraped yet another draw in League One, a third successive draw in fact, against an Oldham Athletic team that threatened virtually all afternoon.

Granted, we are in a better position this year than at the same stage last season, but there's only so many times we can scrape lucky draws against teams we should be beating before something gives.
The game started with the Magpies threatening first, as Ronan Murray was flagged offside after setting off too early on a run.
However, the pendulum swung Oldham's way thereafter, Dominic Poleon back-heeling the ball towards goal in the second minute, but Roy Carroll was able to save with ease.
On the quarter-hour mark, a good block by Louis Laing thwarted a powerful shot from Jonathan Forte after the ex-Magpie marauded into the box.
The game went through the motions in the first half, with the away side dominating proceedings, but failing to do much in the final third.
Likewise, the best effort by Notts was a speculative shot by Liam Noble from 25 yards midway through the first half, which fell kindly to Oldham goalkeeper Paul Rachubka.
Oldham ended the half on a high, captain Liam Kelly and Jones hitting shots wide in the closing minutes.
 
The second half picked up from where the first ended, Forte threatening to break the deadlock early on until he was stopped inside the penalty area by stand-in captain Haydn Hollis.
On 55 minutes, Mustapha Dumbuya sent a dangerous ball the way of Murray, but Rachubka was able to catch it out of the air just above the youngster's head.
Substitute Shaun Harrad almost made an immediate impact after coming on just after the hour, first lashing an overhead kick over the crossbar, then heading a ball towards goal that was saved by the Latics keeper.
Controversy reigned in the 78th minute when Harrad fell in the Oldham box, but the referee deemed it to be a dive and booked the comeback striker.
The game sparked into life somewhat in the late stages when Jake Cassidy almost put Ismail through on goal seven minutes later, but the visitors were able to clear.
Oldham then threatened to score right at the end, sub Danny Philliskirk heading over the bar from three yards.
Arguably the most agonising moment for Notts came in the third minute of injury time when Carroll had to tip a low shot from Connor Wilkinson past his left-hand post.
Joe Jones
Notts County first played Oldham Athletic all the way back in 1910. During the Division One fixture, played at the Oldham Athletic Ground (now known as Boundary Park), the home side ran out 2-1 winners against the Magpies.

The Latics hold the upper edge against Notts in the head-to-head, having won 36 games to our 34, while 20 draws have taken place.
Of those draws, arguably one of the most important in recent years was a mere four months ago, when Notts travelled to Boundary Park at the end of the 2013-14 season with their League One status in the balance.
I'm sure I don't need to remind people of events on that day - just thinking about that day gives me the willies - but needless to say, Notts got the job done with a 1-1 draw and completed the Great Escape.
The club was formed in 1895 as Pine Villa F.C. When local rivals Oldham County F.C. folded in 1899, Pine Villa moved into their stadium, the Oldham Athletic Ground, and changed their name to Oldham Athletic.
 
The Latics' most successful season came in 1914-15, when they finished runners-up in the First Division by a single point. They also reached the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, after making the semis just a year earlier.
Boundary Park is less than 9 miles from the nearby stadiums of Bury, Manchester City, Manchester United, and Rochdale.
Oldham's mascot, Chaddy the Owl, has famously been flagged for offside in a game against Peterborough United in 2000, while in 2003, in a game versus Blackpool at Bloomfield Road, Chaddy was involved in a scuffle with Bloomfield Bear after throwing his foam boots into the crowd. Chaddy defended himself, stating that Bloomfield Bear was attempting to break his beak.
Near the end of the 2005–06 football season, Chaddy was ejected from Belle Vue in a game versus Doncaster Rovers. Chaddy was escorted off of the premises after inciting a riot and making obscene gestures.
Notable Oldham Athletic fans include comedy duo Cannon and Ball, professor Brian Cox, ex-Manchester United footballer Paul Scholes, glamour model Michelle Marsh and Hollyoaks star Alex Carter.
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Notts County will check on loanee midfielder Reece Brown, who came off at half-time in the midweek draw with Leyton Orient because of illness.
Hayden Mullins, Mike Edwards, Blair Adams and Kyle Dixon are all still injured.
Oldham striker and former Magpie Jonathan Forte could return after missing the last two games with a thigh injury.
Winger James Dayton is expected to recover from an ankle knock picked up in the midweek draw at Swindon Town.
Joe Jones
Notts County survived a second-half blitz to secure a point at home against Leyton Orient in a 1-1 draw marred by a contentious penalty decision for the visitors' equaliser.

