The Evo-Stik League leading marksman took his tally for the term up to 24 goals in 25 matches yesterday as Chester opened up an eight-point lead at the top of First Division North with a 6-0 home romp over Ossett Albion.
But when asked if he is running out of superlatives for his talisman, Blues boss Young said: "I'm certainly not!
]]> "He's doing well but I think he's still got more to do in terms of scoring more goals in the bigger games. But he's not bad is he?"While Wilde grabbed the headlines, his incredible scoring exploits should not detract from what was a mightily impressive team performance.
Young, whose men are now unbeaten in six, said: "What I was most pleased about was that we kept going and kept passing it.
"It was a thoroughly professional performance and on another day we could have had two or three more.
"All we've got to do now is keep winning. If we win every game until the end of the season we'll be champions and it's as simple as that."
]]>A wretched run stretching back 24 league and cup games was ended yesterday as a hat-trick of headers from Bradley Barnes, Michael Wilde and Robbie Booth swept Young's table-toppers to a 3-1 victory over 10-man Wakefield.
With Chorley not in action, the result moved the Blues five points clear at the Evo-Stik League First Division North summit.
Boss Young said: "They'll say the sending-off changed the game, but you can only beat what is in front of you and overall I thought we played quite well.
"It was difficult as once they had the man sent-off they shut up shop and tried to stop us from playing and scoring, which you can understand. But we coped with it well.
"So I'm glad to put an end to the January curse. More importantly it puts us five points clear, although there's a long way to go yet."
Chester had failed to win any of their previous three matches at the Exacta Stadium, but there was never going to be a doubt over the final outcome after Denton was stupidly sent-off in the 12th minute for swinging a punch at George Horan.
However the Blues had to be patient and it was not until first-half injury-time that they took the lead as Bradley Barnes glanced in his eighth goal of the season from the recalled Kyle Wilson's cross.
Barnes and Iain Howard were excellent in midfield, but it was impressive new boy Ashley Williams who was named the sponsors man of the match on his first full start for the club following his move from Airbus UK Broughton.
Young said: "I thought Ashley was absolutely outstanding. His touch, his passing, his overall play was first class - he really dictated the game.
"He's someone we've took our time with as we've watched him on four or five occasions. I thought sometimes he played within himself at Airbus, but I thought today he showed us what he can bring."
]]>How nice was it to see the Blues top of the table over Christmas, that hasn't happened for a while has it??
All that despite the blip and the weather contributing towards a distinct lack of games over the Christmas period - and a shame too as had the game gone ahead on the 27th December I'm sure we'd have seen a strong home performance against Durham City, but c'est la vie we had to call it off due to the conditions.
It was a shame the year ended that way, as it would have been nice to have finished the year off with a resounding home victory - but it wasn't to be, and December ended up a month to forget with the Radcliffe defeat and an exit from the Cup at Newcastle.
Overall though, what a year 2010 was, with the first three months of the year an absolute nightmare to be a Chester supporter with the club going into liquidation, but the emergence of Chester FC in the new decade was a beautiful sight, and once the rebirth took place there was no stopping the Chester FC snowball effect.
The first win of course was over the Danes - unwelcome opposition when we just didn't need another battle like that, but the Council saw that City Fans United had the best intentions for the future, and with a booming business plan to match, there was only one decision that would ever come out of that much anticipated day when the Council made their decision, and two days before my birthday, it was the perfect present!
The public meeting that followed then stirred things up even more, when the doors had to be closed at the Guild Hall due to the numbers inside, as the plans for Chester FC were revealed, and not long after the first manager was appointed, and Neil quickly went about bringing in a squad that he felt could get us promotion in the first season.
When you look at other examples, we should remember that success is not always a given in the first season, Halifax for instance finished outside of the play offs in their first season back, and only in the second year did they gain promotion to the Evo Stik Premier League, so to be sitting where we currently are, top on 50 points, 5 points clear, is a fantastic achievement in itself, and despite the results not going our way over the festive period, 7 points out of the last 9 is still an impressive return and will hopefully provide the springboard for the rest of the season now.
Telford are another example where in their first season back, they finished in third place before eventually getting up via the play offs, and even FC United finished in 2nd place in the league we're currently gunning for even though they had started way back in the North west Counties League 2, so if we do eventually end up as winners of the League then it will be a remarkable achievement considering this squad was put together from scratch last Summer.
We've also enjoyed many away wins this season too, in fact only once have the lads not won, and understandably so too in their first ever competitive game, at Warrington. Since then it's been back to back wins all the way away from home, and thanks to Chas Sumner for this one, the all time record for Chester FC is 13 away league wins on the bounce, so still another 5 to go to beat that, and where would that fifth be achieved? You've guessed it, Chorley!
