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Up until the hour mark at South Shields there was little concern that Chester wouldn’t return with something to show for their efforts in the North East.
The game, poised at 1-1, had ebbed and flowed but Chester, who had enjoyed the better of the first half of the first half, were having the better of the first half of the second half.
In some grim conditions at the Wolf Competitions Stadium, where the driving wind and rain provided a major challenge for both sides, Chester looked to be in a position to push on and take the game away from their hosts, for whom their manager Mike Williamson had come in for significant criticism from sections of his own team’s supporter base.
The hosts were making mistakes, Chester were pressing well and pinching back possession in dangerous areas. But as has been the tale of the tape on more than one occasion this season, the lack of guile and a cutting edge in the final third once again cost the Blues dearly, as did two individual errors that allowed South Shields to earn three points that saw them leapfrog Chester into fourth, with the Blues slipping to seventh spot, occupying the final play-off spot.
There is a whole lot of financial muscle that separates Chester and South Shields off the pitch. But on the pitch the Blues had more than enough about them for large parts of the game to demonstrate that there was no gulf in quality in some areas. What they did have was a clinical nature in the final third, the ability to convert and make the most of small margins.
Phil Parkinson alluded to it in his post-match interview, that the lack of “clinicality” was what was separating his side from coming away from places like South Shields, a club heavily backed financially who want nothing less than the National League North title this season, with three points, and the reality of making the long trek back licking their wounds.
At this moment it isn’t something that really rests on the shoulders of one person. Billy Waters is doing his fair share. His 21st-minute opener, a smart angled finish from inside the box, was his seventh goal in 12 starts in all competitions. His conversion rate would stand up against most in the league. He is the man to find the space and find the net.
But it is around him in that final third that falters at times. Decision making has been problematic at key times, and that is something that can be a hallmark of younger teams. Parkinson knows there are more gears to move through with this group, but if Chester are to attain their goals then they will have to find a way to be what the likes of South Shields were going forward.
It wasn’t a Paul Blackett or Cedwyn Scott-led show, although Scott did hit the leveller on 28 minutes after he reacted quickest to a ball in the box following an initial good save from emergency loan goalkeeper Joe Wallis in the Chester sticks.
The movement between midfield and attack was really where the fine margins existed, and Shields did a good job of overrunning in those areas at key moments.
It wasn’t a 3-1 game, not even close. The final 20 minutes saw the home side take on the role of being the dominant force, but before that it had been Chester who had been the team who had looked the strongest and had seemed well poised push on and take something from the game, which would have provided something of a statement, and a timely reminder that this is a club that can aspire to overcome the bigger budgets.
The clinical element in the final third is where the big moments are decided, and right now Chester are struggling to unlock that. Maybe the return of Ma’kel Campbell in the coming weeks, or Dominic McHale getting back to his Gloucester City form solves that particular problem, but for now it’s something which is threatening to prove negatively impactful in their hunt to be not just play-off contenders, but title challengers.
EMERGENCY LOAN
The Blues were already dealt a blow for the game with regular number one Luke Hewitson having to serve a one-match ban for an incident at Darlington earlier in the season.
In came Wallis, a New Zealand-born stopper from West Bromwich Albions’s under-21 setup. Of all the games to come in to for your first taste of senior English football, a non-league encounter in wind and rain in South Shields is not optimal.
He made a good stop to deny Blackett initially, but could do nothing about Scott’s follow up, and it would be unfair to apportion any blame on him for any of the three goals. But he didn’t have the skillset that Hewitson does.
Chester signed Hewitson as much for his ability with the ball at his feet as they did for his handling. The Blues utilise him often in that respect, and that was part of the game plan for South Shields. But Wallis wasn’t as comfortable in those moments and was almost caught out a couple of times. In the main, however, he wasn’t someone at who the finger of blame could really be pointed.
CHANGE OF APPROACH
Much of the work done around the game in the week had been on making sure that they pressed the home side at every opportunity, which is something that was a feature of the performance until midway through the second half.
Wesley Frimpong was handed a start and Sam Reed was given the slot on the left wing. Reed’s attacking qualities have shone through this season, and at South Shields he worked tirelessly and was Chester’s most potent offensive weapon who did ask questions of the home backline, doing well on a number of occasions to get to the byline and cutting the ball back.
Frimpong was full of energy and commitment, but his decision making at times was lacking. Picking up a yellow in the first half seemed to curb his contribution for the remainder of the afternoon, although he did provide some good service from the right hand side in the first 20 minutes of the second half that wasn’t taken advantage of.
But once the second goal arrived, where a through ball from back to front cut Chester open and allowed Toby Onanaye to advance on goal before choosing his spot, the game plan had to change and the Blues abandoned much of the practices that had seen them dominate large parts of the game up until that point.
The third goal, a similar finish from Caden Kelly after he reacted quickest to a poor Nathan Woodthorpe pass that didn’t reach Jake Griffin due to a slip, came after the shape had been lost and Chester were chasing the game. Woodthorpe’s contribution, it has to be said, as it has been for much of this season, was very positive.