After an initial few minutes of tentative, cautious football, the game sprung into life as David Mooney's effort deflected off Curtis Thompson for a corner, from which Scott Cuthbert threatened with a header.
Shortly afterwards, Jake Cassidy set up Zeli Ismail, whose shot whistled past the back post, while Mooney, Jobi McAnuff and Reece Brown also registered efforts on goal for their respective sides, all within the first 10 minutes.
Things slowed down somewhat after the frantic opener, but both sides kept foraying into each other's areas in a bid to break the deadlock.
Eventually, the opening goal came, and it fell to the home side, courtesy of the referee awarding a penalty for a tackle on Haydn Hollis in the box.
Ismail stepped up and made no mistake from 12 yards to put the Magpies in the lead.
After conceding, the away side duly stepped up their game and pushed forward, troubling Notts on various opportunities, but were unable to breach their defenses, the half-time scoreline proving advantage Magpies.
Russell Slade was allegedly told that he had one game to save his job: this one. He must have given his team quite a stirring half-time speech, as Orient came out with serious intent after the break.
 
In the first few seconds of the second period, Michael Petrasso pounced on a loose Gary Jones ball before firing and nearly scoring.
He wouldn't have to wait long to put his side level, because just five minutes later, Curtis Thompson was judged to have brought down Mooney inside the area, and despite the protests, Chris Dagnall duly stepped up and struck the ball past Roy Carroll.
Notts were arguably lucky not to concede again, given the renewed efforts by the O's to seal the win and save their manager, but despite coming under siege, Shaun Derry's boys managed to contain their opposition and end the game with a draw and a valuable point.
Joe Jones
The first time that Notts County faced Leyton Orient was 101 years ago, when the Magpies travel to Millfields Road for a Division Two fixture.

The East London outfit won 1-0.

A total of 74 fixtures have taken place between the two, with the Nottingham outfit holding the upper hand historically - but only just, as 29 games have been won by the Magpies, with 26 O's wins and 19 draws.
Leyton Orient were founded in 1881, and have had several name changes throughout the years, including Eagle Cricket Club, Orient FC and Clapton Orient FC.
The O's, who play in Waltham Forest, are the second-oldest league club in London behind Fulham.
The club's unusual name is alleged to come from one of the club's early players (Jack R Dearing) who was an employee of the Orient Shipping Company.
 
During the First World War. 41 members of the Clapton Orient team and staff joined up into the 17th Battalion Middlesex Regiment (the Footballers' Battalion), the highest of any football team in the country and the first to join up en masse.
During the Battle of the Somme, three players gave their lives for King and Country: Richard McFadden, George Scott and William Jonas. Prior to the First World War, O's striker Richard McFadden had saved the life of a boy who was drowning in the River Lea as well as rescuing a man from a burning building.
History was made on Saturday 30th April 1921 when the Prince of Wales, later to become King Edward VIII, visited Millfields Road to see the O's play Notts County. The Orient won 3-0 and this was the first time a member of royalty had attended a Football League match.
Leyton Orient were involved in a dispute with the Premier League over its decision to allow West Ham to use the Olympic Stadium in London, with the O's expressing an interest in the 2012 Olympics venue, but this has now been settled with a "confidential agreement".
Arguably the most famous fans of the club are Andrew and Julian Lloyd Webber. The album Variations, used as the theme tune for London Weekend Television's South Bank Show, was written by Andrew as the result of his losing a bet to his brother on the result of a Leyton Orient match.
Julian later presented a gold disc of Variations to the club chairman at half time during a game with Leicester City.
In addition, David Beckham and Alfred Hitchcock were born in the borough.
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Notts County defenders Hayden Mullins and Mike Edwards are unlikely to feature, having been injured for Saturday's draw at Peterborough.
Midfielder Garry Thompson is pushing for a recall, but Kyle Dixon is yet to regain full fitness.
Leyton Orient will check on wingers Dean Cox and Jobi McAnuff, but defender Gary Sawyer and midfielder Lloyd James are doubts.
Midfielder Romain Vincelot is set to return after his one-match ban, while striker Kevin Lisbie remains sidelined with a shoulder injury.
Joe Jones
Notts County have secured a valuable point away from home against arguably one of the toughest teams to play so far this season, Peterborough United.