We do of course have to get past Garforth, Leigh, Durham, and Woodley before we get to Chorley of course, but wouldn't that make the game on February 19th even tastier if it were to go the way we hope??
I'll sign off there, but isn't it just great that we're talking about records being set thanks to Chester winning games?
I went along to Leatherhead's Fetcham Grove ground on Tuesday to put my instincts to the test.
Leatherhead, known as the Tanners, are currently top of the Ryman Div 1 South - the Southern equivalent of the Evostik Div 1 North. So it was a good comparison of 'like v like'.
]]> The Tanners were playing one of the oldest football clubs in the country, Corinthian Casuals. Once winners of the FA Cup, they now lie in the lower reaches of the Ryman Div 1 South and famously play in pink and chocolate brown quarters.Of course, there was an obvious distinction in the size of the crowd (171), but that's not much different from any other club in the Evostik Div 1 North. Now I'm sure I caught Leatherhead on a bad day, but the football is a class apart in Chester.
Leatherhead - shortened to Levred by their more passionate supporters - did not put on a good show and lost 1-0 to a delighted Corinthian Casuals. Hand on heart, I have to say that Chester would have beaten the Tanners by at least six goals on Tuesday. To be fair, they would have beaten the Casuals as well.
Both teams put a lot of effort into their performances, but neither could make decisive passes into the danger area and gave the ball away quite regularly.
It was actually really hard to believe that Leatherhead have been on a 15-match unbeaten League run. But, on the evidence of the display I saw, they'd be relegation certainties if the atlas was turned upside down.
Feeling quite buoyed about the relative standards of Chester, my week as a Chester fan was further boosted with our Chester Exiles darts match against the Southampton Exiles on Thursday.
We beat the southerners by 6-5 and I won my singles match with a tasty double 5. Once again the superiority of the north came to the fore! I rest my case.
]]>And the moment Chester rose to the top of the Evostik North couldn't have been any better for me - as I had picked the away match at Cammell Laird as one of my pilgrimages from the land of the Exiles.
This was my second full away match supporting the new club and there's no comparison between watching Chester in the Evostik North than the sorry, old club in the Conference. This is a lot more fun!
]]> Apart from the 'game that never was' at Forest Green, my last away match supporting Chester City was at Kidderminster on freezing December day. The weather matched the atmosphere among the handful of Chester fans and the performance, and subequent defeat, was just what we expected.But the atmosphere at Cammell Laird was a real joy - and the Lairds fans seemed to appreciate it as well. Yes, the football is good to watch, but the banter is great as well. I'd actually forgotten what it was like to have fellow fans to talk to at an away game.
So the real icing on the proverbial cake came for me when the ref's whistle finally went after an agonising seven minutes of injury time and we really were 'Top Of The League'!
I was on such a high that it actually crossed my mind to make the round trip for the Newcastle Town cup match on the following Tuesday. Thankfully I didn't, as it would have been another journey to a ground with no game.
Following last Saturday's home win, we are still numbero uno in the League. Sadly I couldn't make that trip, but spent the afternoon as a keyboard warrior looking for Chester updates from wherever they came. It's good to feel like I really care once again and I'm getting the guide books out to work out which new ground I will visit next....Can't wait!
]]>Chester's number one limped off late on in yesterday's thrilling derby victory at Cammell Laird and, with Chris Oldfield having controversially departed to Darlington, Young is currently without a keeper for Tuesday's Evo-Stik League Challenge Cup clash at Newcastle Town (7.45pm).
Young, who has reported Darlington to the FA for making an alleged illegal approach for Oldfield, said: "People may have questioned why we are pursuing Darlington - but they will know why now.
"Goalkeeper is the hardest position to fill and, as we can only offer a second goalkeeper's position, we're not a massive draw. So what we've got to do is find a good young kid like Chris.
"Hopefully Richard will be fit for the weekend, but I've got to get a keeper on loan for at least a month, just to cover in case he's out for longer."
]]>
He said: "I'm not going over the top - this is my job and I'm not prepared to put my neck on the line for those sorts of performances.
"Ultimately the buck stops with me. I'll be the one getting criticised - rightly - because I put the team on the pitch, but if I'm going to take criticism I'm going to take criticism for the right reasons.
]]> "My sides never ever lack effort on the pitch but there were certain individuals out there who lacked effort.""I want players who want to be playing here and want to be playing for this team but, particularly after we scored, I was looking at them and wondering whether they wanted the ball as they were going into areas where they were never going to receive it.
