A new calendar year means only one thing for football clubs these days, and that's the opening of the transfer window, and with it the chance to rejuvenate flagging squads with an injection of fluid talent to bolster the team's chances of improving their league position.

At least, that's how the theory goes. With a club such as Chester City, the focus is more on retaining a decent enough squad to last throughout the rest of the season. Manager Mark Wright is all too aware of how quickly form turned in January 2007, when several key players left the team, with some shining in their subsequent roles.

The main two from that month had to be Jon Walters and Roberto Martinez. The former was brought in on a free and was sold to Ipswich for a tidy sum that could yet top £400,000 if Walters is sold on to a Premiership club this month.

The move was a big stroke of good fortune for City, of course, as Ipswich only saw how good Walters was when the teams played out two matched in the FA Cup fourth round. City were very lucky to be in the competition after Bury were thrown out for an ineligible player- an experience Droylsden have been able to share recently after they were expelled for the same reason (ironically, with on-loan City player Sean Newton).

Roberto Martinez became manager of Swansea City in February 2007, and a quick peek at the league table says they are settling in nicely mid-table in the Championship, having been champions of League One the previous season with him at the helm.

The main task for Chester City this month, therefore, is to hold on to players such as the in-form Ryan Lowe, promising star Damien Mozika and young talent such as Paul Rutherford.

However, with a decrease in attendances potentially constricting the wage cap limit on the club even further, the squad may have to offload a few names it would want to keep.

WITH a temporary lull in the bizarre off-field activities at the club over the Christmas period, it's been nice to concentrate on just watching the football with the games coming thick and fast.

And in a reversal of fortune when compared with recent seasons, it has been successful football on Chester's part - or at least it was until yesterday's defeat at Macclesfield. The change in management appears to be paying dividends and, all of a sudden, the team looks highly motivated and competitive.

Watching a vibrant Bradford City side kept at bay in front of 12,000 of their own fans was refreshing, especially on the back of the early season capitulations at Dagenham and Rotherham.

It's important for Chester to produce some of their own players through youth development, so to see Kelly and Roberts prove themselves in this game (with a bit of help from Danby and Linwood!) was a joy to behold for the 200-odd in the away end.

The victory over Accrington Stanley was by no means a perfect performance, but it was a vast improvement on earlier in the season when you feel City would have contrived to draw or even lose the game.

Mark Wright insisted in his programme notes that he is already looking forward to next season. A few more wins and he will have the luxury of mid-table security, an achievement within touching distance now but which appeared a million miles away not long ago.

Following Chester City is sometimes like a well thought-out panto. Sometimes, you might argue, it's like a tragedy or, if you were to be unkind, a farce. But at this point in the season, with the Christmas season in full swing, surely it's a panto.

Especially with none other than recent villain of the fans, John Batchelor, and his persistence in trying to buy the club put up for sale by Stephen Vaughan.

And Batchelor's vision of a TV fictional team playing at the Deva stadium in an attempt to make the club profitable and sponsor-friendly has not gone down well. "Boo!" "Hiss!" shout the fans, as an undeterred Batchelor nonetheless makes his way to witness the home game against Notts County from within the stadium.

"I'm going to buy this club," says the resilient Batchelor.
"Oh, no he isn't!", shouts Stephen Vaughan from the director's box.
"Oh, yes I will," retorts Batchelor. "We've met on a number of occasions regarding the sale of this club."
"Oh, no we haven't."
"Oh, yes we have."
"Oh, no we haven't."

And so forth.

Meanwhile, a group of overseas investors, led by former City player David Jones, stand outside the stadium, looking puzzled, and shuffle their feet despondently as they walk away from making their own club buyout bid.

They, sadly, have not been entertained. Whether they actually attempted to make a genuine bid or if they really had the financial clout to run a club such as Chester City isn't so relevant now, but their fan-friendly ideas on how they'd run the club were commendable, and made for a more savoury vision of the future than the Dream Team idea.

Because fans are an integral part of the club, and indeed every football league team. That's why it's so gratifying to see City's attendance swell by more than 150 with a visit from children and parents of AFC Waverton (and they picked a good match to go to- a rare convincing home win!). Initiatives like that make the club more popular, and it doesn't take too much time, effort or money if dealt with correctly.

Another bit of positive publicity was generated when ITV reporter 'The Gloryhunter' briefly supported this club as part of his season-long tactic of supporting whichever league team wins the match at the ground he attends. He had been a supporter of Darlington until Chester unexpectedly earned a hard-fought 2-1 win there.

Sadly, his journey with Chester did not last long, as City lost the next game to Bournemouth, but his brief period of gloryhunting at Chester did result in him producing a couple of video blogs on his website (external link).

These videos were largely complimentary affairs and he was able to meet more committed followers of the Blues than him. All good stuff, and can only help raise the profile of the club. Particularly when it's still on the market...

The win at Darlington was as welcome as it was surprising.

After a game against Aldershot where it appeared as though City could have played all day and night without scoring, an early Darlo goal seemed to signal inevitable defeat.

