Vauxhall 1 Chester 2

Jul 21 2008 by David Triggs, Chester Chronicle

FIRST-HALF strikes by Tony Dinning and Stephen Vaughan were enough to hand the Blues a narrow friendly win at Rivacre Park on Saturday.

It was far from a free-flowing performance but City, but they did just enough to see off their Blue Square North hosts.

On-trial striker Trevor Benjamin was hauled down in the box by Lee Owens in the 19th minute, and referee Mike Dean had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.

Dinning tucked the penalty away to make it 1-0.

The Blues doubled their lead five minutes later when Vaughan, who showed some neat touches in the first period, fired home a first-time shot.

Just before half-time, Thomas Rooney – cousin of England striker Wayne – halved the deficit from the penalty spot after being pulled down by Shaun Kelly. But Motors were unable to find a second goal and City went on to claim the win.

Chester manager Simon Davies said: “The first half was quite encouraging. There were some good passages of play and some good movement. Then whether it’s because the game gets a little bit low-key, the game’s fizzled out.”

The City boss was pleased with the contribution of Benjamin, 29, who is a free agent following his release from Hereford United.

Davies said: “He did quite well. He’s a big strong boy who isn’t really going to run in behind people and down channels. But if you know the ball up to him with quality, he makes it stick.”