| Full name | Chester Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Blues,The Seals,City. | ||
| Founded | 2010 | ||
| Ground | Deva Stadium, Chester (Capacity: 5,376 (4,170 seated)) |
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| Owner | City Fans United | ||
| Chairman | Chris Pilsbury | ||
| Manager | Neil Young | ||
| League | Northern Premier League Premier Division | ||
| 2010–11 | Northern Premier League Division One North, 1st (promoted) | ||
| Website | Club home page | ||
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Chester Football Club is a supporter-owned English football club based in Chester. The club was founded in 2010 following the winding-up of Chester City F.C..[1] The club plays its home games at the Deva Stadium, and for its inaugural season played in the Northern Premier League Division One North following a successful appeal to the FA against their initial placement in the Northwest Counties League. They won the NPL Division One North in their first season and gained promotion to the NPL Premier Division.
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The original Chester FC was founded in 1885 and joined the Football League in 1931. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. They survived at this level, peaking in its third tier, until 2000 when the club was relegated to the Football Conference. They returned to the Football League after winning the Conference title in 2004.[2] Following relegation back to the Conference in 2009, the club hit financial difficulties, attributed to the then-chairman Stephen Vaughan.[1][3] Following a difficult season, in which the club struggled through a variety of financial and playing difficulties, Chester City were finally wound up on 10 March 2010.[4]
City Fans United (CFU) had been formed in October 2009, following growing disquiet amongst fans with the running of Chester City, who were by now in deep financial trouble.[5] CFU eventually called for a boycott of Chester City after organising a pitch protest which led to the abandonment of the match against Eastbourne Borough in November 2009, a game which Chester City FC were winning, and the dismissal of the then manager Jim Harvey soon afterwards.[6] The group then began preparations in February 2010 to form a "phoenix club" for the following season just weeks before Chester City F.C. were wound up.[7]
Following the official winding up of Chester City in March 2010, a ballot was held to choose the name for the new club. Over 1,000 people participated in the ballot and 70% voted for the name "Chester F.C." (which had been the club's name for its first 98 years) to be used.[8] The club received the support of Cheshire West and Chester Council, who granted the lease of the Deva Stadium (subsequently re-named the Exacta Stadium as part of a sponsorship arrangement), Chester City's former ground, to Chester F.C. in May 2010.[9]
Chester FC started competing in the 2010–11 season. The FA initially recommended that they should be placed in the North West Counties Football League Premier Division,[10] a decision that the club appealed against.[11] On 18 June 2010, the FA made a statement[12] saying that Chester would instead be placed a step higher and would play in the Northern Premier League Division One North, the 8th tier of the English football league system. The club was formally relaunched on May 20, 2010, when Neil Young and Gary Jones were announced as the first manager and assistant of the club.[13] A preseason friendly played at Colwyn Bay F.C. on 10 July 2010 was the first fixture for the new club, the match resulting in a 2–0 victory for Colwyn Bay. The team's first home friendly was played against Aberystwyth Town which the 'Blues' won 3–0.[14]
The club's first ever league match was on 24 August 2010, away at Warrington Town.[15] Rob Hopley scored the first ever goal for the club in the 6th minute, but the game ended in a 1–1 draw.[16] Chester played their first home game against Trafford and won 6–0, Michael Wilde scoring a hat-trick.[17] In September, Chester lost their first game after a 2–1 home defeat to Chorley.[18] Chester went top of the Northern Premier League First Division for the first time following a 2–1 win at Cammell Laird on in October,[19] before equaling their biggest ever win when they beat Ossett Albion, 6–0, in January 2011, and recording their ninth consecutive away win at Trafford in the same month.[20] After their win at promotion rivals Skelmersdale in March, the Blues went 12 points clear at the top of the league,[21] but a number of draws and defeats led to this margin being cut to just a single point by 16 April.[22] Chester's attendances were by far the best in the league, the highest was in the last home game of the season against Bamber Bridge, which 3,307 people attended.[23] The nearest rivals Skelmersdale then dropped points, to leave Chester 3 points clear with 1 remaining game.[24] The Blues secured the title in their inaugural season on the last day, despite a defeat to Garforth Town, they finished top on goal difference.[25]
Following Chester's promotion to the NPL Premier Division, form was initially variable, with two losses in their first six league fixtures. However, form- particularly defensively- improved greatly, with no goals conceded in September, and the 1-0 win against Chasetown was their 7th succesive clean sheet in the league. This run ended after a 1-1 draw away at Buxton in the next match, but only after they established a new Chester City/Chester FC record of 781 minutes without conceding across 8 games in all competitions. Also during this period, Chester's 3-0 win against Chorley came in front of a new record crowd of 3,310 - bigger than the crowds normally enjoyed by some Football League clubs.
Despite initially variable form in the league, Chester's form was strong through November and December, with a run of five consecutive victories, resulting in Chester going top of the table after the 1-0 win against Ashton United, a position the club held at the end of the year, finishing 2011 with a stormy 1-1 draw at second placed Northwich Victoria, a game which saw three dismissals.
During the calendar year 2011, Chester were unbeaten in home league fixtures.
In the FA Trophy, Chester went on an extended run, winning through three qualifying rounds to reach the first round proper, where they recorded a 5-1 away victory against North Ferriby United.
The crest was designed by Martin Huxley, a Chester-based graphic artist and Chester F.C. fan,[26] who described the symbols in the crest thus: The Wolf dates back to when William the Conqueror's nephew, Hugh d'Avranches was appointed the Earl of Chester. He had the nickname 'Lupus' which is the Latin translation for 'wolf'. The crown refers to Chester being a royalist City. Badge variations make it unclear whether the leaves are laurel, a recognised symbol of victory, or oak, a significant (and common) tree in Chester. Oak has long been used in the Cheshire Regiment’s logo, reference to saving King George II’s life beneath an oak tree at the Battle of Dettingen in 1749.[26]
Chester play in blue and white stripes with black shorts and blue and white hooped socks, similar to their predecessors Chester City, their first season also saw their shirts made by sportswear company Joma.[27] The first ever away kit was a purple shirt with white shorts and white socks.[27] In an away match against Wakefield on 4 September 2010, the club wore a third kit of white shirt, white shorts and white socks.[28] The club's change strip for the 2011/12 season will be all yellow, the club crest placed in the centre of the shirt for symmetry with the manufacturer's branding.[29]
Chester FC play at the Deva Stadium, currently renamed the Exacta stadium due to a sponsorship deal, the home of their predecessor. It has a capacity of 5,376 with 4,170 seated; it is currently the 119th largest stadium by capacity in England and the second largest in their league.
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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| Year | League | Level | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Position | Leading Scorer | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010–11 | Northern Premier League Division One North |
8 | 44 | 29 | 10 | 5 | 107 | 36 | +71 | 97 | 1st of 23 Promoted |
Michael Wilde | 36 |
The list of honours in which Chester has achieved is as follows: