Michael Kay says the club should be more than satisfied with the improvement from last season.
But the defender insists it could have been ever better if the Blues not experienced slumps around the Christmas and Easter periods.
Kay played in the 2-2 draw with Salisbury City on the final afternoon of the 2013-14 season, which condemned Chester to relegation.
That was later overturned when Hereford United were kicked out of the Football Conference for failing to pay football creditors.
Steve Burr rebuilt his squad over the summer as the club grasped its second chance with both hands and a win at home to Nuneaton Town on Saturday (3pm) could see them finish in the top half.
Although Kay believes that would be a fine achievement, the defender does think the Blues could have finished higher if not for poor runs of form at the back end of 2014 and through March.
Kay said: “The final day of last season was crazy because it was up and it was down, and there was a lot of confusion about what was happening at the other grounds.
“It was horrible and not a nice experience at all, and I think the lads who stayed with the club have worked extra hard to make sure it didn’t happen again.
“The new lads who came in bought into that too and I think on the whole this season has been a good one and we’ve showed progression.
“We’ve just got to focus on winning on Saturday now and if that means we finish in the top half then that would be a great achievement. I think the big thing for us now is consistency and if we lose a few games then we’ve got to make sure that we can stop the rot a lot quicker rather than losing four or five in a row.
“The bad runs we’ve had have come at bad times during the season and if we can get a bit more consistency then there’s no reason why we can't push on and progress again next season.”
Kay joined the club in July 2013 from Tranmere Rovers and signed a new 12-month deal earlier this month.
He has featured 38 times this season and although still aged just 25, the centre back will probably be one of the the most experienced players in the squad next season, excluding goalkeeper Jon Worsnop and out-of-contract, veteran full-back Gareth Roberts, whose Blues future is uncertain.
“I hadn’t really thought about it like that but I think it was a bit of no-brainer for the gaffer to re-sign a lot of the young lads because they’ve done so well this season,” said Consett-born Kay.
“I’m sure he will have his eye on a few others he wants to bring in this summer and it might be that he wants to add a bit more experience.
“It’s nice to turn up on the first day of pre-season and see a lot of familiar faces. Last season I felt like one of the new lads because we had so many new players.
“I think it’s important the lads get the chance to improve on this season and we’ve got a good nucleus so I’m already looking forward to getting back in for pre-season.”