The Magpies made four changes to the side that beaten Mansfield Town in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy last week, with Roy Carroll returning in goal, new loan signing Louis Laing coming in for the injured Hayden Mullins, and Alan Smith and Zeli Ismail returning in place of Mike Edwards and Ronan Murray.
The first few minutes of the game were fairly even, but the Posh turned on the screw soon enough, with stand-in captain Alan Smith having to make a timely intervention to thwart what could have been a dangerous attack.
The first concrete chance of the game came in the ninth minute, when Marcus Maddison's shot rumbled the side netting, while on the quarter-hour mark, the same man fell in the Notts box, but was given a yellow card for his troubles.
Zeli Ismail showed flashes of intent when he rounded the keeper in the 18th minute, only for the move to be called offside, while just a minute later beat off two men before firing his shot wide.
On the half-hour mark, the Magpies enjoyed a lively spell when Liam Noble blasted an effort just wide, before setting up Jake Cassidy on two occasions. The Wolves man was just off target with his chances.
Controversy ensued a few minutes later when Reece Brown's shot appeared to be handled in the box, but nothing was given.
Both sides kept plugging away at each other right into first-half injury time and until the whistle, with a draw at the break a fair enough assessment of their respective performances.
 
The second half saw more of the same, albeit with fewer clear-cut chances.
Peterborough were appealing for a penalty against Haydn Hollis in the 77th minute when Kyle Vassell went to ground, but nothing was given by the referee.
The Posh had arguably the best chance of the game right in the final few seconds when a slip by Gary Jones allowed Maddison to maraud in on goal, but the former Gateshead man couldn't capitalise with the last kick of the game, and so the spoils were shared.
Joe Jones
Notts County and Peterborough have met a grand total of 44 times over the years, dating back to the 1960s.
The first meeting between the two, a Third Division fixture on the 7th September 1961, ended in a 2-2 draw.
Our record win over the Posh is a 6-0 drubbing at Meadow Lane in the 1970-71 season, while our record defeat to them is a 5-1 loss in 1963.
 
Last time the two sides played each other, at London Road in January this year, it proved one of the most frustrating afternoons of last season for the Magpies. We surged into a two-goal lead within the ten minutes, only for Ronan Murray to be sent off a few minutes later for an off-the-ball incident with Joe Swanson, with the Posh going on to pull it back and win 4-3 thanks in part to a Nicky Ajose hat-trick.
Peterborough United are nicknamed "The Posh" because Pat Tirrel, then manager of Fletton United - the current club’s previous incarnation - was reported to say he was "looking for posh players for a posh new team".
Fletton, previously known as the 'Brickies', re-formed as Peterborough and Fletton United in 1923, and both nicknames were in use through the 1920s, although supporters complained that 'Posh' references were sometimes used by newspapers in a derisory manner.
Peterborough and Fletton United folded in 1932, the present club was formed two years later and a Midland League debut against Gainsborough Trinity on 1st September 1934 was greeted with cries of 'Up The Posh' from the crowd.
 
