Match Preview: Alfreton Town (h)
The Blues return to CH1 on Saturday to host Alfreton Town, after two successful away trips in four days with wins over Buxton and Leamington.
Our opponents hosted an entertaining clash with Brackley Town on Tuesday night, as the Saints ran out 4-3 victors despite the fact that defender George Carline was forced to replace Jonny Maxted in net for the second half after the goalkeeper was sent off.
Matt Lowe netted a 90th minute winner for Gavin Cowan’s side, which added to first half strikes from Alfie Bates, Connor Hall and Carline, who had a night to remember at North Street.
Our reverse fixture with the Reds in Derbyshire saw an entertaining 2-2 draw, as goals from Kurt Willoughby and Charlie Caton were cancelled out by Jed Abbey and David Moyo.
Calum McIntyre’s men will be without Caton after his move to Accrington Stanley was confirmed on Thursday, but new signing Connor Woods is available after he came off the bench in Tuesday’s 4-1 victory at Leamington.
The Opponents
Alfreton currently sit just outside the play-off spots after their opening 24 league outings, with a two point gap to seventh-placed Darlington.
Billy Heath’s side have endured a poor run of form over recent weeks though, with three tight defeats on the spin, a 3-2 defeat to Buxton on Boxing Day, a 1-0 loss to Curzon Ashton and the aforementioned clash with Brackley.
This season is the Reds’ 10th consecutive campaign in the National League North, a period that has seen numerous promotion assaults without success.
The club endured disappointment in the play-offs last term as they fell to defeat to eventual promotion winners Boston United, after a penalty shootout decided the result in Derbyshire.
The Gaffer
Billy Heath has been in the dugout at North Street for over six years, after his appointment back in May 2018.
The boss has overseen a positive spell for the club, with numerous promotion challenges after a previous run of lower mid-table finishes.
The 53-year-old has been in management since the 2000/01 campaign, when he started at Bridlington before stints at Frickley Athletic, North Ferriby United and FC Halifax Town.
North Ferriby saw great success with Heath in charge, as the Villagers achieved promotion to the National League for the first time in the club’s history and an FA Trophy victory in 2015, with a win over Wrexham at Wembley.
One To Watch
Exciting midfielder Jed Abbey has been a thorn in the side of several National League North defences throughout the first half of this campaign.
The 23-year-old has netted nine times already this season, which included a crucial late winner over Farsley Celtic, and a close-range finish in the reverse fixture against the Seals.
Abbey started his career in the Wolverhampton Wanderers academy before he featured for a number of West Midlands-based clubs such as AFC Telford United, Stafford Rangers and Alvechurch.
Good form with the latter earned the Dutch-born midfielder a move to South Shields where he made 34 appearances last season, before a switch to North Street in the summer.
League Form Guide
Chester FC | W12 D7 L6 | F37 A27 | Pos: 6th
Last three
Southport (H) | D 0-0 | Scorers: None
Buxton (A) | W 4-2 | Scorers: Charlie Caton x2, Harrison Burke, Jack Bainbridge
Leamington (A) | W 4-1 | Scorers: Charlie Caton, Tom Peers, Kurt Willoughby, Harrison Burke
Alfreton Town | W10 D7 L7 | F32 A28 | Pos: 11th
Last three
Buxton (A) | L 3-2 | Scorers: Lewis Salmon, Max Hunt
Curzon Ashton (H) | L 1-0 | Scorers: None
Brackley Town (H) | L 4-3 | Scorers: Alfie Bates, George Carline, Connor Hall, Matt Lowe
Match Preview by Tom Bird.
MATCH DETAILS
Kick off is 3pm at The Deva Stadium on Saturday. The postcode for the ground is CH1 4LT.
MATCHDAY INFORMATION
For information on Admission Prices, Entry into the Stadium, Payment Methods, Allocated Seating and much more – visit chesterfc.com/matchdayinformation.
Tickets: Available online – CLICK HERE! Contactless card payments are available at the turnstile, with cash payments available at the Ticket Office.
The GWG Street Food Van will be open prior to the game, serving Burgers, Salt and Pepper Fries and of course – our Footy Scran favourite – loaded fries!
The Cestrian Bar will be open from midday until kick off and then post match, fully stocked with a wide selection of alcohol and soft drinks.
Inside the ground, the Kiosks will be serving their wider variety of Cottoms pies during the campaign, including Cottage Pies!
Matchday Programmes will be available to purchase from the Club Shop and our volunteer sellers around the ground, costing £3. If you are unable to get a programme on the day, they are available to buy online – CLICK HERE.
HER GAME TOO FOCUS FIXTURE
This weekend is our annual Her Game Too focus fixture as Chester FC take on Alfreton Town at the Deva Stadium!
To mark the occasion, approximately 100 Women’s First Team and Girls’ ETC players and staff will attending the game, setting up outside the ground before kick-off, handing out FREE tickets and promoting Sunday’s Cheshire Cup Quarter Final at the Deva as our Women’s side take on Runcorn Linnets. Then, the players and staff will be walking around the pitch at half time.
In addition, we will also have Her Game Too branding in our matchday programme, plus club mascot Lupus will be on hand for photo opportunities with supporters with our HGT selfie frame.
Plus, our Men’s side will be supporting Her Game Too and raising awareness by wearing branded t-shirts during their warm-up on Saturday.
We are hugely proud of the growth of our Chester FC Women’s & Girls’ section, which now offers a full pathway for women’s football and creates fantastic opportunities for female players.
Having started out with a single women’s team, our club now has a First Team, Development Squad and Under 18’s team, who are playing in the North West Women’s Regional Football League and Cheshire Women’s & Youth Football League.
This is underpinned with our Girls’ Emerging Talent Centre that provides 60 girls at under 10s, 12s and 14s with access to a high level training programme to support their development, as well as our Wildcats and Squad Girls recreational programmes that give girls from age five and up the chance to make friends, improve their skills, gain confidence and have fun through football.
GREG STONES
We’re delighted to announce that Greg Stones will be our guest in the Legends Lounge on Saturday and will be brought on to the pitch at half time.
Stones made 49 appearances for the Blues and was part of the title winning side of 2010/11. We hope our supporters give him a great reception!
MATCHDAY COVERAGE
Free commentary on Seals Live via our Match Centre: CLICK HERE
Match Updates on our Twitter/X page: CLICK HERE
HT/FT Updates on Facebook and Instagram: CLICK HERE
A full time match report on ChesterFC.com: CLICK HERE