Post by someoneelse on Dec 18, 2013 23:17:31 GMT
Me and the Vicar are looking to bring together a comprehensive story about the supporters of Stockport County Football Club.
As things have slipped on and off the pitch the one asset we have control over remains and it seems like a good time to document their (our) story. Few groups of fans can have endured the type of adversity we have and still keep coming back for more.
So we're looking at writing the history of our club but by concentrating on the people who make it what it is. Us.
All profits (if there are any!) will go to the Co-Op.
This isn't meant to be a 'done them, run them' hooligan memoir, though stories of that nature have a part to play. Nor will it be a collection of stories that show just how wacky we are, though stories of that nature have a part to play. It will be warts and all, happy clappers and happy slappers, and everything inbetween.
Please, please take this opportunity to contribute. Send me or Vic your stories. They can be about a daft day out, a silly incident or something run of the mill. We just want as many people giving us a slice of their life as a County fan. Don't worry if writing or storytelling isn't your forte, we can sort that.
Cartoons, illustrations and obviously personal photographs have a huge part to play too.
It'd make sense to put an initial deadline on this of the end of January.
Here's a first draft of an intro which we may or may not use.
The story of Stockport County is one of adversity.
In the modern era, everyone seems to have a favourite team and increasingly the most famous and successful teams are more prominent. Two of them are based just six miles away from Stockport in Manchester. Their presence has long cast a shadow over County, and therefore moments in the sun for the unfashionable team from the suburbs have been few and far between.
And yet, County were formed in 1883, just five years after Man United and three years after Man City. Originally known as Heaton Norris Rovers, the club based themselves on the Lancashire side of the River Mersey which runs through the centre of Stockport and famously culminates in the city of Liverpool, 60 miles to the west.
Like the Mersey which runs through the nearby town centre, County spent most of the next century quietly ebbing and flowing. Most of their time was spent between the bottom two tiers of English professional football. Prolonged periods of struggle for survival were punctuated by peaks of positivity. Modest success came in the form of a couple of promotions. FA and League Cup triumphs were similarly few and far between which only served to make them mean so much more when they finally came around.
In 1988, more than a century of simply existing appeared to be at an end. A golden era for the club was to begin, with pioneering Uruguayan coach Danny Bergara taking the managerial reigns from Asa Hartford at the behest of new County owner Brendan Elwood. What followed was a period of unprecedented growth and success for the club. Bergara remained for six years and his good work was finished off by a coach he had groomed in the shape of Dave Jones. Jones gave County a 67 game season they could have only previously dreamed of. It ended in promotion to the second tier of English football for the first time in living memory and led to five seasons in which County were finally able to dominate at least one of their more fancied local rivals. County even spent a season a division above Manchester City.
Pride comes before a fall though, and for all the good times enjoyed in the 1990s, the next decade would not be so kind. By 2013 County had fallen a full five divisions. Mismanagement on a scale rarely seen elsewhere in English football led to County becoming a part time football club. Set against the successes of their prosperous neighbours, 106 continuous years as a Football League club was a source of pride to the club's hardy band of followers. Simply remaining in business was a triumph.
In 2013, County play in the Conference North in front of attendances which dwarf their opponents. Despite everything, the support which County enjoys is unrivalled. While much of the fabric of Stockport County has been stripped away, sold off, disregarded and stolen, the one true strand of its most durable DNA remains. The fans.
This is their story.
As things have slipped on and off the pitch the one asset we have control over remains and it seems like a good time to document their (our) story. Few groups of fans can have endured the type of adversity we have and still keep coming back for more.
So we're looking at writing the history of our club but by concentrating on the people who make it what it is. Us.
All profits (if there are any!) will go to the Co-Op.
This isn't meant to be a 'done them, run them' hooligan memoir, though stories of that nature have a part to play. Nor will it be a collection of stories that show just how wacky we are, though stories of that nature have a part to play. It will be warts and all, happy clappers and happy slappers, and everything inbetween.
Please, please take this opportunity to contribute. Send me or Vic your stories. They can be about a daft day out, a silly incident or something run of the mill. We just want as many people giving us a slice of their life as a County fan. Don't worry if writing or storytelling isn't your forte, we can sort that.
Cartoons, illustrations and obviously personal photographs have a huge part to play too.
It'd make sense to put an initial deadline on this of the end of January.
Here's a first draft of an intro which we may or may not use.
The story of Stockport County is one of adversity.
In the modern era, everyone seems to have a favourite team and increasingly the most famous and successful teams are more prominent. Two of them are based just six miles away from Stockport in Manchester. Their presence has long cast a shadow over County, and therefore moments in the sun for the unfashionable team from the suburbs have been few and far between.
And yet, County were formed in 1883, just five years after Man United and three years after Man City. Originally known as Heaton Norris Rovers, the club based themselves on the Lancashire side of the River Mersey which runs through the centre of Stockport and famously culminates in the city of Liverpool, 60 miles to the west.
Like the Mersey which runs through the nearby town centre, County spent most of the next century quietly ebbing and flowing. Most of their time was spent between the bottom two tiers of English professional football. Prolonged periods of struggle for survival were punctuated by peaks of positivity. Modest success came in the form of a couple of promotions. FA and League Cup triumphs were similarly few and far between which only served to make them mean so much more when they finally came around.
In 1988, more than a century of simply existing appeared to be at an end. A golden era for the club was to begin, with pioneering Uruguayan coach Danny Bergara taking the managerial reigns from Asa Hartford at the behest of new County owner Brendan Elwood. What followed was a period of unprecedented growth and success for the club. Bergara remained for six years and his good work was finished off by a coach he had groomed in the shape of Dave Jones. Jones gave County a 67 game season they could have only previously dreamed of. It ended in promotion to the second tier of English football for the first time in living memory and led to five seasons in which County were finally able to dominate at least one of their more fancied local rivals. County even spent a season a division above Manchester City.
Pride comes before a fall though, and for all the good times enjoyed in the 1990s, the next decade would not be so kind. By 2013 County had fallen a full five divisions. Mismanagement on a scale rarely seen elsewhere in English football led to County becoming a part time football club. Set against the successes of their prosperous neighbours, 106 continuous years as a Football League club was a source of pride to the club's hardy band of followers. Simply remaining in business was a triumph.
In 2013, County play in the Conference North in front of attendances which dwarf their opponents. Despite everything, the support which County enjoys is unrivalled. While much of the fabric of Stockport County has been stripped away, sold off, disregarded and stolen, the one true strand of its most durable DNA remains. The fans.
This is their story.
so I'm not sure I've got any more. I'd gladly help with any of your publication issues, though, assuming you're going down the self-publishing route. You've probably got it all covered, but if not, just ask. As I said on another thread, creating an e-book, assuming you've got cover art and the manuscript, takes about an hour. And if you sell it on Amazon you'd get 70% of the cover price (say £2.80 per copy sold if you sell it for £3.99). 200 e-books sold (which isn't a lot, really) at £3.99 and you raise over 500 quid from that alone, before you even start thinking about physical books.