14 years ago, Peterborough United clashed with Victoria Beckham, aka “Posh Spice”, over the use of the “Posh” nickname. She had apparently objected to Peterborough's plans to register "Posh" and "The Posh" as registered trademarks, but eventually backed down after realising the club had been using that nickname some 50 years before she was born.
Notts and Peterborough also played a blinder of a game back on the 28th September 2010 at London Road, the Magpies surging into a two-goal lead courtesy of Ben Davies, before Gabriel Zakuani’s header halved the deficit. Craig Westcarr restored the away side’s two-goal lead, before Craig Mackail-Smith made things tense for the last half hour thanks to his angled shot.
The game is also known for a 22-man brawl at the final whistle, which resulted in an FA charge for both teams and a £15,000 fine.
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Peterborough duo Joe Newell and Kgosi Ntlhe are ready to return after overcoming groin injuries.
Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, Erhun Oztumer, and Michael Bostwick are out, while Zakuani is back from international duty.
Notts County defender Blair Adams, midfielder Garry Thomson and striker Danny Haynes are all available after injury.
Midfielder Kyle Dixon is back in training, but is still a few weeks away from fitness after an ankle problem.
Joe Jones
Yes, you could argue it was a game against lower league opposition, in a second-rate competition. But nevertheless, it was the perfect response to Sunday's last-gasp defeat at Bristol City, it was a good runout for some of our fringe players, and crucially, it gives us bragging rights over a local rival.

Notts County put in a good performance against Mansfield Town, two players getting themselves on the scoresheet to beat the Stags 2-0 in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy this evening.
The away side arguably began the game more eagerly, in a bid to give a good opening account of themselves away against higher-ranked opposition, but it didn't take long for Notts to gain a foothold into the game, going on to dominate possession and pushing forward.
Just before the quarter-hour mark, Ronan Murray blasted a powerful low shot towards goal, which was skilfully deflected by Dimitar Evtimov and out for the first of two consecutive corners.
A few minutes later, Reece Brown was next to threaten the Stags fort with a long-range effort that flew wide, while Murray saw two efforts desperately blocked in the 19th minute.
It wasn't until midway through the first half that Mansfield were able to trouble the Magpies net, a Simon Heslop free kick curling just wide.
County, or more accurately Murray, kept plugging away, and eventually, on the half-hour mark, got their just desserts.
The Irish boy wonder received the ball following some great link-up play on the left-hand side before firing home for the first goal of the match.
By this point, it was all Notts. Jake Cassidy went on to blast into the side netting just a few minutes after the goal, while Brown thumped a header just slightly off target in the 34th minute.
Mansfield were more fired up at the start of the second half, and could have scored ten minutes after the restart when Matt Rhead headed wide, shortly followed by an Alex Fisher shot that had to be saved by stand-in stopper Fabian Spiess.
Chris Clements was next to sully the German youngster's fists, courtesy of a corner in the 57th minute.
For their improvements, however, Mansfield would not be able to reap any benefits in the latter stages of the game, because in the 65th minute, Cassidy was able to latch onto a low free-kick, beat his marker and thump home from close range for that all-important second goal.
Mansfield, to their credit, weren't quite down and out just yet - Ollie Palmer gave Spiess a fright in the 74th minute, the young keeper having to pull off a smart save from the Stags man.
However, the away side weren't able to mount a comeback, and with the game petering out towards the late, late stages, Notts fans could sit comfortably and not have to bite any fingernails - a rare occurrence even at this early point in the season - before the final whistle blew on a solid 2-0 win and progress to the second round of this cup competition.
Joe Jones
Notts County and Mansfield Town have faced each other a total of 14 times over the years, with the first fixture taking place in October 1937.

This game, which took place in Division Three South, finished 2-0 to the Magpies.

Since then, the fixture has been on a knife-edge, with Notts winning 16 and Mansfield 14 (13 games have been drawn).
 
In recent times, the Stags have had the better of things, winning four of the last ten games.
During this run, which stretches back to 2002, the Magpies have only won once, a thrilling 3-2 victory on the 29th August 2005.
The club was formed under the name of Mansfield Wesleyans in 1897, the name of the club coming from the local Wesleyan church.
In the summer of 1910, the team changed its name to Mansfield Town.
 
