ON THEIR return to the competition after a four-year absence, Chester City have received arguably the toughest draw in the first round of the Carling Cup.
They have to go to Championship club Sunderland, the third seeds in the Northern section of the draw, probably on Tuesday, August 24 (8pm), but manager Mark Wright is looking forward to it.
'It is a fantastic draw,' he said. 'It will be a great experience for the players and the supporters to play at the Stadium of Light.'
In fact, it will be City's second visit. They were there in the opening round of the competition in 1998, losing 3-0 in the first leg before going down 1-0 at the Deva Stadium in the second leg. Sunderland went on to lose in the semi-finals.
Meanwhile, City are expected to announce today they have signed former York City defender Darren Edmondson, 33, who has also been at Carlisle and Huddersfield.
'He has major experience at this level and while he is not as young as we would like, he is a very fit lad,' said Wright. 'He will have a one-year contract with an option of a further year.'
And Wright admitted he was also interested in Bradford City's 22-year-old midfielder Tom Kearney. The Merseysider, who began his career at Everton, had 14 league outings last season after being sidelined for a year with a cruciate ligament injury.
Central defender Scott Guyett has joined Yeovil after turning down a new contract at Chester. Added Wright: 'We couldn't wait around forever for Scott to make up his mind.
'He is not a major loss. We have central defenders now who have much more experience in the Football League.'
Also gone is long-serving physio Joe Hinnigan. The Football League insist on clubs having a chartered physio and Hinnigan holds only an FA diploma.
'We offered Joe another post at the club, but he decided to go,' explained Wright. 'I am sure when we advertise for a replacement, there will be a lot of people interested. Chester's first pre-season friendly match will be at home to Walsall tomorrow week.
