Blues Match Report: Marine 2 - 1 Chester

A late strike from Lewis Ball earned all three points for Marine, yesterday evening, in their game against Chester.

The Seals earned the first opportunity of the contest after just four minutes as Jack Bainbridge broke with pace and fed Fin Roberts, whose drilled strike was comfortable for Jack McIntyre in the home goal.

Calum McIntyre’s side were reduced to 10 men on the 15-minute mark, as Kevin Roberts was handed a red card following an incident in the home six-yard box.

Following the dismissal, Chester held out for the remainder of the opening period with control, restricting Bobby Grant’s hosts to very little in attacking areas.

Offrande Zanzala had the two most inviting chances prior to the interval, both headed efforts, but neither tested debutant shot-stopper Bobby Jones.

Jones was joined on debut by Michael Kelly and Phil Croker, who also adorned the Chester shirt for the first time at the Marine Travel Arena.

The hosts came out quickly following the interval with their man advantage, with the first major chance falling to Zanzala who flicked his header wide, before Fin Sinclair-Smith found space but saw his drilled effort cleared away inside the six-yard box.

James Potter gave the hosts the lead on the hour mark, when a looped cross fell to him and he powered home past B. Jones.

Lewis Leigh earned a golden chance to equalise just a few moments later as he was brought down inside the 18-yard box, a simple decision for referee Ben Tomlinson.

Connor Woods made no mistake from 12 yards, slamming home a composed finish to cancel out the home opener.

The Seals attempted to find a winner on the break late on, but Dylan Mottley-Henry’s low shot slid agonisingly wide after he was played through by Woods.

Marine regained the lead in the 89th minute through substitute Ball, who capitalised on a rebound from a Zanzala shot to score from close-range.

We are back at the Deva Stadium on Saturday for a clash with Radcliffe.

Chester FC: B. Jones , Shrimpton, K. Roberts, Croker, Kelly, Weeks, Bainbridge, Murray (Kelly-Evans 73′), Leigh, P. Jones (Woods 61′), F. Roberts (Mottley-Henry 67′).

Substitutes: Davies, Woodthorpe, Leak, Peers

Scorers: Potter 60′, Woods 63′, Bell 89′.

Attendance: 1,557 (350 away)

You can watch the post-match interview with Blues Boss Calum McIntyre here...