Chester fans, welcome to the Vodkat League

The news that came through on Monday that Chester FC, the new club formed by the fans of the wound up Chester City FC, was to be placed in the Vodkat League would have been greeted with excitement in Vodkat League quarters. It certainly was with me, as it gave the prospect of another big game in an exciting few years.

FC United of Manchester, whatever you might think of their reason for being, gleefully came through the Vodkat league in a fug of noise and good times, largely sweeping all before them, but doing so with humility and good humour. The big crowds they generated generally allowed most clubs in the league to make a useful bit of money, in some cases helping to keep the clubs alive.

So I logged onto devachat.com to see the CFC reaction and to say I was surprised was an understatement. The people of Chester, it would seem, were not amused. Some ripped up their season tickets before they had bought them, stating that they would not be watching football that they reckoned was just a small step up from pub league. Most were fuming at the FA for having the audacity not to place them, at worst, in the Unibond, sorry Evo-Stick, Premier. Only a few pointed out that given the last few years they felt happy just to have a side at all.

It was an ungracious reaction, borne from an indication from the NPL that should the FA place them in the Evo-Stick, they would be happy to have them. Devachat contributors pointed out 'precedent' where Halifax and Telford had been relegated only to the NPL when they had gone out of business, and accused the FA of selling them down the river by not similarly putting their new club in that league.

I think we need to put the precedent thing to bed right away. There is a difference. Halifax and Telford both finished the previous season albeit under a cloud, and as such, when they went down the divisions they we effectively accepting a demotion in FA eyes - although I would still argue even now that they should have started at Step 6. But the crucial thing is that the season before they played their 42 games. Chester meanwhile, didn't. They failed to turn up to one, and had another abandoned, then went out of business all together.

This of course was not the Chester fans fault. In Steve Vaughan they had a crooked owner and were quite rightly desperate to get rid of him. They had suffered enough embarrassment before the disastrous 2009/10 season, but that first season in the Conference had seen them given a clean slate with a new company (and no relegation, perhaps unlike the Halifax and Telford 'Phoenix club precedent') they ran up further debts to HMRC, whilst Vaughan claimed that the club owed him the best part of three quarters of a million pounds...run up in about 6 months. When the club was wound up, you could hear the sighs of relief from here...they were rid of him and could start again.

But there's the rub, starting again means just that...meaning that the bottom of the pyramid is where you have to be. That is the fair way of doing things, no matter how many supporters you have, or how big your home ground will be. You might argue that the clubs with an average attendance of less than 100 would not be able to cope, but that has already been disproved, as they all coped with FCUM, borrowing grounds if they had to.

The FA appear to believe in starting again too, and rather than sell Chester down the river, they appear to have kept the integrity of the game intact, showing that their are no short cuts. The FA didn't suggest that Chester would start in the Evo-Stick league either, that was an eager NPL looking to have them. They have no qualms about short cuts, their open-armed welcome of Halifax et al have already shown that.

So, Chester fans, you are where you deserve to be, and welcome to the league. Speak to FC United fans and they will tell you about the fun they had when they cut a swathe through the league. They will also tell you what to expect, but I'll add a little to that.

First of all, the disappointment - I think you'll start in Division 1. You've already read my opinion if you've got this far, and although I don't have a vote I expect the member clubs will be of similar mind. However, once you are with us the clubs will try to pull out all of the stops to welcome you, making it as friendly as possible. You can expect entry prices of about £6 too, which will be a welcome change I am sure.

There will be no FA Competitions for you this year, but there will be the Vodkat League Cup. Next season will see you able to enter the FA Vase and the season after will allow you in the FA Cup. The Vase will bring all sorts of fun with the prospect of a Wembley final at the end of it. And what a weekend that could be.

Rather than pub league standard, the Vodkat league is one of the strongest Step 5 leagues in the land, rivalled only by the Northern League in the North East. The players are fit as a fiddle and talented too. They can play more than a bit, and any side that comes into the league thinking they can sweep all before them without working hard for it will be in for a shock very quickly.

I doubt that will happen though, as you will undoubtedly have the financial clout to do very well. Here, you will find, that rather than put people off, the public will come out and support a winning side. Look (again) at FCUM. Crowds were down this season in the Unibond Prem, as were the results. When they were winning every game, the crowds were larger, noisier and having tremendous fun. They loved playing sides with names like Daisy Hill, Blackpool Mechanics (sadly renamed an dull-as-ditchwater AFC Blackpool) and Atherton Laburnum Rovers. They loved the pies made by local companies rather than massed produced in processed meat factories. They loved taking over the grounds and the fact that they were leaving a financial legacy to all they met.

