'It was a no-brainer' - Frazer Blake-Tracy reveals why he couldn't wait to sign a new with Mansfield Town

The reliable defender has extended his stay with the Stags, signing a new two-year deal to keep him at the club until the summer of 2028. Blake-Tracy put pen to paper after entering the final three months of his previous terms, having first arrived at the One Call Stadium in 2024.

The 30-year-old was part of the club’s post-promotion summer transfer haul, joining the likes of Deji Oshilaja and Will Evans over the threshold for Stags’ first season back in England’s third tier in more than 20 years.

“The club approached me at the back end of last year, early this year I believe, and it was an ongoing negotiation. When I knew they wanted to keep me, it was a no-brainer for me,” Blake-Tracy said after committing to another two years in amber and blue.

“My family love it round here and we’re happy, it’s a lovely place. I’ve got a young family and we’re up here now and we like to go on our walks around the town and in the country parks.”

Blake-Tracy’s first season with Stags was cut short due to injury but he has made up for the lost time by cementing himself as a key part of Nigel Clough’s team this term. The defensive powerhouse has been a mainstay in Mansfield’s League One campaign and was an ever-present figure during their valiant FA Cup run – even providing an assist for Stags’ fourth goal during the 4-3 win over Sheffield United.

Having established himself as a reliable part of Clough’s starting line-up, Blake-Tracy is eager to keep his spot in Stags’ backline and continue his influential performances.

“I love contributing, I love defending, that’s just something about me. I love tackling, heading the ball, running, working hard and being part of this team. I’m delighted to be playing as much as I am and contributing where I am.”

Reflecting on the relationship in the Mansfield Town dressing room, Blake-Tracy continued: “There are a lot of good lads, the staff here don’t sign bad players in terms of their personality. Everyone down there knows the goal, everyone knows that we fight for this badge and the team comes before any individual.”

Clough is also delighted to see one of his most important players commit to a new contract. The manager has relied on the 30-year-old in all competitions this season and he has clear plans to continue utilising Blake-Tracy moving forwards.

“Brilliant news, I think he’s been one of our stalwarts this season,” Clough said. “He’s been incredibly consistent with his performances this season and another one that we’ve identified moving forward that we want to build the team around.”

Players like Blake-Tracy will be key in his team’s final stretch of League One fixtures this season. Stags are focused on banking as many points as possible in these latter fixtures to put a healthy amount of daylight between them and the relegation zone, now their FA Cup run has come to an end.

Mansfield Town will take their impressive Cup efforts into the summer transfer window as a huge luring point for potential targets. After knocking out Sheffield United and Burnley, Stags gave their all against Arsenal in the fifth round and came close to causing a monumental upset to the record title holders.

“We had the Arsenal game which was a massive occasion for the players, the staff, the fans… everyone to do with the club. It was a good day and we had our fun – I think we put in a decent performance.”

Blake-Tracy also paid homage to the support from the fans this season, especially during the blockbuster visit from Premier League leaders Arsenal, which Stags felt they could have pushed a result from thanks to the backing from the home support.

“They’ve been massive. That Arsenal game was just incredible, you could just feel it at 1-1. I think the boys were gutted to come off after 90 minutes. Fair enough, they won but I think the boys wanted an extra 30 minutes because the fans lifted us so much that we felt like if we just had a little bit more time, who knows what could have happened, we could have taken them to penalties or anything. As soon as we went 1-1 against Arsenal, you could feel the energy was massive.”