Lancaster City travel to Chester in huge FA Trophy clash

Lancaster City will travel to the Deva Stadium on Saturday hoping they can pull off a cup upset against Chester.

The Dollies will face the Seals in the Isuzu FA Trophy Second Round, in what will be one of the biggest games in recent years for Lancaster.

Lancaster’s LFA Challenge Trophy clash with Bamber Bridge on Tuesday (November 15) was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch at the Giant Axe so they have had a rare midweek off, meaning the club will have been focusing on, preparing for and looking ahead to this game since Tuesday afternoon.

Chester are a league above Lancaster City, currently playing in the Vanarama National League North. They occupy sixth position and have been enjoying a decent season. They are set to build on their 16th-placed finish in the same division in 2021/22.

They are currently unbeaten in seven games in the league and will be wanting to carry that good form into the FA Trophy for a tie which they are admittedly the favourites for.

However, nobody can rule out Lancaster coming away with a result on Saturday – the Dolly Blues made it to the third round of the competition last season and will want to do the same again.

They are sitting 17th in the Northern Premier League Premier Division but have recently been picking up more points after a difficult start to the season which included long-term injuries to several key players and left manager Mark Fell wondering, at times, if he’d be able to field a squad for games.

One of Chester’s more experienced players is midfielder Alex Kenyon, who joined the club in July 2022. He played for the Dollies between 2009 and 2012 and made over 250 appearances for Morecambe FC from 2013 to 2021 - his last game for them was at Wembley when they were promoted to Sky Bet League One.

The financial benefits of progressing from the second round would be immense for Lancaster City: the winner would receive £3,750 and would be guaranteed at least £1,250 from playing in the third round.

Lancaster City organised for a coach carrying away fans to travel to the game on Saturday. The coach will set off at noon from the Giant Axe and stop on Caton Road and near the Phantom Winger in Broughton.

The FA Trophy Second Round match between Chester and Lancaster City kicks off at the Deva Stadium at 3pm on Saturday (November 19).