There elements of positivity in the performance when the plan was being delivered as rehearsed, with Sam Foley once again showing up to be an important experienced hand in the centre of midfield. Foley turned 40 last week and still had the energy and hustle for another 90 minutes, which is a testament to how he has managed himself throughout his career.
UP AND DOWN
That is the nature of the beast in this division, and we know the script by now.
Parkinson has been adamant from the start that there will be higher levels this group can reach, but there are still tests along the way that they will be faced with and have to pass. Today was one of those and they came up short, but the league position is certainly no reason to sound alarm bells. Disappointment and frustration is understandable, but we’re still in the infancy of this current journey, and there are signs of a good side that can challenge this season, but we have also seen the areas where we need to make improvements, and soon.
Hereford lead the way so far. They were 6-0 victors over South Shields on September 13. That game came two weeks on from Chester earning a 1-1 draw at Edgar Street, where they really were deserving of all three.
Hereford, too, will have their own issue this season at some stage. They have a squad that has a significant make up of loan players who are forming an integral part of what they are doing. They will be at the whim of parent clubs, and they also haven’t had to cope with too much in the way of injury issues.
Chester will go on a run this season, probably more than once. But the real task for the first half of the season is making sure you do enough to be in the hunt, especially if you have a side that is young and has undergone major change. Things take time, and there is also the not so small matter of players such as Campbell and Jack Bainbridge to come back into the fold, as well as Dan Ward. Three first-team players who improve the options for Parkinson considerably.
Marine on Tuesday is important in terms of bouncing back with a positive result so swiftly ahead of another test against Hednesford Town on Saturday.
If the performance wasn’t there at all at South Shields, and for those in attendance they would have attested to Chester’s dominance in parts, then the result would have been looked at like an away day capitulation of sorts. But that’s not how it went.
The fans stayed behind to applaud the efforts at South Shields after a 3-1 defeat. That approach by the Blues faithful was very much appreciated by Parkinson and the players. Williamson, on the other hand, was being called a whole host of expletives by his own fans behind the goal as his side were on their way to a 3-1 win. Football is a funny game.
MAN OF THE MATCH
Jake Griffin - It was between him and Reed for this pick, and while we conceded three goals, Griffin was pretty much faultless for his part all afternoon, looking like the player who really dominated those opening games of the season.
He did his job alongside George Burroughs, and it would be hard to apportion any blame on the centre halves, especially with a stand-in keeper behind them. Griffin kept Blackett quiet all game and that is no mean feat.
WHAT THE MANAGER SAID
“Fuming, really, really, really angry. I felt like the preparation has been really good for coming into a top game like this. The lads were primed, the intensity of what they’ve been doing has been excellent. The information that they’ve been taking on, I’ve been really pleased with. But it comes down to individuals and individual abilities. Unfortunately for us, we’re just not where some of the South Shields players are. The clinicality that they showed in the top end of the pitch was a big difference. It’s something that we’re very aware of. We need to step up to that level, otherwise we won’t achieve our goals this season. Our players are very aware of that. They’ve just been told in no uncertain terms.
“I sort of looked at this as a bit of a benchmark game. We’ve come up short and question marks will be asked of ourselves, and rightly so. I’m extremely, extremely disappointed with that result because it was not a 3-1 game as well. The difference between the two teams was their ability to put the ball in the back of the net when they had their opportunities.
“It looks like there’s a big gap, a bit like the Buxton game. I thought we played much better than we did away at Buxton today against one of the best teams in the division. Difficult conditions for both teams, but really, really disappointed overall.
“They dealt with the conditions a little bit better. It should have suited us, really. Being able to pin them back with the wind, them going into the wind. I felt we did that really well. We forged our opportunities and scored a decent goal. Then they got one and got on top then. It becomes difficult because they’re a good team and they’ve got players that will exploit you.
“We need to be even braver then. We’ve got to be even braver on the ball. We’ve got to be even more tenacious. We didn’t want to come here and let them dominate the game. I’ve watched so much footage of them. There’s no way we were going to come here and just sit off them and allow them to do what they wanted. It takes a lot of bravery and fitness and intensity from the players to be able to do that throughout the game.
“Obviously, there’s going to be ebbs and flows. I thought the second part of the first half, they got their little bit of an ebb and flow in that point. We didn’t do enough to stop them. I thought the first part of the first half, we were superb.
“They were far more ruthless than us when they got opportunities. I was extremely disappointed with the penalty. I felt it was a penalty on Jeff (Abreu). Jeff, you’ve got to do a somersault and make it all theatrical. The ball’s not there. The lad makes contact with him. It’s a penalty and it’s 2-1. It’s a game-changing moment.
“Listen, I’m not going to rely on referee decisions, but that one’s really hurt us today. It really hurt us because that could change the face of the game completely. Obviously, we’d have to convert it. I might watch it back and it not be, but I was so adamant it was. His explanation to me was he didn’t do enough. He didn’t do enough to stay on his feet, maybe, which I find really difficult to swallow. There were soft contacts given all over the park, but that sounds like me being bitter and twisted.
“South Shields won the game because they were better on the day, but they weren’t 3-1 better than us.”
No one comments on Chester better. Great that the writer understands the club and history.