Former Blackburn Rovers winger on finding new

Blackburn Rovers FC Chesterfield Football Sport

Dilan Markanday has found a new home at Chesterfield following his Blackburn Rovers exit last summer.

Markanday spent the first half of the 2024/25 campaign on loan at the SMH Group Stadium and made a big impression.

After a stint at Leyton Orient, the winger’s three-and-a-half-year spell at Rovers came to an end and he re-joined the Spireites, putting pen to paper over a three-year contract.

Markanday made 38 appearances in League Two over the past season, chipping in with eight goals and five assists.

Paul Cook’s side finished in sixth place but missed out on the play-off final at Wembley, losing out against Notts County in the semi-final over two legs.

Markanday says he has found his feet this season after struggling to nail down a place at Ewood Park and Brisbane Road.

The 24-year-old has been loving his football but admitted there was disappointment to miss out on promotion to League One.

"I’ve loved it,” he told Derbyshire Times. “I’m obviously a bit disappointed we haven’t gone on to achieve automatic promotion – especially when you finish the season and realise you weren’t very far away – even though at one point it seemed like it.

"It makes you think that if a couple of those draws turned into wins we’d have gone up automatically. You can’t really think like that. I love the staff, the players and the fans.

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"I feel like I’ve found a home, which is important for any player, but with me having dotted around before it is about trying to find my feet and play some games. I found somewhere I can really develop and flourish.”

Markanday also shared a message on social media following the narrow defeat in the play-offs.

"It’s another season over, and unfortunately it’s not how we wanted it to end,” he wrote. “The boys have given everything and we’ll be back better for it.”