Ambitious Derbyshire football club in double signing swoop of former Chesterfield FC players Nathan Tyson and Craig Westcarr

The striker is only the second former Chesterfield player to join Clay Cross after the Millers announced the signing of Craig Westcarr in early June.

Tyson and Westcarr join several other new signings for the 2024/25 season, as Clay Cross Town looks to push higher and higher up the English football pyramid.

CCTFC secretary Dave Clarke described the club's new recruits as “some nice new signings”.

He added: “We’re keeping the nucleus of the team from last year who did us really proud with stretched resources. But we’ve introduced these new players now, and some ex-professionals who are hopefully going to be mentors for the younger players who we’ve got coming through.

“Hopefully, Nathan and Craig will deliver for us.”

Nathan had been convinced to come down to the club and admitted that he had been impressed by what he had seen, seeing CCTFC as a “good project”.

Having signed on the dotted line, the ex Spireite is aiming to bring experience to the team.

He said: “I hope to bring plenty of experience. I’ve played way over 600 professional games, and not only that some enjoyment to the team.

“I’ll hopefully bag a few goals and assists as well but at the end of the day I just want to go out and enjoy my football. As long as I can help the team to win games and put a smile on my face then I’m more than happy.”

Nathan said he is looking forward to the new challenge and starting the new season with the club

“I know one or two of the players already, and I know their calibre and I know what they bring. Hopefully that will bring out the best in me and I’ll get the best out of them as well.

“I’m looking forward to meeting the rest of the lads and getting started. I know pre-season is just around the corner so it’s time to dust off the running shoes.”

Nathan’s football career spans all the way back to 1999, making his professional debut for his hometown club of Reading. Over 20 years he has played for several clubs, including Nottingham Forest, Derby County and Chesterfield.

Representing England at Under 20 level as well as scoring passed ex-England keeper Joe Hart in an FA cup upset are two of a number of highlights from Nathan’s long and successful career in football.

The forward also looks back on his time as a Chesterfield player fondly. In his three year stint with the blues Nathan broke two club records; becoming Chesterfield’s oldest ever goal scorer as well as scoring the only town player to score a hattrick after coming off the bench.

Nathan will be joined at CCTFC by another former Town player, Craig Westcarr.

Westcarr played as a striker for the Spireites between 2011-2013 and is best remembered for scoring the winning goal in the Johnstones Paint trophy final against Swindon Town at Wembley in 2013.

The signing of two former Spireites are not the only indicators of the clubs growing ambitions.

New investment and an FA grant has allowed the club to push forward the construction of new changing rooms in time for the new season.

Building work is well underway on purpose built changing facilities for both home and away teams, as well as facilities for match officials, and new toilets.

The new building, which is being built closer to the Mill Lane pitch, will also house a clubhouse and bar, set to be named the “Town Lounge”.

Money will also be spent on new border fencing around the pitch and improved signage around the club.

The clubs carpark is also set to be extended to mitigate street parking problems on matchdays.

Plans are also in the works for an outdoor space with areas to play darts and skittles, which may potentially include a five-a-side pitch.

Dave said: “The future looks quite bright for us. We’re in a new league. We’ve been moved laterally by the FA which we didn’t want to but that’s what they’ve done with us.

“But it’s a new league, new players and new facilities. We’re extending the club and it’s looking good.”

Investment has also been put into the pitch after what has been a tough few club, with flooding caused by Storm Baber leaving the pitch unplayable for much of the season.

Dave said: “After the floods in October we literally just couldn’t get the ground here at Mill Lane going. Any drop of rain and we had to call the games off. Not necessarily because we didn’t want to play but for the health and safety of everybody concerned.

“At the club we’ve had the worst winter I think, in my memory, since I started here in 1989.”

£10,000 has been invested to create further draining at the south end of the ground, as well as verti draining of the pitch and the introduction of 20 tonnes of sand under the turf.

Dave hopes that once the pitch has been fertilised in a month the ground will be back to looking like a “little Wembley”.

He hopes the new investments, facilities and star signings are going to increase the interest and attendances to the clubs games.

He said: “Once we start bringing in these ex-professionals in, that makes people look up.

“They might come through the gates and who knows, they might take a look at us, start cheering us on and get used to coming to see us.”