"It was just very disappointing as a game like that is one in which our players should excel. They sat off us and gave us time on the ball to pass, and against teams like that it is all about movement. But if you don't move and don't create space for others you're never going to break them down."
]]>This lark of suddenly being a 'big club' is taking some getting used to but, I have to admit, I'm enjoying it. So, it seems, are my fellow fans as more than 600 made the journey to Yorkshire on Saturday.
Yet again we hugely outnumbered the home support and I felt a warm glow as I explained to the owner of our hotel how many Chester fans were in town. He was impressed!
]]> For years I've travelled to away games more in hope than expectation. My Exile on the south coast means I can only attend a handful each season and, in the past, I've gone several years without witnessing a victory. It did get demoralising and following Chester City often became a matter of duty rather than enjoyment, especially with all the shenanigans in the background.So, I feel I've earned the right to bask in our current glory even if it's an attitude that does appear to upset a few of our current rivals.
We all hope that our stay in the Evostik North is temporary but isn't it great to be a Chester fan right now?
I set out on Saturday morning for the 540-mile round trip from West Sussex with a spring in my step and Michael Wilde and co didn't disappoint.
After a non-descript first half the floodgates opened, bringing the tally of goals this week alone to seven, prompting a few choruses of my favourite terrace song: up the football league we go. The signing of Wilde was inspired and let's pray we can hang on to him. Wilde's partnership with Kyle Wilson looks promising, while we looked solid at the back.
As far as I could see Chester fans filled every side of the ground, including the smallest grandstand I've ever seen. Although not quite on the same scale it reminded me of the heady day in our Conference times when kick off in an FA Cup third round tie at Blackburn Rovers had to be delayed to allow congestion at the Chester end to clear. I believe we took more than 3,000.
Supporting Chester has never, thank God, been all about the results. It's about camaraderie, being the underdog, visiting new grounds and enjoying those funny moments like the Harrogate tannoy announcement.
Now, however, winning is suddenly part of the Chester experience. Hopefully our current success on the pitch, matching the wonderful work behind the scenes, will attract even more to the Chester revival.
Long may our good run continue and let's hope that come May we're still eating all the pies.
]]>It is easy to take for granted the fact this team, and the whole management structure, are all-new, given the players have won seven of their 10 Evostik Division One North matches. Possibly because in the last few Chester City FC seasons the squad kept chopping and changing every summer anyway.
Nonetheless, for Chester FC to maintain the momentum, it's vital the team keep putting pressure on the opposition. There have been too many matches so far this season where the first half has been a bit lacking, with the team unable to get a strangehold on the game.
It's a bit like when I was watching my 'other' sport, Formula One, through my bleary eyes at silly-o-clock on Sunday morning, to see Lewis Hamilton struggling without third gear in the Japan Grand Prix. And that, to bring home a slightly dodgy analogy, is what Chester FC are missing too. They are either right up to speed and scoring goals for fun (particularly via the impressive Michael Wilde), or they get held to 0-0 at half-time by Harrogate Railway Athletic, who currently prop up the table.
Minor quibbles aside, it's absolutely great to see how many fans continue to support the club both home and away, even after the initial novelty has faded. The initial budgeted average home crowd figure of 1,100 is beginning to look quite tiny...
]]>One of the reasons I had not contributed to this page so often over the past year or so was the sheer depression at the state Chester City FC (as it was then) had plunged into. The club was sinking fast, and eventually became possibly the only football club ever to increase its points tally (from minus three to zero!) after seeing its results expunged for the whole season when Chester City FC was wound up quicker than you could say "If only we had a cup run."
Thankfully, during my absence, some bloke called Jeff Banks wrote a few pieces on here documenting the club's demise, but for some reason he seems to be a bit more busy these days...
All joking aside, it has been an unbelievable rollercoaster of a year for the club, one which will live in the minds of all fans of Chester FC (as it is now). Despite the relatively lowly Evostik Division One North league the club now finds itself in, the team, the structure, the atmosphere and everything associated with the club has been reborn, reformed and revitalised.
Yes, the Blues are Back, with a capital 'B'. And what a delight it has been to see the club in action over the past few weeks, attendances dwarfing our rivals- relatively, we are titans in this division, which is such a novel feeling it'll still feel good at the end of this season!
Personally, any doubt I had over the new club passed upon attending the club's first home friendly to Aberystwyth Town, in front of a respectable crowd of about 1,000. Positive play on the pitch was rewarded with good-natured applause, Chester's opening goal was greeted with plenty of cheers, but the absolute clincher for me was Mark Peers (then only a trialist, I believe), who scored from just past the halfway line in a David-Beckham-against-Wimbledon-esque way.