So embrace it Cestrians. Come the kick off on 7 August love the fact that the team is yours, and yours alone. Love the new experiences that you are going to have rather than the sanitized matchday routine of leagues higher. Love that you are most likely going to win every week. Love the knowledge that away grounds are close enough for you to be home for Doctor Who, never mind Match of the Day. You will find that Vodkat League people are all volunteers doing it out of fondness for their town, their club and their community. Sound familiar? We have common ground and are genuinely looking forward to seeing you.

Two 'Must Win' Evenings for the Blues

I've got a couple of tickets to special events this week, and I cannot wait for either. On Wednesday I'm snubbing Glossop North End for once, and instead will be heading down to Eastlands for the match that could help shape the new order in English football - if Manchester City can beat Tottenham and pip them to fourth place, they could shake up the system that has been in place since the late 90s. Barely any other English club bar the 'Sky 4' has had a place in the 'Champions' League since runners up were allowed in into the cup in 1997, but a place for the Blues could cause ructions in the established order, at the expense of the Reds, Liverpool. They will claim it's due to the money they've been able to throw at it.

My other ticket could also see me witness the Blues causing ructions at the expense of the Reds - also for the first time since 1997 - as I will be at the General Election count for the High Peak Constituency on Thursday night, where Tory Andrew Bingham will be hoping to pick up the seat vacated by Tom Levitt.

Levitt only just held off Bingham in 2005, by less than a 1000 votes, and it is fully expected that the High Peak will turn blue once again, having dallied with Labour since Tony Blair's initial romp. Despite Bingham's camp having to deny accusations about the source of his funds.

This wont be my first count. I was fortunate enough to be there in 2005, when I witnessed the bizarre sight of a Labour MP cheering when a (left-leaning) colleague announced that he thought he was beaten. In the end, Bob Marshall-Andrews came through, which could have made for an awkward moment when the two met, had he heard about Mr Levitt's 'yes!' when he near-conceded.

The second moment of note came at about 2am when there was a flurry of activity. It looked as though we had a result, and the candidates were gathered. We knew it was close, but not close enough to need a recount surely...we wanted to go home. Unlucky! Mr Bingham thought 800 to be close enough to keep us all there for another couple of hours. I got home from Buxton at around 5am.

Of course, this time Tom Levitt has gone, retired, not least because it would seem that he was so utterly certain to lose. He had not won any friends by being to faithfully loyal to the party on all matters, including Iraq and latterly the mess of a congestion charge proposal in Manchester. He finished himself off with the expenses claims, given unfair stick for a genuine oversight in claiming for a rememberance day wreath, but strangely not lambasted for asking us to pay for a hairdryer. Look him up on Google images if you are not sure why.

So it seems our Labour candidate Caitlin Bisknell has been given the most poisoned of chalices - and Mr Levitt has been noticeably absent in her campaign. It would be extraordinary if she could defend this marginal seat. Her chances are not helped by the national rise of the Lib Dems skewing the polls. Marc Godwin (now defected to the Tories in an apparent fit of pique) lost to Labour by nearly 10000 last time, but could the pendulum have swung so far away from Labour that a vote for their Alistair Stevens now the most effective vote against the Tories? And even if it hasn't, can the Lib Dem supporters be persuaded by the 'Guardian' argument that a vote for Labour could at least keep out Bingham?

The Lib Dem candidate spot has been plagued with problems. Apart from Godwin turning, previous candidate Steve Sharp was charged with fraud (and subsequently convicted) and he clung on for an embarassingly long time. Without Clegg's performance on TV, Stevens would have had no chance at all, and those that wish to keep Cameron out more than remove the Government should bear this in mind.

I envisage that Mr Bingham will stand on the Pavilion Gardens stage as a victor on Thursday. He has been the Tory candidate for a good eight years now, and has used his funds effectively to make himself well known. Bisknell will be second, with stubborn Lib Dems voting for their own to keep the percentages high, but coming in third. That said, if the Tories are to have any chance of winning nationally, this is a constituency they HAVE to take...and many many more like it.

One things for sure, both nights are going to be exciting.