Dear Exile,
I
don’t know whether to start with the good news or the bad news
this month!
The good news is that we are still TOP OF THE LEAGUE with Hereford losing at home to Burton Albion and City beating Farnborough Town 3-2 on Saturday we are now eight points clear and only one game ahead. If we keep winning more than the others then everything will be hunky dory by the end of the season. I am sure that we are all keeping our fingers crossed that the top League positions are resolved (in a positive way!) before we travel to Hereford on 24 April. What a great day that would be but I am not even thinking it about it (honest!)
The bad news is that Aldershot are still involved in the FA Trophy which may put our sponsored match on 27 March slightly in jeopardy as they are playing Tamworth in the next round and could progress further. There is one more match before the semi-final of the FA Trophy which falls (you’ve guessed it!) on 27 March. If the worst happens then our sponsored match will be postponed and move to a Tuesday night fixture, which will make it very difficult for a majority of Exiles to attend.
Therefore, we are currently looking at possible solutions to this problem and we will be discussing these with the Commercial Department at the Football Club. One possibility is that we swap our match with the Supporters Trust Board members who are personally sponsoring the Exeter home match on Saturday 10 April. They have been approached about this and would be willing to help. However for the time being please assume that the date is 27 March!
To end on some good news, Grenville Millington, one of City’s finest-ever goalkeepers, has kindly agreed to be our Chief Guest at the sponsored match and is looking forward to it (which ever day it turns out to be!)
To secure your place at this match please
fill in your details below, we shall be treating all applications
on a first-come first-served basis. The closing date for entries
is 12 March.
Pauline Meakins
Chair, Chester City Exiles
email
the chairman
SPONSORED MATCH CHESTER CITY v EXETER CITY 27 MARCH
2004
For this match the Exiles will be sponsoring both
the Match and the Match Ball.
The cost to attend for current Exiles members
(fully paid-up for 2003/04) will be £25.00.
This price will include
the following:
• Stand ticket
• Pre-match team sheet
• Pre-match deluxe buffet
• Match programme
• Access to Executive Lounge (and refreshments) at half time
• Opportunity to meet directors, management, players in Executive Lounge
after match
• Car park (to be confirmed)
Should the game be postponed we are trying to secure the Exeter City game on 10 April instead and need to know your availability for that alternative date just in case. Cheques will not be cashed until we are in a definite position to go ahead with either game. We may be able to accommodate some members’ guests but ONLY if the full allocaton in NOT taken up by Exiles members who have joined before 1/2/04.
If you would like to attend our sponsored game please carefully fill in your details below and post them back, along with your cheque (made payable to 'Chester City Exiles'), to: Steve Mansley, Two Ways, Waverley Place, Leatherhead, Surrey KT22 8AS.
Please clearly write your name and contact phone number on the back of your cheque also.
| APPLICATION FORM – PLEASE PRINT | |
| Name: | |
| Address: | |
| Address: | |
| Town: | |
| Post Code: | |
| Contact Phone number: | |
| Email address: | |
| Amount enclosed: | £ |
| Should there be room, would you like to take a guests with you at the full cost of £45.00 YES / NO | |
| Should the Aldershot game on 27 March be postponed, are you able to attend the Exeter City game on 10 April instead? YES / NO | |
| PLEASE RETURN BY 12 MARCH 2004 | |
The match at Woking later this month is being televised on SKY Sports and now has a kick-off time of 17:30hrs. We shall be meeting in the usual venue the Wetherspoons, 51-57 Chertsey Road (5 minutes fom the station) from mid-afternoon then heading off to the social club at the ground – no doubt to catch the final scores of the other matches played.
