Branston vows not to sit on the fence but Caldwell is decision final

The club’s newly appointed head of recruitment and development believes in ‘saying it like it is’ but while he isn’t shy about offering an opinion, ultimately he will bow to manager Gary Caldwell’s decisions.

He was offered the job last Wednesday, announced to supporters on Saturday and met staff at the Proact on Monday.

The work to provide Caldwell with valuable information on players he might want to bring to the club has already begun.

“I think we’re getting on really well since I agreed to take the job last Wednesday,” said Branston.

“I came to the game on Saturday and I’ve watched this team 10 to 15 times now.

“I’m understanding what he wants for next season.

“We’ve got to work with the youth department, the football department, the board.

“He’s here to be successful, same as me.”

Branston says it’s not his job to bring players to the club, simply to gather and pass on accurate information to the gaffer.

He won’t be pulling any punches when it comes to assessing footballers.

“A lot of football staff like to sit on the fence, I’m not like that,” he said.

“I don’t think we should have full agreement with everyone on the player.

“If there’s any worry a player isn’t right for the club then it needs to be said.

“If someone has an opinion they should say it for the right reason, good or bad.

“The manager digests all the information and if he feels it’s the right decision, it’s the right decision.

“My opinion is my opinion but if he doesn’t want a player here, he doesn’t want a player here.”

Branston’s wealth of contacts is one of the reasons he was appointed.

He began scouting while he was still a professional footballer and worked as chief scout at Notts County for 15 months.

Those contacts will come in handy as he attempts to help Chesterfield with a major squad rebuild this summer.

But he has also asked the club to back him in setting up their own scouting network.

“My existing contacts I think are very, very good, I pride myself on it,” he said.

“Setting up a network within Chesterfield FC, scouts working for Chesterfield and supporting Chesterfield’s needs is very, very important.

“I’ve asked for a tiny budget – a lot, lot less than I worked with at Notts County, which wasn’t used to its full capabilities.

“It will be set up very, very quickly and we will have scouts around the country, getting information into Chesterfield FC for the right reasons.

“There’s information given out every night, football never stops, my phone never stops ringing at recruitment time.”