League status secured

By Chris Thompson
April 10 2005

A 2-1 victory over Boston, in David Bell's first game in charge, secures Chester's league status for another season, Man-of-the-Match Ryan Lowe and youngster Robbie Booth providing the goals.

Funnily enough, it was against Boston United that Ian Rush began his eight month spell as Chester manager on 30th August last year, when a late Michael Branch penalty proved little more than consolation as a poor City side came back from Lincolnshire having conceded a hat-trick of goals.
Today, it was David Bell’s turn to start a managerial stint as caretaker boss at the hands of the same side, in front of a disappointing crowd of just 2, 040 to witness an attacking display which in the end proved to much for a Boston side, managed by Steve Evans, and Daryl Clare-less (because of a clause in his contract), at Chester’s ‘Saunder’s Honda Stadium’.

I don’t think anyone was thinking to positive ahead of the game. It had threatened to rain all day, and for a few worrying moments before the game, the picture looked quite bleak, with a City side not accustomed to playing too well in bad conditions. It stopped more or less though in time for the 3 O’ Clock kick off, but bearing a new formation, Chester began poorly.
David Bell had taken the surprising step of altering the custom position under Ian Rush, opting for a difficult-to-decipher 4-3-3 in place of 4-4-2, which the players either felt difficult to accustom to, or simply it was a sign the team would again let down the home support with another anonymous display.
Richard Hope was forced to play in the right-centre of defence, despite suffering from a cold, although any effects of wariness failed to show through, with Phil Bolland suspended, and Shaun Hessey playing alongside Hope, City with no other central defenders.
Darren Edmondson continued in the right full back position, as did Andy Nicholas, on loan from Swindon, on the opposite side. City began with youngster Robbie Booth, making just his fourth league start, operating on both flanks, whilst also acting as a third striker, as winger Ryan Lowe moved forward to partner Liverpool youngster Robbie Foy up front.
In midfield, the reliable trio of Ben Davies, Paul Carden and Stewart Drummond kept their places, making up the midfield three, as referee K. Stroud put the whistle to his lips, and blew to begin the 90 minutes, that, if Chester were to prove victorious from, would put them in good stead for an easy end-of-season run-in, amidst year-long fears of relegation.

Boston began much the better side, and as the guys standing behind me pointed out (quite a few annoying times), Chester seemed at the back, clueless, against an organised looking Boston side. Boston piled on the pressure for the first 20 minutes, and it was to no surprise at all that Boston took the lead on just the eighth minute courtesy of David Noble.
Boston ran ragged over the City side, passing the ball at will, and finding chances and putting on pressure at ease. Their goal came on the counter attack after Robbie Foy had enjoyed City’s only spell in the Boston half for the first 15 minutes of the game. An empty space opened up in the City defence, allowing the former Man United and Swansea winger, Bradley Maylett to come forward and cross for Jason Lee, formerly of Nottingham Forest, who dummied onto David Noble, who had the simple job of powerfully right-footing to the left of Chris McKenzie.
The game matched up to what could probably be expected. Boston top the league of ‘fouls made’ this season, just one position above Chester, whereas City can boast the most yellow, and red cards received in the league, with Boston not far behind so far as yellow cards go.
The first of 6 first-half bookings came to Shaun Hessey for a ridiculous decision, when the assistant’s flag went up and he continued to play, and was booked for unsporting behaviour…fair enough, but how was he supposed to know when the referee hadn’t even blown his whistle!
If ever there was a confusing, and consequently bad referee, it was this one. He liked pulling players up. He went on to show 5 yellow cards to Boston (he showed a further 3 to Chester), 4 minutes injury time somehow turned into almost 6 minutes, allowing Boston a corner in the 5th minute after 90, and making a bundle of terrible decisions, for either side.
Him, and Boston’s goal didn’t go down well with the City support, not surprisingly. However, Chester’s change in formation, and a much more attacking mentality began to pay dividends, as Chester shocked both sets of fans (and probably themselves) for the remainder of the half, completely dominating proceedings.
City forced 3 fines saves from Nathan Abbey in the Boston goal, the first a header coming from Stewart Drummond after a free kick by Shaun Hessey, and a second free kick from Man-of-the-Match, Ryan Lowe, resulted in the ‘keeper parrying the ball around his post. Disappointingly, a third free kick, this time from left-back Andy Nicholas, resulted in yet another save.
Former Shrewsbury winger Ryan Lowe outpaced his marker late on, but was unable to place his shot on the more favourable side of the net.
Just as the signal for 3 minutes injury time came up, City had got one back, Robbie Booth eluded the advances of the Boston shotstopper and two defenders, to score his first goal at professional level. It was no more than City deserved, after a fine 25 minutes, in which Chester deserved to be at the very least on level terms.

The second-half was a small reminder that Boston were still out there somewhere. Boston had a goal disallowed for offside to take the lead, which inspired a Chester fight-back after Jermaine Easter had met with a Maylett cross before firing into the side netting.
Ryan Lowe had another chance, before he scored Chester’s second on 76 minutes, a crucial goal which lifts the Blues clear of second-from-bottom Kidderminster by 11 points, with 12 points still available from the final 4 games of the season.
Chester were gifted a free-kick from 20 yards out, after Lowe made the dive of the season to award Chester the chance of taking the lead. It’s funny that when you see other teams dive, you think it’s disgusting, but when your own team dives, it’s great! So long as Chester don’t do it too often, which they don’t, then that’s Okay.
The dive was discarded from the referee by 3 Boston players, who outmatched Lowe for pace, and was there for all to see from Chester’s ‘Kop end’ that he fell at his own will, as Nathan Abbey in the Boston goal understandably went crazy with the decision.
Lowe hit the ball goal bound, and as the Boston marker turned his head briefly away from the ball, deflected off him, and to the opposite side of the net to the diving Abbey.

City deserved to add to their goal tally moments later. It took four efforts on goal before the ball was eventually took up by Nathan Abbey, as Ben Davies, Stewart Drummond, Darren Edmondson and Robbie Foy tried their luck in an agonising few seconds, Foy with the final shot into the bottom left of Boston’s goal which was covered by the diving Abbey.
The fourth official showed for 4 minutes of injury time, in nervy proceedings for Chester.
Nathan Abbey, Boston’s busy goalkeeper, came up the field for a corner late on, but the ball was eventually retrieved by McKenzie after an abundance of defensive headers and a worrying few moments for City, in which Abbey stayed in Chester’s penalty box for the duration. After 4 minutes, even the screaming crowd, realising that we were in the 5th minute of added time, were not enough for Stroud to look down at his watch, as he awarded a corner to Boston, and still failed to blow his whistle, and allowed it to be took.
Fortunately, it landed straight in the hands of the jumping McKenzie, and eventually, the whistle blew.

As Kidderminster conceded a late goal in 2-2 draw, and Rushden and Diamonds were beaten 3-0, Chester can probably count themselves safe now, despite that Cambridge beat Darlington, as they prepare themselves for the likely arrival of Mark Wright as their new manager this coming week.