It wasn't just the fact that goal was worth the admission fee alone, or that the fans were in fine voice afterwards, but also the way the team celebrated together, like they'd known each other for years, lifting Peers off the ground in jubilation. For the first time in a long while, I was again *proud* to be a Chester fan!
It says something that the only point this season I've been disappointed/angry/spitting feathers has been at the recent Chester vs Chorley clash, where Chorley escaped with a lucky 2-1 win (no thanks to The Penalty That Was Not A Penalty, Mr referee), and they were a little 'off' on the general sporting nature Chester had almost become accustomed to from other rivals this season. But it's nice to get heated on footballing matters, and footballing matters alone!
The next task for the Blues is simple. Just win the division, and get revenge on Chorley...
]]>Neil Young said: "We were very clinical. Look at the first half - we had three or four chances and we took two of them. If that would have happened against Chorley it would have been a different game.
"Today we have taken our chances and I think if we continue to take our chances we will get stronger and teams will find it hard to live with us.
"All credit to the lads as they've bounced back. We could have had more in the end but 4-0 away from home is a very good result."
]]>As a result, poor old Deva Fever's been on the backburner.
Not any more though... even the fact that it's not called the Deva Stadium any more isn't going to stop us!
I'll be adding updates and talking points at various points throughout the week.
Madowl has assured me he'll be on the case too - hopefully some of our exiles will get back as well.
]]>It will be the proudest moment of my footballing life when the lads run out at Warrington Town tonight, and I'm sure the rest of the board of CFC will feel exactly the same way as I do at Cantilever Park tonight, with only the run out at the Deva Stadium likely to surpass it next Monday!
I don't think any of the board quite expected the challenges that came with the reformation of the club, we certainly expected it to be a difficult process, and we definitely did not under estimate the challenge of it all, but I think it's fair to say that some of the hurdles we have had to go through have been bigger than any of those Colin Jackson would ever had of had to jump over!
Just over a year ago, I attended the meeting of all the supporter groups at the Divas Show Bar, when the meeting hosted by broadcaster Charlie Lambert told of how the way forward was for one supporters group to be formed, and the promise of that was delivered just two months later at a packed venue again when City Fans United was launched.
The way forward was now clearer than ever, but things still had to happen quickly, and I was fortunate enough to be elected to the committee of CFU just prior to Christmas, and leading up to that was of course the Legends Night, which saw over twenty of Chester's greatest players coming together to enjoy a night with the fans, which was an evening I'll never forget.
By this time we had already met with the local council, knowing that it was unlikely Chester City FC would last the season, something that we were all absolutely gutted about, but there was absolutely no way it could be saved considering the level of debt that existed at the club, some questioned the intentions of CFU at this point, but believe me if there had been a way of saving CCFC it would have been put forward.
I think things were summed up when an offer was made to CFU to buy the club for a pound, but take on the debt - by text message. The level of debt was of course on it's way to ã1m, and this for a club heading into the sixth tier of the football pyramid, I think we all knew then that the point had arrived to seriously think about the reformation of the club.
We all know what happened next, with the Conference expelling the club, and the High Court slamming the lid shut on CCFC, but the overriding factor here was that if the club had been allowed to continue past March, we would not be eagerly awaiting CFC's first match tomorrow at Warrington, instead, we'd all have no club to support and instead have to find other things to do on Saturday's and midweek, or even worse find another club to follow - unthinkable.
So, the plans for reformation went ahead, and two jam packed meetings at the Guild Hall provided us with first hope, then confirmation, that the fans were well and truly behind what we were trying to do. The image of Chester fans singing "Chester are Back" at the Guild Hall when the new club crest was revealed made the hairs on the back of the neck stand up, and it's a memory that will never ever leave me.
At one of those meetings, I read out a text message that I'd received from Elfed Morris, "Out of the ashes will rise a new giant and will be feared by all. Once again the love of the people will make Chester a great football club with the players who are proud to wear the shirt just like I was. Go for it, keep the dream alive!" - that message is still on my mobile phone, as the words mean so much to me, in fact reading the Chronicle's superb supplement the other day had me welling up when I was reading the messages of support from former players, and also the likes of Jonathan Legard and Martin Tyler in the media.
I've never known anything like setting up a club from scratch before, but believe me I do now, and how difficult and time consuming the whole thing is, and I think many of the unsung heroes are indeed the wives or partners who have had to put up with so much in the last few months, and many of us have gone through personal moments that a lot of people go through in their lifetime, and yet their support has remained incredible, and that is something I'll always be thankful for.
We've had some great times as fans in the last few months, securing the lease on the Deva Stadium despite some unwanted interest from a rival Danish bid, appointing Neil Young as Manager, seeing the squad of players being built, and then witnessing the standard of football in the pre season games, with the fantastic moment when the players stepped out at Colwyn Bay for their first ever game.
That now seems a distant memory, and hopefully when they run out at Warrington the result will be different this time, but whatever happens tomorrow night, we will well and truly have started life as Chester FC on the pitch, and let's hope that Neil and the lads can guide us up the Leagues to get back to where we were - remember that we are only two leagues below where the old club would have started if things had continued last season.
It's been a mammoth effort to get to where we are now, and I'd just like to thank the board members, it has been an absolute pleasure to work alongside each and every one of them - all fans of CFC who would do, and have done, everything possible to get us where we are today, and it is an absolute privilege to be on the board with these first class individuals.
Finally to everyone that has backed, and I'm sure will continue to back Chester Football Club, THANK YOU for your help and support, everyone has played their part in reforming OUR club over the last 12 months, and now everyone can witness the reward, seeing those Blue & White shirts on the pitch again.
Chester Forever.
Banksy
Firstly, that decision by CWAC.
It was the ONLY decision that would have been deemed acceptable, as a club being run by an overseas group was simply not in the best interests for a club like Chester, maybe for the Premier League big boys, but not Chester. An offer had been made to the Danes to get behind the CFU and make this an even bigger proposition for all to consider, but sadly they decided not to back City Fans United, and subsequently lost a lot of respect and also potential friends along the way.
Then came the news that the FA had recommended that Chester start four, yes four leagues down from where Chester City collapsed, and quite rightly this has been appealed against as no club that has reformed with supporter ownership - something that the government & FA have been backing of late - has been forced down 4 leagues, with the precedent being 2 leagues, with one exception at 3.
So, all could be forgiven that this would be a knock on everyone's hopes for next season, well judging by the turn out and support at the bingo hall where all four corners were filled in quicker than you can say "all the fours...", it was apparent that the fans were in bouyant mood, and coupled with the fact that Daryl Clare was making the 3 hour trek over from Lincolnshire to be with us, it turned out one of the greatest nights as Chester FC was officially reborn.
Thursday 21st May 2010, remember that date in the future. That'll be the club's official birthday!
On the rebirth night, we also heard from several of the committee members, who gave excellent presentations, but at this point, I must point out that I have absolute pride working with each and every one of them up to this point, and have every faith in that to continue as the club climbs to its feet, and begins its challenge to get back up the Leagues.
The revealing of the club crest was the point I think we were all looking forward to, and the atmosphere in the place was electric as we approached the point, and when those curtains went back to reveal the badge, I think the pride took over and the songs "Chester are Back" and "We love you Chester" kicked in, what a great sound it was in there - won't it be great to hear that in our first game at the Deva in August!
I was really impressed with the badge, it encompasses both our history and future, all with a modern look that will last us for years, and with the wolf looking a little more menacing than ever now, let's hope that fear will head into the hearts of those travelling to Fortress Deva!!
It was great to get Daryl Clare entered into the CFU Hall of Fame, and he was not expecting it either as he'd heard nothing about it up to the point I'd invited him back on to the stage to receive his award. Daryl was a star on the night too, signing many autographs and having pictures taken with many fans.
Following the meeting, in fact less than 24 hours later, our new management duo were appointed, and best wishes go to Neil Young & Gary Jones, who now carry the hopes of Blues fans everywhere to get us back up those leagues, butr they cannot do it without our support, your support.
Now is the time for the City to really rally round its football club, and the challenge to all should be to bring a mate to watch Chester next season, make it someone that has never been before, encourage their kids, or brothers, or sisters to come with them - the era of a new dawn has begun, so let's make it a success on the pitch as well as off it!
The good news continued on Saturday, as the club's website was launched, it was set for 3pm, but we thought we'd tease everyone that little longer, and I think it was worth the wait, and the website www.chesterfc.com will certainly be updated a lot more than the previous one was!
The good news is flowing through Chester Football Club right now, so let's keep those blue flags flying high up in the sky, and be proud of our club - this is something we can all build ourselves, imagine that day that will hopefully not be too many years away when we see on the bottom of Jeff Stelling's Soccer Saturday videprinter "Chester are Promoted to the Football League"!
It can happen, but only with everyone's support!
Chester are Back, Chester are Back, Hello Hello!