FOOTBALLERS come and go and some achieve legendary status. Goalkeeper Wayne Brown is high up there with the Chester City greats like Gary Talbot and Stuart Rimmer.
And the fans who have elevated him towards the top of their all-time favourites list will flock to the Deva Stadium on Sunday, May 9 (2pm kick-off) to pay tribute to the man who missed the second half of the promotion season with a foot injury.
Southampton-born Brown joined the Blues in 1996 after making one League appearance for Bristol City, and he had 84 League outings before Chester were relegated to the Conference.
He made his 200th appearance for the club at the start of this season, collecting England National Game XI caps on the way. Sadly, the injury sustained just before Christmas limited this season's appearances to 16.
But Brown was delighted for his teammates following their victory against Scarborough.
'I had mixed emotions, when you are not involved every day, sometimes you don't feel a part of the team,' he admitted.
'But I am made up for the lads, everyone at the club and the supporters, who have had a hard time of it over the years.'
Brown's injury, known in the medical profession as a Jones fracture, is notoriously difficult to heal, but he hopes to be given the all-clear by the time the players return for pre-season training in July.
'I have been doing as much as possible with the help of the staff at University College Chester, but I am probably about a stone overweight at the moment,' he revealed.
'I always dread the start of pre-season training, but this time it is going to be particularly tough.'
Many of his former Chester team-mates have promised to turn out in his testimonial game against this year's successful side, including Cyrille Regis, Peter Jackson, Gary Bennett, Chris Priest and Roger Preece.
His testimonial committee have also planned two sportsmen's dinners, as well as a cricket match and a golf day.
Further details will be announced in due course.
