Another Cup Exit For The Blues
By Simon Dutton January 13 2004
Chester crashed out of the FA Trophy at the first hurdle on Saturday as fellow Conference outfit Halifax Town inflicted a 2-1 defeat on City.
Chester crashed out of the FA Trophy at the first hurdle on Saturday as fellow Conference outfit Halifax Town inflicted a 2-1 defeat on City.
The importance of a good cup run was emphasised by Chairman Steve Vaughan who was thinking of the financial benefits of the competition so to see his team crash out of the FA Trophy must have been a huge disappointment.
Phil Bolland found himself back in the starting line up and Ian Foster partnered Stamp up front whilst Clare was rested.
Halifax took the lead on the 12th minute. McAuley found acres of space down the left hand side and Lewis Killeen rounded off an excellent move to give the Shaymen the lead to punish slack City who had began the game in a sluggish manner.
But their lead was short lived as Chester grabbed an equaliser on 20 minutes. Alex Smith’s corner was cleared but the ex-Port Vale man whipped another cross in and the towering figure of Phil Bolland scored with a bullet header from 6 yards.
The home side came more and more into the game, Stamp was looking dangerous and Ian Foster was unlucky to see his attempted lob rest on the top of the netting. But the referee blew the whistle to end what was a mediocre first half with little entertainment for the crowd of just over 1500 and a vast improvement was needed if the Blues were to progress in the competition.
But the game continued in the same manner in the second period, neither teams were demonstrating attacking intent, which made for a drab encounter at the Deva. Ben Davies replaced Carey on midway through the half and his appearance prompted a good spell for City. Bolland nearly grabbed a second goal on 60 minutes but his long range header was slightly off target as Chester began to show more penetration.
Rapley was unlucky to see his shot deflected wide and Davies executed a long range pile driver but the Halifax keeper parried it away for a corner. But the game began to turn stale again and the home fans were contemplating a midweek trip to The Shay in a replay.
But any thoughts of a replay quickly extinguished when Farrell lost his marker and his weak back post header trickled in to the net, McCaldon should arguably have saved it.
And that was that, the Blues failed to create any chances for the remaining 10 minutes and the Deva faithful witnessed their team crash out of another cup having seen another woeful performance. It’s a good job that City are doing so well in the league as Mark Wright’s men have crashed out of all 3 cup competitions but promotion is without a doubt the main priority this season.
The BBC SPORT website reports that Chester have received a £5,000 offer for out-of-favour midfielder Michael Twiss and rumours over the weekend suggested that Hull have offered 70k for Ben Davies but the player has apparently turned down the move. I’d imagine that we will learn more on these stories during the week.
The Blues return the Conference action on Saturday when they make the journey to Forest Green Rovers who were beaten 1-0 at the Diva earlier in the season.
Phil Bolland found himself back in the starting line up and Ian Foster partnered Stamp up front whilst Clare was rested.
Halifax took the lead on the 12th minute. McAuley found acres of space down the left hand side and Lewis Killeen rounded off an excellent move to give the Shaymen the lead to punish slack City who had began the game in a sluggish manner.
But their lead was short lived as Chester grabbed an equaliser on 20 minutes. Alex Smith’s corner was cleared but the ex-Port Vale man whipped another cross in and the towering figure of Phil Bolland scored with a bullet header from 6 yards.
The home side came more and more into the game, Stamp was looking dangerous and Ian Foster was unlucky to see his attempted lob rest on the top of the netting. But the referee blew the whistle to end what was a mediocre first half with little entertainment for the crowd of just over 1500 and a vast improvement was needed if the Blues were to progress in the competition.
But the game continued in the same manner in the second period, neither teams were demonstrating attacking intent, which made for a drab encounter at the Deva. Ben Davies replaced Carey on midway through the half and his appearance prompted a good spell for City. Bolland nearly grabbed a second goal on 60 minutes but his long range header was slightly off target as Chester began to show more penetration.
Rapley was unlucky to see his shot deflected wide and Davies executed a long range pile driver but the Halifax keeper parried it away for a corner. But the game began to turn stale again and the home fans were contemplating a midweek trip to The Shay in a replay.
But any thoughts of a replay quickly extinguished when Farrell lost his marker and his weak back post header trickled in to the net, McCaldon should arguably have saved it.
And that was that, the Blues failed to create any chances for the remaining 10 minutes and the Deva faithful witnessed their team crash out of another cup having seen another woeful performance. It’s a good job that City are doing so well in the league as Mark Wright’s men have crashed out of all 3 cup competitions but promotion is without a doubt the main priority this season.
The BBC SPORT website reports that Chester have received a £5,000 offer for out-of-favour midfielder Michael Twiss and rumours over the weekend suggested that Hull have offered 70k for Ben Davies but the player has apparently turned down the move. I’d imagine that we will learn more on these stories during the week.
The Blues return the Conference action on Saturday when they make the journey to Forest Green Rovers who were beaten 1-0 at the Diva earlier in the season.
Bookmark or share this story with:
Digg
Delicious
Facebook
Reddit
Stumbleupon
More Chester City headlines
Chester City latest threads
Chester City Poll