In March 2008, it was reported that John Batchelor, a bidder for the club, planned to rename the club to Harchester United after the fictional squad from the TV series Dream Team to make the club "more promotable" if his bid were a success. This plan never came to fruition.
In September 2011, the Stags appointed Carolyn Still as the club's chief executive, the youngest in English football at the age of 29. Two weeks later, it was confirmed that she was to marry club owner John Radford.
Mansfield and Notts share a rivalry due to geographical proximity and similar standings in the league pyramid.
Most of the Stags' footballing hostility, however, goes the way of Chesterfield, given their respective towns' differing stances during the miners' strike of 1984-85.
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For Notts, Blair Adams is a doubt after suffering a groin injury, while Jimmy Spencer, Kyle Dixon and Garry Thompson remain sidelined.
Mansfield have Liam Hearn out with a long-term knee injury, while John Dempster and Luke Jones are doubts for the Johnstone's Paint Trophy first round clash.
Joe Jones
Well, today we were hard done by. After taking an early lead against Bristol City, it was a case of backs to the wall for the Magpies, as the opposition plugged away.

Even though the Robins' efforts were ultimately rewarded with a goal on the hour, we were certainly capable of finishing the game with something.

That is, until the referee's late intervention gifted City an ill-deserved penalty right at the death, and then, that was it. We had lost the game, cruelly robbed of a point.
The game began with the visitors quickest off the starting blocks, as debutant Kieran Agard headed wide from Mark Little's cross on the right flank after just a minute.
Three minutes later, Robins goalkeeper Frank Fielding had to be alert to punch away a Liam Noble cross, the ball falling to Gary Jones, who blasted over.
Just before the quarter-hour mark, however, the breakthrough came the way of the home side.
A Haydn Hollis punt upfield was misjudged by the City defence, with Zeli Ismail claiming possession of the ball. After beating one defender and holding off another, he slotted the ball past Fielding to send the Kop wild.
The visitors responded positively and could have equalised when Luke Freeman's free-kick clipped the outside of the post on the half-hour mark.
Two minutes later, Noble skipped past two Bristol players, but his subsequent shot flew just wide.
The two teams exchanged sparring blows after the break, but with City growing into the game, it came as little surprise when, on the hour, Little's cross caused havoc in the home defence, and despite Agard failing to connect, Aaron Wilbraham was at hand to tap the ball into an empty net for the equalising goal.
Now brimming with confidence, Steve Cotterill's side stepped it up a gear and found themselves troubling Notts time and time again, although they were let off in the 82nd minute when, following a counterattack, Fielding had to be at his best to save a low Ismail drive.
For all their efforts, however, Notts were on course to settle for a well-earned point, but then disaster struck in injury time.
Luke Freeman forayed into the area when Curtis Thompson went into a challenge, with the Bristol man convincingly drawing a foul, some might say even dived to the ground.
The referee blew for a penalty, much to the shock and anger of everyone linked with Notts, on the pitch, on the sidelines and in the stands.
Nevertheless, Jay Emanuel-Thomas placed the ball on the penalty spot, composed himself, and sent Roy Carroll the wrong way to steal the victory away from the Magpies.
Joe Jones
Notts County and Bristol City have faced each other a gargantuan 105 times over their history. This is because both clubs have been regularly playing each other since the 1900s.

Tomorrow will however be just the third league encounter between the two in ten years - and all of these have taken place in the last year.

Bristol City only just hold the upper edge, having won 42 games to Notts's 39. 24 matches have been drawn.
The city of Bristol is the largest metro area in England never to have won the English top tier championship.
 
In 1907 they finished runners-up in Football League Division One, which is their highest ever final position.
City won the Welsh Cup – despite being an English club – in 1934.
In 1982, Bristol City became the first English club to suffer three consecutive relegations.
Ashton Gate is the only ground in the English football league not to accommodate executive boxes.
 
