Blues Match Preview: Nantwich Town v Chester FC

Chester FC's penultimate pre-season fixture takes them to NPL West Division side Nantwich Town, as Phil Parkinson takes the Blues to his former club in our last away trip before the National League North season commences in 11 days.

Saturday will be the fourth time Parkinson and Assistant Manager Neil Sorvel have returned to the Swansway stadium after a successful three-year tenure, hoping their old employers can provide the Seals with a challenging encounter as our trip to Chorley closes in.

Opposition

Nantwich have established themselves as a competitive outfit in the Northern Premier League West Division over the last three seasons, having never finished more than five places outside the play-offs.

At the start of last season our opponents looked to be heading towards promotion as they started with a 100% record in the first three games of the campaign, boosted by an impressive home record as they went unbeaten for their first nine games at the Swansway Stadium.

However this success was relatively short-lived as Luke Goddard was hired in January to steer the side back on a promotion hunt as they sat in the bottom half of the table with nine losses in 14 games.

Under the academy graduate, the Dabbers ended the 2025/26 season in ninth place.

Nantwich have put themselves in a great position to achieve their first promotion since 2008, with a manager who is capable of building league challenging teams as he guided Northwich Victoria to the top of the Midland League Premier Division before his departure, he also has promotion success as he guided former club Whitchurch Alport into the NWCFL Premier Division.

The new manager is not the only arrival with promotion on their CV, as two of their biggest summer signings are Liam Fitzpatrick, who was promoted into the NPL West Division through the play-offs last season, and Ethan Hartshorn, who starred at Congleton Town where he won three trophies and achieved one promotion in five seasons.

History 

Our opponents won their first and only national trophy in 2006, with the FA Vase in front of nearly 4,000 supporters at St Andrew’s, as they took down first time finalists Hillingdon Borough with a 3-1 victory.

The closest they have come to replicating cup success was 10 years later under now Chester boss Parkinson who, in his first full season, took his side on a giant-killing run to the semi-finals of the FA Trophy, taking down National League side Dover Athletic on the way as a seventh tier team. The Dabbers were eventually eliminated 6-4 on aggregate to National League outfit Halifax Town.

The 2005/06 season was not only historic for on pitch success, but also due to movement away from it, as the highly successful campaign marked the last ever game at the Jackson Avenue ground, where they had played for the last 123 years.

This was the first of three brilliant years as they won back to back promotions over the next two campaigns, taking them to the heights of the NPL Premier Division. However, a handful of play-off heartbreaks stunted their progress and kept them there for the next 15 years, until they were hit by relegation in 2023.

Player to watch

The Seals will need to keep an eye out for vice-captain Joel Connolly as the 23-year-old was the club’s top assister in the 2025/26 season. The versatile defender set up 10 goals from right back and midfield.

Connolly kicked on during the second half of the season under Goddard as he was awarded with the team’s April Player of the Month after registering three assists in six games. His contributions have also earned him the Manager’s Young Player of the Season award.

Match preview by Harry Bennett.

Tuesday’s game will kick-off at 19:45.

The postcode for the ground is CW5 5BS.

Supporters can pay on the gate on Tuesday evening, but are advised to purchase tickets in advance to avoid lengthy queues.