PADDY Madden knows Stockport are spending big to try and return to the Football League – but it takes more than money.
It is a matter of who you spend it on rather than how much you spend.
Which points to why he dropped two levels and out of the Football League. He wants to add another honour – it is not for a hefty pay cheque.
Irishman Madden swapped League One Fleetwood for National League County, who paid in the region of £250,000.
So far, things are not going to plan but new boss Dave Challinor has been brought in to mould the expensively-assembled squad into challengers.
But striker Madden, who had a trial at the club when he was 16-years-old, is adamant the spirit is there to reawaken a sleeping giant at Edgeley Park.
He said: “I’ve been at clubs before where they’ve just splashed money out but without bringing in the right characters, you’re not going to get promoted.
“It’s about making sure everyone is right and there’s that winning mentality to get the team up. We’ve a great group here who are all pulling in the same direction.
“I’m 31 now and Stockport are a sleeping giant, so helping them back into the league is something is something I’d be remembered by.
“And at 31, I could tick off another thing. I’ve been promoted from League One and League Two, so getting promoted from the National League would complete a trio.
“I knew about the club and its fan base before I came but being here now showed me how big it is and with the direction the chairman wants to take it in, it’s only going to get bigger.”
Madden and Stockport get the chance to see how good they can really be with an FA Cup trip to nearby Bolton.
5,000 fans snapped up tickets – it would have been a lot more if they could get them.
And it sees a reunion with fellow Dubliner Eoin Doyle, who he first encountered in the heat of his home city’s biggest derby, and a win would give Stockport belief they can achieve their main aim.
He added: “Eoin and I took a similar path. He was at Shamrock when I was at Bohemians, which is a big derby in Dublin.
“You’d get 7,000-8,000 fans for that game as the north side of Dublin is Bohemians and the south side is Shamrock Rovers.
“It’s definitely the biggest derby in Ireland. For a normal game, you’d get 3,000-4,000.
“We played against each other in that game and have come across each other over here. We’ve had a lot of battles.
“It’s a good test for us. Bolton are a big club who have done quite well but we’ll see where we stand against a good team.
“We know we have a good squad but it’s about doing it on the big occasions. This season hasn’t been as good as we wanted but it’s about gathering momentum and kicking on.
“And if we can go out and cause an upset, it would give us more confidence that we need and that we have a really good squad here.
“We showed what we can do at Dover last Saturday on probably the worst pitch I’ve ever played on. If we can do it today, it will keep breeding that confidence.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