But for the 50 Chester fans who made the midweek trip to the North East, an unforeseen comeback was around the corner. It's probably too early too judge whether the new manager was truly behind this change in fortune. Could Chester have come from one down to lead, and then hold that lead for 40 minutes under Simon Davies?

Possibly, in a one off game. The upcoming fixtures against fellow strugglers Bournemouth, Notts County and Accrington will give a clearer picture of the extent to which Wright's formula, which brought mostly good results across his first two spells at the club, is being successfully implemented this time around.

Certainly in these games, Chester won't want to be conceding any last minute winners, as the Chester City darts team managed to do in losing 6-5 to Bolton this week. Just like the football team, the darts team have been eliminated from the cup and are now left to concentrate on the league for the rest of the season.

It's been another fascinating week for Chester City, and as usual, the main interest comes from off-pitch matters.

Since Stephen Vaughan slapped a £2m price tag on the club (which by my maths makes it worth about one million Woolworths companies plus one million Honda F1 teams), one interested party has attracted more attention than any other.

Step forward John Batchelor, a man who this week has struck terror into the hearts of all City fans with his frank comments on how he'd run the club. You can read them here in the Chronicle interview (not for the faint of heart).

Doesn't exactly come across as very endearing to the fans, does he? Deep down, beneath my disbelief at the concept of trying to resurrect a Sky TV series which ended last year and erect a real-life Harchester Utd, I admire his brutal honesty, if little else.

Just to detach from him admitting he doesn't "give a monkey's about" Chester City's 120 years of heritage, the idea of Harchester Utd seems flawed to say the least.

OK, there are 27,000 registered 'fans' of the Sky TV series 'Dream Team', but that will not correlate to 27,000 fans of a real-life Harchester Utd.

A recent motor racing concept called Superleague saw teams drive around with liveries of football teams including Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspurs, AC Milan and Rangers, but the grandstands at the tracks they raced on (including the season-opener in British track Donington) were practically empty, because supporters of these clubs didn't much care for the idea of supporting a car which had their team's logo on, and a driver they'd probably never heard of.

I used to watch a cartoon on CITV called The Hurricanes, but would I have supported a real-life football team called that, if they played anywhere up to 600 miles away? No!

And what of the Harchester Utd football team? A look at their (fictional) history says they fought relegation (hm, maybe this club isn't so different after all), qualifying for the Champions League (ah, that's different), and being found guilty of match-fixing and corruption and therefore being demoted a division.

Oh, and then to finish off, an explosion at the club killed many of the players.

I think Chester City's history has enough drama already, thanks.

Stephen Vaughan met Batchelor earlier this week, then said in an interview "under no circumstances would he sell" to him, adding Vaughan had "more chance of taking over at Liverpool than he (Batchelor) has of taking over here," much to the relief of City fans.

Batchelor remains undeterred, but given his ideas and his...questionable past with previous ownership/interest in football clubs (a number of Stockport, Mansfield and York City fans have unmistakable views on what they think of Batchelor), it seems unlikely the 'Dream Team' will be playing at the Deva Stadium anytime soon.

Do you have several million pounds you've been storing under your mattress for a special occasion? Have you found yourself with a little extra to spend following the Government's decision to cut VAT to 15%? Want to make your Christmas a little more magical?

Why not spend your hard-earned cash on something that will make you the talk of the town? Yes, ladies and gentlemen, now is *your* chance to own Chester City, officially ranked as one of the nation's top 100 football clubs!

Now on the market, and situated near a popular commercial district and major transport networks, this charming, detached stadium offers pleasant views of the River Dee and...some fields, as well as being in both England and Wales, a unique feature which you can show off to other football club-owners.

With several careful owners (and some less so, quite frankly), this club has everything you need to be a success - a well-maintained pitch, some floodlights, a bar, a couple of burger stalls, a car park which becomes even more easy to find a space at with each passing season, a shop which is sometimes open and a die-hard core fanbase of 1,200 maniacs who'd support the club through thin and thinner.

There's also a squad of City players who, for the most part, will give it their all for the full 90 minutes, although some get a little discouraged when the team is five goals down...again...

* For further details on this wonderful opportunity to own a football club at a price that's much more affordable than the overly-fancy, so-called 'Premiership' clubs, contact a Mr S Vaughan at the Deva Stadium, Bumpers Lane, Chester. Hurry now, offer might end soon!

"I'm happy here as assistant manager. I'm learning every day, gaining experience. I have no qualms about staying here but it's down to the chief executive, the chairman and of course the new manager. I'm happy here."

Wayne Allison, November 14, 2008, speaking to the Chester Chronicle.

"I wanted to bring people up to date with my situations, as I have now left Chester City. I felt it would be a difficult situation to remain at the club after the change of circumstances, although I must stress that Mark Wright had wanted me to stay on in a coaching capacity and didn't want me to leave."

Wayne Allison, November 16, writing on his blog at mysportsthoughts.com.

