The art of defending is a Maguire family business. There is Harry, Manchester United’s £80 million captain, brothers Laurence and Joe, at Chesterfield and Ilkeston, and sister Daisy, a former Sheffield United centre-half.

So what is the secret for the Maguire brothers? “We’ve all got the same big head,” says Laurence, laughing.

“We're all centre-halves now but as kids we were central midfield. We were all technically good before being transferred to defence when we got bigger. Daisy was a really good defender too.

“Harry’s youth team manager at Sheffield United moved him to defence and people must have looked at me and Joe and thought we’d do the same.”

Laurence, 24, is the youngest of the Maguire brothers and preparing for arguably the biggest game of his career this weekend when National League leaders Chesterfield face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

It is a bonus game for Maguire and Co, away from the main objective of promotion back to the Football League, with the Spireites currently 14 matches unbeaten.

For now, Maguire is reflecting on those formative years at the family home in Mosborough, a village seven miles away from Sheffield’s city centre.

“I was the youngest so I used to get bullied a lot in the back garden,” he says. “Joe used to force me to play goalkeeper and all sorts of tackles used to go in.

“We basically grew up beating each other up and I’d go into my mum and dad, crying. They were great days, though, despite all the bruises. Hopefully it’s made me the player I am today.”

While Laurence has played most of his career in the lower reaches, with oldest brother Joe currently top of the Northern Premier League’s Midlands table at Ilkeston Town, Harry’s journey has been rather different.

After becoming the world’s most expensive defender in August 2019 when he joined United from Leicester, he has also reached the semi-finals of the World Cup and European Championship with England.

“I always used to say to my dad ‘he’s going to go really high’,” says Laurence. “We always thought as a family he was under-rated for his ability.

“When Harry was at Hull City, he was in and out of the squads, went on loan to Wigan, but then came back and that’s probably got him where he is now.

“We’re so proud of Harry as a family. Sometimes people say you could be jealous but seeing him play in a World Cup for England is a fantastic achievement.”

There is a Maguire tradition of a “good luck” message before each game, and it will be no different on Saturday for Laurence at Stamford Bridge.

“Harry has always been really good for my career. When you’re having tough times you can always drop him a text or he’ll give me a call. After games I always tell him what he’s done well and what I feel he could do better, and he’s the same with me,” he says.

“My dad [Alan] is the worst critic though – he’s never got a good word to say about us! We’d get in the car after youth games thinking we’d done well and he’d tell us where we’d gone wrong.”

Laurence has since carved out a fine career of his own as a reliable centre-back with a fine range of passing, and is Chesterfield’s longest-serving player plus an England C international.

He first joined Chesterfield's academy at the age of 15 and it has been quite a rollercoaster in that time.

After successive relegations, Chesterfield are operating in the National League for the fourth year in a row but the club is finally stirring.

The appointment of James Rowe as manager in November 2020 has been transformative, with the club top of the table after just one league defeat this season.

Kabongo Tshimanga, a forward who was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has scored 18 goals in 20 games, and attendances are on the rise. Almost 6,000 fans are expected at Stamford Bridge.

“Mentally it has been very tough with back-to-back relegations and a change of ownership,” says Laurence.

“Luckily I’ve got a good family around me but there were some really low moments, especially when we were bottom of the Conference.

“I’m from Chesterfield and went to school here, so walking in the town was the heartbreak for me – there was no atmosphere and we were getting 2,000 at games.

“Covid also really affected our finances, playing in front of no crowds, and I definitely think it affected our results on the pitch.

“But I’ve been here a long time and feel like we’re now on the up. You can just feel there is something coming back as a community.”

Maguire has returned to training this week after a calf injury and is hopeful of making the starting XI at Chelsea.

Though he cannot wait for the challenge of facing the European champions, his manager has made one thing abundantly clear.

“The gaffer has reiterated to us so many times that the main focus is winning the league,” he says.

“We’re not going to have an FA Cup winners’ medal around our necks at the end of the season but we’ve got a great chance of a title winners’ medal instead.

“It will still be the biggest game of my career. I’ve played at Bramall Lane in front of 40,000 when they got promoted but Chelsea will be something different.

“United was the dream tie, obviously with Harry being at Old Trafford. To have the chance to come up against your brother doesn’t happen very often.”

Maguire was born in 1997, a significant year in Chesterfield’s long history after they reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup for the first time.

With the club in the old third division, and a squad including the likes of Sean Dyche, Kevin Davies and Billy Mercer, they gave Premier League Middlesbrough a huge scare and were excruciatingly close to reaching the final.

The game at Old Trafford was a crazy 3-3 draw, with the drama lengthened by extra-time and containing a moment of genuine controversy when Jon Howard’s shot went over the goalline but was unseen by the officials.

Chesterfield lost the replay 3-0 and for supporters of a certain vintage, the frustration remains.

“It was a massive thing for the town and we would have played Chelsea in the final if we had won,” says Maguire.

“People still talk about the controversy in the game and a lot of fans are thinking this is the game they deserved.

“The fans deserve a big draw like this, they’ve stuck with us in their numbers when it was tough and we were bottom of the league.”

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