APFSCIL 6-A-SIDE LEAGUE |
||||||
| Th | Oct 23 | Blackpool |
(H)
|
5-6
|
SteveC 1, SteveM/Robert 1, ????? | |
| M | Nov 24 | Manchester City |
(A)
|
4-7 | Sue 1, Robert 1, SteveM 1. | |
| Tu | Jan 8 | Scunthorpe United |
(H)
|
4-7
|
SteveC 2, Sue 1, Sue/Chris 1. | |
| W | Jan 28 | Carlisle United |
(A)
|
3-8
|
SteveM 1, SteveH 1, SteveC (Team)1. | |
| M | Feb 23 | Blackpool |
(A)
|
-
|
Royal Star, City Road, London EC1 (Old Street tube, Exit 8, turn right and pass Moorfields Eye) | |
| Th | Apr 1 | Burnley |
(H)
|
-
|
City Retreat, 74 Shoe Lane, London EC4 3BQ (tube Chancery Lane, or City Thameslink (Holborn Viaduct)) | |
| Th | Apr 22 | Manchester City |
(H)
|
-
|
City Retreat, 74 Shoe Lane, London EC4 3BQ (tube Chancery Lane, or City Thameslink (Holborn Viaduct)) | |
| W | Apr 28 | Scunthorpe United |
(A)
|
-
|
The Arbitrager, Throgmorton Street, London EC2 (Bank tube) | |
| M | May 17 | Nottingham Forest |
(A)
|
-
|
||
| Th | May 27 | Carlisle United |
(H)
|
-
|
City Retreat, 74 Shoe Lane, London EC4 3BQ (tube Chancery Lane, or City Thameslink (Holborn Viaduct)) | |
| TBA | Burnley | (A) | Sekforde Arms, Sekforde Street EC1 (Farringdon tube) | |||
| TBA | Nottingham Forest | (H) | City Retreat, 74 Shoe Lane, London EC4 3BQ (tube Chancery Lane, or City Thameslink (Holborn Viaduct)) | |||
 |
|
|
|
|
- | |
8
January |
||||||
28
JanuaryNEW MEMBERS
Welcome
to the following new members who have joined/rejoined us recently. Deryck
Sawyer (Liverpool), David Winder (Houston, Texas, USA), Paul Holmes
(Coventry), Charles Irish (Bath), David Punton (Musselburgh), Ian Watts
(Wokingham), Paul
Cutler
(St.Albans),
Robert
Middlefell
(Bath).
The
online and mail-order price is for UK ONLY.
Overseas orders can be arranged please email us for
postal cost to your location. |
|
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MATCH PROGRAMME/EVENING LEADER ARTICLE
The
following article appeared ion the match programme before Christmas
and extracts also appeared in an Evenng
Leader article on 26 November.
It’s 20 years this month since a group of die-hard Blues supporters regularly travelling hundreds of miles to see their heroes play at home and away decided to form their own supporters club to make following the team just that bit easier.
The Southern Branch of the Chester City Supporters’ Club was set up in November 1983 by Steve Mansley, Ian Riley, Rick Goby and Richard Hanford. All four founders are still members today, but the group has since been re-named the Exiles and now has more than 60 members around Britain and the world.
The
Exiles have always worked hard to ensure City fans living away from the
north-west don’t feel isolated from their fellow supporters. Members
receive regular newsletters (posted or e-mailed), an exclusive enamel
badge, away travel benefits and discounts on unique memorabilia.
Many people join because the group offers the best chance to get together with other Exiles at regular socials and pre-match meeting places – you’ve probably seen the smart banner at football grounds up-and-down the country. Although most members are based in the south-east, regional sub-groups are now being set up elsewhere in Britain.
The Exiles play their part in supporting the team in other ways. During the group’s 20-year history it has contributed more than £2,400 to the football club through various forms of sponsorship. Last season it sponsored the team for the number of clean sheets kept and also bought £80 worth of equipment for the under-9 side.
Much of the sponsorship money is raised from the annual football prediction competition, which has 271 entries this season. Other activities have included being at the heart of the foundation of the ISA and organising ‘meet the manager’ sessions at away games. There’'s even an Exiles darts team, playing in a London football supporters’ league.
The Exiles also give a voice to all far flung Blues fans. Chairman Pauline Meakins is on the Board of the Chester City Supporters' Trust, giving the Exiles a formal mechanism to put their views to the Trust and through the Trust to the club.
It’s now the perfect time to join the Exiles are there are special incentives to join in the 20th anniversary season, including the sponsorship of the Chester home match against Aldershot on March 27.
The group is also producing a range of anniversary memorabilia, with members’ discounts. These include a newly-designed replica 1960s Toffs shirt, polo shirts, sweatshirts, sunglasses, ski hats, mouse mats and coasters. Orders placed by December 3 will arrive before Christmas. For more information visit the Exiles website at http://www.chestercityexiles.co.uk. Click on the merchandise link to order the memorabilia, which can be purchased on-line.
You can find out more about the Exiles by meeting up with them before the Aldershot game on November 22 at the Royal Staff pub, 37a Mount Pleasant Road, just five minutes walk from the Recreation Ground. Details of Christmas socials will also be announced soon.
Sue Choularton
PREDICTION COMPETITION
The competition is now well under way, weekly updates in PDF format can be viewed at www.chestercityexiles.co.uk