Seems to sum up another typical week at the Deva Stadium, really. News of the Chief's depature has come as a mild surprise, and it's sad he didn't stay long enough at the club to carve a name for himself as a potential manager.

But, with the incoming Mark Wright and Steve Bleasdale management team, it appeared to be a case of 'two's company, three's a crowd' and Allison seemed to be the unlucky third wheel.

It's also a shame we never got the chance to see the Chief lace up his football boots and appear for Chester City as a player either. But the best of luck to him for his future - his short tenure at the club didn't get to see much in the way of success on the pitch, but he was popular with the fans.

The continual revolving door seems not to be just limited to managers and assistants, either, with old names potentially making a comeback in the starting XI.

Of course, with numbers limited in the Chester City squad (ever-decreasing attendances resulting in an ever-tighter wage cap mean the squad cannot be too numerous), this could mean outcasts Paul Butler and Tony Dinning could be given another chance to feature.

Not wishing to be unkind, but both will have to produce better performances than the last times they were in a City shirt if they intend to prove themselves worthy of being regular starters.

The acid test for Wright now will be to see if he can ensure City grab a few points before January and, once the transfer window reopens that month, to see who should stay and who should go.

Wright blamed having to sell many key players in the January 2006 transfer window as the main reason for the club's subsequent slump down the table. This is his chance to avenge that, but with the wage cap rule in place, he'll have to do it with one arm tied behind his back...

THE first I'd heard that Mark Wright would be returning to Chester City as manager for the third time, I honestly thought it was a wind-up.

That was until I saw the official website proudly stating the 'Conferance' winning team of Wright and Steve Bleasdale would be back in the driving seat, albeit on a 'non contract basis'.

Whether that means the duo will only be there in a caretaker role, or may lead to a more permanent job at the club, I'm totally unsure. To be honest, I'm totally unsure this was the best possible combination for Chester City no matter how long they'll be there.

Needless to say, message boards have been hives of activity following the bombshell announcement. Some are angry, the majority in disbelief.

True enough, the club was successful under Wright and Bleasdale, winning the Conference and propelling the club back into the football league. Since then, though, Mark Wright left on the eve of the season-opener of the following campaign, before coming back 18 months later to get the club out of a relegation battle. The joy of a five-win streak and escape from relegation was soon tempered by a long series of excruciatingly dull football and negative playing, so much so that Wright left once more.

So can Mark Wright really get the results Chester City need right now, and bring with him the hundreds of disillusioned fans who prefer to do something else with their Saturday afternoons? The first test will begin after Wayne Allison leads the squad out in the home fixture against Morecambe.

Still, might see a few more clean sheets from Chester City now...

Travelling to Chester on the National Express from London to watch the Blues play Millwall was a new 'exile' experience for me.

In the build up to FA Cup First Round day, even being stuck at Birmingham coach station for half an hour on a Friday evening seemed worth it.

The hope of creating a cup shock in beating Millwall's highly rated young side was always there, especially given City's two home victories over London clubs already this season.

Sadly, reality bit during the game itself. Despite unquestionable effort from the side, City never looked to be a threat and the collapse after the opening goal was alarming.

Davies' ineptitude as a manager was there for all to see, apparently deliberating over a substitution for over ten minutes, and finally making it when it was far too late.

Four victories in thirty-one games as Chester manager tells its own story. Such a record was also entirely predictable from a man woefully inequipped to manage a football league side.

These stats look good when compared with my own personal record of watching Chester this calendar year - 13 games attended, 0 wins seen.

It may be good for 'The Chief' Wayne Allison that I won't be in the crowd for Morecambe on Saturday.

SO FAREWELL then, Simon Davies. Manager number 12 since club owner Stephen Vaughan took hold of the reins (if you include the six caretaker roles), and what has been the reaction among fans? Apathy, glumness, and a general 'ho-hum' atmosphere.

It sums up the general mood of the club that hardly anyone is shocked. Absolutely no ill will is meant against Simon Davies, but he never convincingly looked like he'd made the step up from coaching the youth team (where he had shined).

But we've been here before, haven't we? So many times a new manager has attempted to breathe fresh life into the club, they'd get the results for about a month, before a run of bad games would shift them out before the end of the season.

All right, in Simon's case, he unfortunately never had that good run of form to lift spirits among the squad and the fans (a clutch of 0-0 draws, although preserving Chester's league status last season, is hardly awe-inspiring), but such records have become depressing for all concerned.

I wish Simon Davies all the best for his future, and sad that he's yet another manager leaving with a poor-looking record on his CV. Still, it didn't stop ex-gaffer Bobby Williamson going on to become manager of the Ugandan national team, of all places!

Potential managers to head City now include Wayne Allison (most likely the first choice, unless he turns the role down), Steve Bleasdale (former Mark Wright assistant) or Brian Little (who'd have to do better than at the last club he was at....where was it?....somewhere in Wales?....ah yes, those fellas in red).

Whoever the new incumbent is, I wish them the best of luck. They'll certainly need plenty.