Despite their underachievements, Bristol City is supported by some notable celebrities, including John Cleese of Monty Python and Fawlty Towers fame, Formula 1 great Jenson Button, and actor Russell Crowe.
Bristol City shares the English football league record for consecutive wins, notching up 14 wins in a row during the 1905-06 season.
This record is shared with Arsenal, Manchester United, and Preston North End.
Bristol was home to Harvey’s Bristol Cream Sherry, created in Bristol in 1796, and J S Fry, who produced the world’s first bar of chocolate in Bristol in 1847.
Bristol has been voted one of the most popular places to live in Britain and one of the top three most popular cities.
The Plimsoll line, Ribena and Tarmac were all invented in Bristol.
Famous Bristolians include: Banksy, Blackbeard, Julie Burchill, Sebastian Cabot, Justin Lee Collins, Russ Conway, Robin Cousins, Adge Cutler, Dynamite MC, The Fry Family (Chocolate), WG Grace, Cary Grant, James May, Stephen Merchant, Michael Redgrave, Tom Stoppard, Lee Evans, Damian Hurst, Josie Gibson, Carol Vorderman, Sophie Anderton, Arthur Milton, The Wursels, Ben Collins aka White Stig, Cathy Barry, Dave Prowse, Fred Wedlock, folk singer best known for his UK hit single "The Oldest Swinger In Town" Gareth Chilcott, Gary Mabbutt, Ian Holloway, John Ateo, Johnny Ball, Judd Trump, Massive Attack, Robin Cousins, Roni Size (founder and leader of Reprazent, a drum and bass collective), Wallace and Gromit (& creator Nick Park)
---
Notts have defender Cieron Keane and midfielder Nicky Wroe available after both missed the 2-0 win at Port Vale through suspension.
Teenage midfielder Reece Brown could make his debut after signing on loan from Birmingham City.
Bristol City could give a debut to striker Kieran Agard following his arrival from Rotherham United.
Agard was an unused substitute in the 1-1 draw at Rochdale, but could replace Sam Baldock, who has joined Brighton.
Joe Jones
Today's victory is brought to you by the Rocky Balboa school of "Not Going Down Despite Being Completely Pummeled from Start to Finish".

Notts County travelled to Port Vale and were under the cosh for most of the game, the opposition clocking up 24 shots and 18 corners, but nevertheless scored two unanswered goals to record the unlikeliest of wins in Staffordshire.

The away side actually started the brighter, Vale goalkeeper Sam Johnson having to claim from two Notts attacks within the first two minutes.
In the 10th minute, Mustapha Dumbuya was forced to clear a shot off his line, Vale clearly in the ascendency, but just a minute later came the first Magpie sucker punch.
Veteran Gary Jones, his side breaking from a Vale attack, connected beautifully onto the ball from about 25 yards out, sending a stunning volley past Johnson into the net to send the travelling support into raptures.
Bad news came the Magpies' way midway through the first half as Blair Adams, declared fit before the game, had to be subbed off as early as the 28th minute. Curtis Thompson came on in his place.
Just after the half-hour mark, Haydn Hollis nearly doubled his side's lead, but the young defender wasn't able to connect with Jones's free kick.
The two sides proceeded to exchange several more half-chances, but no more goals were to be scored before the break.
 
The best Notts chance of the game came in the 50th minute when Liam Noble was sent through one-on-one against Johnson, but the Vale keeper deflected the ball over with his leg.
After the hour mark, the home side burst into life, Colin Daniel mistiming a volley in the 65th minute and Tom Pope firing wide from a tight angle just moments later.
By the 70th minute, it was backs to the wall for Notts, as Shaun Derry's side had to thwart several chances in quick succession.
Pope, Daniel and Mark Marshall all plugged away with efforts which seemed to suggest that a Vale goal was imminent.
However, with just four minutes to go of the game, came yet another Notts sucker punch (and how good does it feel to be on the right side of these this season!), courtesy of Noble's deflected free kick.
Game over. After huffing and puffing for the last half hour, Vale were left disconsolate as their efforts ultimately led to nothing.
Save for another half-chance by Marshall in injury time, there was little more action, and the final whistle ultimately blew on a topsy-turvy and nail-biting game that, fortunately, went the right way.

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Pride of Nottingham

Pride of Nottingham is an independent fansite devoted to Notts County, the world’s oldest professional football club. Created in 2013, it has served as a source of Magpie news, features, match previews, reports, analysis and interviews for more than three years.

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