This week will be decisive in the history of Chester FC .

It’s not just the short term battle against relegation from the National League. It’s for the long term survival and prosperity of the club which a dedicated group of supporters fought so hard and so memorably to revive in 2010.

That first sentence may strike some as unnecessarily sensationalist.

But the facts are stark and unavoidable. The club is suffering falling crowds, falling revenues and a sliding League position. One big name player, Tom Shaw, has already moved in the name of cost-cutting and others are set to follow.

Saturday’s home defeat by Gateshead felt like a watershed, a turning point.

So every one of us proud to call ourselves supporters of this fan-owned club now have key challenges to face up to.

Do we accept that relegation this season is inevitable? Do we believe that the board of volunteers is doing the best job in the circumstances? Do we accept that club resources are so limited in the face of bigger, rival budgets that Chester’s level is better suited to National League North?

Or do we think that swift, firm action - before the transfer window shuts at the end of January - can bring a dramatic shift in results, mood and momentum?

That with more experienced, more business-savvy, business-orientated leadership off the pitch - from within the CFU membership and CFC family - there is the opportunity and the time to make a dramatic impact to halt the drift and inspire a climb out of relegation trouble?

It’s a question of ambition too. What do you want from Chester FC?

After years of financial mismanagement under a succession of unsavoury owners just having a club to support may be good enough for many at whatever level is sustainable under the current ownership model.

Others may yearn for a return to the highest level of football possible, either as a fan-owned club or with added backing from private investors or through a return to private ownership.

Whatever your view, many will wonder how and why Macclesfield Town consistently defy the odds to achieve success in contrast to Chester.

For now, the choice is simple. Stay as we are or be bold and make a change to rediscover the energy, enthusiasm and spirit that carried it so impressively through the opening years of its rebirth.

From conversations and meetings I’ve had over the last 10 months across a whole spectrum of Chester supporters young and old, administrators, board members past and present, former managers, former players, local business people, sponsors and football executives at all levels of the game, there’s a message that’s grown louder and louder.

The club has lost that original start-up drive and intensity from eight years ago.

In reality it was inevitable, like a band who took the music world by storm and could seemingly do no wrong only to hit hard times for whatever reason.

The class acts come again to fill the halls and stadiums– and that’s what Chester FC can do.

This is not a time for blame or finger-pointing about who got what wrong. We are where we are but we needn’t stay here.

This is a time to acknowledge that there is a strong group of determined, successful, highly motivated, well connected Chester supporters ready and willing to apply their skills and take whatever tough, unpleasant decisions are necessary - as in any business - to give the club the best chance of surviving this season, ideally in the National League, and well beyond.

If that means taking decisions with an eye to next season’s budget so be it. Look how far Altrincham have fallen after relegation in 2016.

This league, as so many coaches and pundits have said, doesn’t have a Manchester City, a dominant team. In fact most have said this is the weakest selection of teams for a long time. Put a run together and you’re up the table.

That can still happen for Chester – with the right people in the right jobs. This week at Thursday’s CFU meeting is our chance to start the comeback #COYB