Derek Pestridge Photo: D&D Autos, Ashford
All garage owner Derek Pestridge wanted was to see the name of his business on the front of the first team shirts of the local Ashford football team.
It was a simple enough idea, but it was to see Derek, founder of Ashford-based D&D Autos, embark on a roller-coaster ride that saw him not just chair the club through much of the next, often troubled, decade, but support it financially on a number of occasions.
Now standing down as the chairman of Ashford United FC following the sale of the club to Lloyd Hume and David Warr, Derek admits that his involvement with the Isthmian South East League side has been “exciting to say the least”.
It wasn’t supposed to be that complicated.
“I just thought it would be good exposure for the business if we could sponsor the team,” he recalled. “Shortly after that I was asked to stand in as chairman as the club was going through a tricky patch, and I’ve held that position ever since, in recent years serving as joint chairman.”
That “tricky patch” involved significant legal wrangles over the ownership of the club that saw the future of Ashford United in jeopardy, but despite the challenges Derek has worked hard over the past ten years or so “to make sure Ashford has a football club it can be proud of”.
Remarkably, Derek – originally a Brentford FC fan – has only missed two or three matches since stepping into the chairman’s role.
“I’ve been there, home and away, at virtually every match,” he said. “I’ve loved being involved with the club and I’m proud of what it has achieved.”
His favourite footballing memory is the last game of the 2016/17 season, when the team sealed the top spot in the Southern Counties East Football League by putting seven goals past Rochester to pip Crowborough to the title. Shaun Welford was the goal hero that day as he had been throughout that season, Derek recalled.
“I’ve also really enjoyed the social side of the game,” Derek, whose wife Margaret has also become a much-loved and vital part of the team at Homelands, added. “Not just getting to know the players and supporters but meeting other owners, chairman and club officials as we have played other sides in various competitions. It’s been a great life, despite the pressures.”
Those pressures have included a number of legal issues that Derek has stepped in to solve using his own cash, a measure of his huge commitment to Ashford United.
He is standing down now only because he is convinced that the club is now in a stable position and in safe hands.
“My pride would not let me walk away while the future was in doubt, and that’s the same reason I put my hands in my pocket when the alternative would have been the club folding,” he said. “Ashford United wasn’t going to fail on my watch.”
Alongside his leadership and financial support, Derek has played an active part in the day-to-day running of the club. When the new artificial pitch was laid at Homelands before the start of the 2023/24 season, he found himself behind the wheel of a dumper laying 140 tonnes of rubber crumb to make sure the project was finished in time.
“Fortunately, the chap who was on his way to inspect it was late because he got stuck in traffic on the M25,” he added. When he arrived, the inspector found a faultless new pitch, giving it a 100% rating, a reflection on the work put in my Derek and fellow club supporters on the day.
“Ashford United has been an important part of my life and I have loved being involved with it. I’ve been proud to ensure the town has football at its heart and I’m excited about its future under its new owners,”
Said Derek, who confirmed that D&D Autos would continue its involvement by sponsoring the under-18s team.