Chester FC 0 Woking 2
Skrill Conference Premier
17th August 2013

Despite being reduced to ten men following the dismissal of Josh Payne shortly before half-time, second-half goals from Gavin Williams and Joe McNerney were enough to secure Woking their first win of the season against Chester at Exacta Stadium.

The visitors made two changes to the team which lost disappointingly at Braintree in midweek. In place of Gavin McCallum and Joe McNerney came fit-again skipper Mark Ricketts and new signing Freddie Ladapo, a twenty-year old striker brought in from Colchester United on a one-month loan deal.

Both teams were searching for their first league goals of the season and Woking started the brighter with Ricketts winning a competitive battle in the centre of midfield and playing through Ladapo, who smashed the ball into John Danby in the Chester goal.

Kevin Betsy troubled the Chester back four with his mazy runs throughout the first half and came close in the 20th minute when he burst through the middle and curled the ball just wide.

Chester fought their way back into the game but rarely troubled the visitors' defence, with possession being wasted with high balls into the opposition box being dealt with well by the Woking back four. Both teams were struggling in the final third and the game got heated late in the first half when, first, Lee Sawyer was booked for a late challenge and then Josh Payne, who went into a tackle with full force, was adjudged to have head-butted the Chester player and was given a straight red card just before the half-time break.

Half-time: Chester FC 0 Woking 0

Woking knew that it would be tough going throughout the second half with only ten men and it almost became a good deal harder just after the break when a ball in from Joe Heath found Gareth Seddon, whose header smashed against the post. Sections of the crowd wrongly thought that the ball was in the net and the feeling amongst the home supporters seemed to be that it was only a matter of time before Chester would notch their first goal of the season.

Despite being a man down, Woking battled their way back into the game and went close when a Betsy pass just missed Ladapo on the edge of the six-yard box. Luckily, Woking were not made to rue this missed chance as minutes later Gavin Williams collected the ball on the left, cut inside and smashed it past Danby and into the top corner of the net for Woking’s first league goal of the season.

Chester were quick to make a substitution but it was to no avail as three minutes later Joe McNerney, who had replaced Ladapo up front, got on the end of a John Nutter free-kick to head the ball home and put Woking 2-0 up, much to the delight of the travelling fans behind the goal.

The home side continued to look for a way back into the game and came close when Seddon pulled off the last man and headed the ball into the ground but Aaron Howe was on hand to tip it over the bar. The Blues were starting to run out of ideas and knew that it wasn’t going to be their day when, with only five minutes left on the clock, Kevin McIntyre’s free-kick into the box missed everybody and crashed against the bar at the back post. This proved to be the last act in an eventful game in which the ten men of Woking claimed their first victory of the season.

Chester: John Danby, Lewis Turner, Joe Heath, George Horan (Jamie Reed 65), Paul Linwood, Danny Harrison, Nathan Turner, Jason Jarett (Craig Mahon 53), Gareth Seddon, Kevin McIntyre, Craig Lindfield (Alex Titchiner 60)

Unused subs: Ashley Williams, Lee Pugh

Woking: Aaron Howe, Adam Newton, John Nutter, Mark Ricketts, Brett Johnson, Lee Sawyer (George Frith 90), Jack Parkinson, Gavin Williams (Gavin McCallum 78), Kevin Betsy, Josh Payne, Freddie Ladapo (Joe McNerney 53)

Unused subs: Sam Beasant, Anthony McNamee

Cautions: Mark Ricketts (24), Lee Sawyer (37)

Sent-off: Josh Payne (43)

Goals: Gavin Williams (58), Joe McNerney (63)

My Man of the Match: Gavin Williams - injected pace into Woking's midfield throughout the match and took his goal well

Attendance: 2016