There’s something striking about Chesterfield Football Club that suggests it’s wonderfully stuck between generations.
The players return from training to change in the dressing rooms they use on a Saturday. A cheery older gentleman – the type of man you would find around any local club whose presence is his greatest asset – welcomes them back into the stadium with a warm grin. Another man, wearing Chesterfield track pants and a Chelsea jumper, manually marks out the lines on the pitch – all in a five-year-old $25 million stadium.
They’ve never made it to England’s top flight and have been stuck in the lower two tiers of the Football League since the 1930s, but have goals that outweigh the expectations of their working class town.
After spending 11 years at Aston Villa, the Proact Stadium seems the perfect place for part two of Chris Herd’s career.
“I learnt my trade there, I came over as a 15-year-old boy,” Herd says on the touch line of an empty Proact, which would house 6000 fans a day later.
“I had some really good coaches in the youth team. I had a breakthrough with (Alex) McLeish that season (2011-12). I had a really good time there to be honest, everything left on great terms. It was just the right time to move on and kickstart my career again.
“I just need a season to get myself playing as many games as possible. We’ve got a really good squad here and I think they can get promoted so it was the right option for me.
“I’ve settled in really quickly, the lads can really see how good a squad we have. It’s exciting and we’ve got a real chance at getting promoted. To get into the Championship would be massive for Chesterfield after coming up from League Two.”
The Spireites – their nickname a tribute to the town’s famous crooked spire – went down to Gillingham 3-1 on Saturday, but Herd was once again named in the starting line-up – his fourth appearance for the club this season.
With injuries playing a starring role in the tale of his senior career, it’s a welcome change of pace for the Bayswater City junior.
There would have been a few nerves in the home dugout as Herd went down under a full-blooded challenge late in the first half, but he eventually staggered back to his feet and got on with the job.
It’s early days, but all signs point towards this season being the rebirth of the Socceroo.
Football has given Herd a mountain of reasons to turn his back, but his loyalty has never wavered. It was around this time last year he finally earned his Socceroos debut, having been forced to withdraw from the national team camp twice prior.
Perhaps it’s the support of his two-year-old daughter and wife, but Herd’s determination is admirable.
“As a person I’m always motivated to play and be at the highest level I can be. I feel like every week I’m getting stronger, fitter and settling back into playing every Saturday.
“I can honestly say I’ve never lost motivation. You get a lot of people doubting you regarding your injuries, but all you can do is try and prove them wrong, that’s the best way.
“If you want to be successful you’ve got to be positive. I’ve got a young family, they motivate me a lot. It comes naturally to me, I’ve just always been motivated to do well.”
Undoubtedly a contributing factor is his father Willie, a former professional himself. Herd Senior temporarily relocated to England midway through 2014 when personal issues sidelined his son for club and country.
For Chris, it meant time away from his teammates, but not the game.
“He’s probably been the most influential character in my career. He’s been there training me since I remember. Last summer I didn’t take any holidays, I just trained the whole summer to get back into pre-season. He came over from Australia and trained me every day and it was a massive help. It sort of helped me get the foundations of my fitness.
“It’s a different kind of training, obviously when you’re with the group it’s self motivating because you want to be the best player when you walk onto the pitch, but when you train on your own you have to have the mindset and know what you’re working for.”
Another setback quickly followed as Herd’s Asian Cup ended quicker than it took to fly home.
A season-ending injury and the surgeon’s scalpel beckoned.
On paper, Chesterfield coach Dean Saunders took a risk picking up the 26-year-old. He’s been rewarded thus far, though, with Herd establishing himself in the midfield, rather than the right-back spot he occupied for the Socceroos against Belgium.
Ange Postecoglou’s selection of in-form Alex Cisak of League Two Leyton Orient has given Herd an assurance of being noticed this season.
“I think that’s the message that is out there – if you’re performing at your club and it’s a decent level of football, I think you’ll have the chance to play. All I can do is concentrate on my club football and if I’m doing well hopefully I can work my way back into the team.
“I think as a coach and as a manager he’s really good. His beliefs in football are really good and you can learn a lot from him. We’ve got the right group and the right mentality, so I don’t see why we can’t progress at the next World Cup.”
Whether Herd will be on that flight to Russia in 2017 for the Confederations Cup or 2018 for the showpiece seemingly remains in his control, if not his limbs.
It’s been a bumpy ride, but the best may be yet to come.
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