Chester City are one of the those sides that don’t often trouble the top half of the table, and are often found looking over their shoulders at relegation. In 2004/5 they spent the entire season fighting the drop straight back to the Conference after winning the title a year before hand, only a good run in the early-middle part of the season saved them from relegation. They would have gone down in 2005/6 had it not been for Derek Asamoah going on his first (and to date only) goal spree and last season they were never really in danger of relegation, but spent most of the season down in that region.

Last season’s game between Lincoln and Chester at the Saunders Honda Ground was a very odd affair indeed. Lincoln dominated the game but somehow managed to come out of Chester with a 4-1 defeat behind them. The first goal that day was a near replica of Chester’s first goal the season before, in other words there was a blatant foul on Marriott that went unpunished an the Chester player hit it into the net. Luck and the defence certainly deserted the Imps that day as Chester scored with their only four decent chances on goal.

The game at Sincil Bank was very similar in terms of Lincoln’s domination, and Chester then almost scored with their first chance when they won a penalty. Thankfully it was a rubbish penalty and City went on to get the result that secured the Imps another shot at the Playoffs. If City had lost that match then the way the other results went meant that the Imps would have finished 8^th.

Looking at the squad of Chester you would be forgiven for thinking that there weren’t many players capable of changing a match, with their best player being Kevin Ellison, who rejected City after a successful loan spell, citing the reason that he didn’t want to move away from his home in the North West, within a year he had joined Hull, that’s just how loyal Ellison is to his own words. Other ex-Imps in Chester’s squad are Simon Yeo and Kevin Sandwith, both involved in Playoff Failures for the Imps.

Other than that the Chester side is extremely average at best and there’s only one of their players that I would like to see playing in a Lincoln shirt in the future and that is Dean Bennett.

They are currently rejecting offers for Simon Yeo from Bury, if he goes then there goes about 10 goals a season for Chester and you get a feeling that will cost them anything higher than 20^th place. Not only this but their manager, Bobby Williamson, doesn’t exactly have the best record in management and has lost more games than he’s won during his career and any manager with that sort of record isn’t one that I would put in charge of my side if you intended not to fight against relegation.

Overall, I predict a 20^th placed finish for Chester, but had it not been for the signing of Ellison then I would have predicted them to finish rock bottom.

Do you agree with this prediction or do you think it's Chester's turn to finally go down?

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