Hello all

As promised, here is the delayed and final Exiles newsletter for the 2007/2008 season. It is pleasing to be able to draw the season to a close on a positive note both in retaining our League 2 status and the successful run-in for our Exiles’ darts team – more details later in this newsletter.

In many respects this season has been relatively quiet for the Exiles with fewer fixtures ‘down south’ where most of our members are based. Disappointingly the early season form had evaporated by Christmas and it was not what you call very pleasant viewing at the matches which followed. Still it was great to re-visit ‘old’ grounds such as Brentford and even Dagenham although a football night out is not quite as much fun when you are getting thrashed!

I think it was probably an understatement that most Chester fans were very pleased for Simon Davies when he kept the Club in the Football League despite some alleged shenanigans in the dressing room again. One of the few highlights of the second half of the season was the coming of age of several of our youth team and thankfully they did not have to carry the burden of getting the club relegated as a lot was placed on both theirs and Simon Davies’ shoulders. The great news, of course, is that Paul Linwood has signed a new two year contract which was quite a surprise to many of us if recent press reports were to be believed.

The Exiles have started blogging! The Chester Chronicle has now got its own football blog Deva Fever http://blogs.chesterchronicle.co.uk/deva-fever/ and I am pleased to report that the Exiles have been the most active of all the supporters’ groups in keeping this going – thanks mainly to Sue Choularton. If anyone else would like to write something please let either myself or Sue know – we would be delighted for others to join in.

Meanwhile, the results of the Prediction Competition can be found later in the newsletter. Congratulations to the winners and thanks to everyone who took part.

Thanks, too, to Alan Parry Jones for organising a team to represent Chester City in the APSCIL annual ten pin bowling tournament at Finsbury Park on 27 May. Mind you I can’t quite understand why he chose to bowl for another team on the night? (Ok, maybe it was because we won the wooden spoon but we had a great laugh!)

I know there has not been much to shout about in the past season and I am almost glad that England is not taking part in the European Championships this summer as gives us a much needed breather from the stresses of our own football teams. However, we are already looking forward to next season which will be another anniversary season for the Exiles (25 years). The Committee is developing an idea which we hope to pass on to you in a forthcoming newsletter.

We will keep in touch over the close season and I hope you enjoy your summer break

Hope to see you soon.

Pauline Meakins
Chair, Chester City Exiles
June 2008

email the chairman