Blues Match Preview - Chorley v Chester FC

Chester FC are on the road, for the first time in this campaign, on Saturday for a tough test at Chorley.

Both sides started their season in style on the opening day, the Magpies with a dramatic 3-2 win away from home over Darlington and the Seals with a well-deserved victory via the same scoreline over Peterborough Sports at the Deva Stadium.

Fin Roberts opened the scoring early on against the Turbines before Dylan Mottley-Henry sealed all three points with a brace to cancel out two goals from Josiah Dyer for the visitors.

The Opposition

A fifth-placed finish for the Magpies last term represented a second top five finish in succession for Andy Preece’s side.

Chorley look prepared and ready to push for the play-offs again after a summer focused on retainment, a point that was highlighted by last weekend’s team selection at Darlington, in which the starting XI featured no new summer signings.

Tom Walker has been brought in from fellow sixth tier side Radcliffe, whilst 19-year-old forward Harry Ibbitson has joined on a short-term loan deal from Bradford City.

Jack Moore is another new acquisition as he put pen-to-paper on a permanent basis following three previous loan spells at Victory Park from Blackpool.

The Magpies will be without Slovakian winger Milan Lalkovic for Saturday’s clash after he picked up a first-half red card in the win over Darlington.

The Gaffer

Experienced boss Andy Preece is now in his fourth season as manager at Victory Park, with a further four years as assistant prior between 2018-22.

Now a mainstay at the Lancashire club, the 58-year-old has held roles at a number of clubs since he first stepped into management in 1999 at Bury, before stints with Worcester City, Northwich Victoria, Airbus UK and Southport.

Preece’s playing career saw him feature as a striker in the Premier League for a singular campaign at Crystal Palace.

The stint at Selhurst Park was sandwiched in between stretches with Stockport County, Bury, Blackpool and Carlisle United.

One To Watch

Experienced defender Mark Ellis comes into 25/26 off the back of an unbelievable goalscoring season from centre-back, with a major contribution of 13 goals that proved crucial in securing a play-off berth.

The 36-year-old continues to play a crucial role in a steely defence at Victory Park, after featuring in the EFL for the vast majority of his career.

Ellis started out in the Bolton Wanderers youth setup before a first move to Torquay United in September 2007.

In total, the defender has turned out for 12 clubs over an 18-year professional career, including Crewe Alexandra, Carlisle United and Shrewsbury Town.

Match Details

Kick off on Saturday is 15:00.

The postcode for the ground is PR7 3DU.

Chester FC supporters have received an allocation of 750 tickets at Victory Park.