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First County Visit:	Tuesday 25th August 1992
Competition:	Coca-Cola Cup – (Round 1 – 2nd Leg)
Result:	Chester City 1 – 2 Stockport County
Attendance:	4,505
Away Trip:	60
Away Day:	238
County Line-up	1 Neil Edwards; 2 Darren Knowles; 3 Lee Todd; 4 David Frain; 5 Dave Miller; 6 Alan Finley; 7 Jim Gannon; 8 Jim Carstairs; 9 Kevin Francis; 10 Chris Beaumont (14 Neil Matthews); 11 Andy Preece
Scorers:	Chris Beaumont; Jim Carstairs
Manager:	Danny Bergara
County Visits:	7

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AN INDUSTRIAL DESIGN ON AN INDUSTRIAL ESTATE

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It was the 60th ground I’d seen the Hatters play at, and the second which was a new home. Glanford Park had been the first and my account of that outlines my thoughts about the new style of breeze block constructions.

The Deva Stadium was slightly better, in that it was not entirely uniform but there was still little to commend it. I’ve visited three sporting arenas in the city. Sealand Road was the first, and despite its latter days descent towards dereliction it at least had some character. The Racecourse sited just outside the city walls was something different entirely, I’m not much of a horse racing person but did spend my 50th birthday at a meeting there.

I found it magnificent, full of atmosphere, and a real spectacle, and a great day was had, if not a lucrative one! But the Deva Stadium was much of a nothingness with its only claim to fame being that more than half of the ground actually stands in Wales. But there’s been some interesting encounters there over the years since 1992.

County had the honour, if it can be called that, of playing in the first game at Chester’s new home. Sealand Road had been abandoned at the end of the 1989/90 season and for two years they had been tenants at the Moss Rose. We had visited there in league action only 5 months before their move back home. There’s an interesting video about the departure from Sealand Road, and the development and construction of the Deva Stadium. You can view it here.

The ground is within half a mile of Sealand Road, across the main road, then down Bumpers Lane, passing through a range of industrial estates. It is literally at the end of the road. We had been drawn against them in the League Cup, and there was much to play for, the first leg at EP having ended all square. So it was with an interest in both the football and also seeing the new arena that took me westwards that evening.

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Main Stand and admin block on the right; South Stand, (for visitors) on the left. And … Wales from the near touchline and into the distance

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It’s fair to say that the Deva Stadum fits in with its surroundings. Industrial units and attached office space line the route down Bumpers Lane, and the Deva is in architectural alignment. I noted above that half the ground is in Wales. Further research tells me that once the touchline is crossed from the tunnel that forms the border. Unusually the Main Stand is on the east side of the ground. Normally for these new edifices it’s on the West, facing away from the setting sun of a winter afternoon. I have read that it features on the other side so that the offices and administrative centre lie in England and thereby conform with membership of the English football authorities. Whether or not there’s any truth in this or not, it makes for a quirky anecdote.

We entered the ground for that very first game, located in the South Stand, which was standing at that point, although it was later converted to seating. Construction of the ground had only started at the end of January 1992, 7 months previously, and emerging onto the terrace it can only have been a matter of hours since the builders vacated the place. Builders dust shrouded the place; thick on every surface, and hanging heavily in the air. Peering through this what was the vista? A new ground always interests me, but as Simon Inglis (Football Grounds of Britain 1996), notes: “In design terms the Deva Stadium is disappointingly suited to its setting on the edges of an industrial estate“.

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The Main Stand comprises of 10 rows of seating, with its opposite, the West Stand, being only 5 or 6 rows. I’ve never been in the Main Stand but the facilities in the West Stand are crammed into the very small space between the turnstiles and the entrance to the seats. The South Stand, (behind the goal), where we were located was perhaps 8 or 9 rows of terracing, and held 1,296 precisely. As did its opposite number at the far end. The whole ground held just 6,000, and had been designed to do that – any less and it wouldn’t have met the league requirement.

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The teams emerge. County to the right, (garbed in what is, in my opinion, the worst strip they have ever used in my time watching them). Chris Beaumont, followed by Kevin Francis, Neil Edwards, Neil Matthews and Sean Connelly.

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The game that evening was a less than triumphant homecoming for Chester. We won 2-1, thanks to goals from Jim Carstairs, (a rarity), and Chris Beaumont, who had the honour of scoring the first goal at the Deva. And we made it a double victory with a 3-0 win there in the league 25 days later.

Since that first visit, 28 years have elapsed, and I have been back 6 times, (missing only game – a 3-0 beating in the Johnstones Paints Trophy, but more of why anon. My last trip was just over 12 months ago – it was in my view he most complete County performance I’ve seen in years. As we were persuing Chorley at the top of Conference North a win was vital. And win we did – to the tune of 6-0 – a brilliant night. But a couple of other visits have other memories.

At various points in these musings I have referred to my main role, (other than as husband and Dad!), in life over the 20 years. I was for the period from 2000-2016 Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Finance for a pretty large housing association. I retired back in March 2016 with a great deal of satisfaction that I’d played a reasonably big role in creating an organisation from no more than a conversation; set up the whole of the financial infrastructure; put in place financial backing to the tune of £400m; and was proud of creating an organisation which was making a fundamental difference in the community. 

By 2006 it was time to grow the business. We were looking at taking on a business down in Nottingham and had to do a number of site visits as part of due diligence and generally see if it was a viable proposition. One of those visits was on the day that County visited Chester in a Johnstone’s Paints game. The meeting ended at 6:30 with no chance to get to the Deva so after a quick dash back over the hills I got within local radio range; flicked car radio on and found out we were on the way to a heavy defeat.  So a good one to miss.

Three weeks later I was back down in Nottingham for the interview for the job.  It was the day of our league trip to Chester. I really did dash back this time and got there just in time.  With one eye on the game and thoughts on the success or otherwise of the interview, my attention was divided.   I got a phone call sometime during the first half and went down to the side of the stand.  It was good news all round.  I was told we had been successful and then within seconds David Poole hit the back of the net!!  

In February 2006 Liam Dickinson who had been making a name for himself since his scoring debut against Cheltenham made only his second start and scored twice, (making it 5 goals in the seven weeks since we had first seen him).  The late winner sent us home in raptures. But coverage over the weekend suggested that there had been an incident.  It had happened late in the second half when he suddenly went down in the penalty area even though the ball was actually away from him. And emerged in due course that Sean Hessey had bitten Dicko.  He denied it but an independent tribunal found him guilty.  

In April 2008 we travelled there in a season when promotion was on the horizon.  Jeff and I stationed ourselves in the West Stand.  There was a huge County following, (well over 2,000), and the West and South Stands were jam packed.  Fans spilled onto the field and after quite a break, a goodly number of County followers were escorted to the Main Stand. 

This wasn’t the end of the days entertainment, although that did come far earlier than envisaged.  Rain had teemed down in the first half and not a goal scored as the ball held up on what was becoming a flooded pitch. At half time nobody would have been surprised had the game been abandoned .   However, referee Ian Williamson brought the players out again and things improved as the rain stopped and there was even a spot of brightness in the sky. Then suddenly after a quarter of an hour into the second stanza he blew his whistle and everybody was taken off.  The game had been abandoned  – unbelievable.

Then came one of most appalling pieces of administrative mismanagement I’ve ever seen. Chairman Norman Beverley and Chief Executive Mark Maguire stood outside the ground and proclaimed without any consideration with the board, and frankly without any real thought, that it would be free tickets for the game whenever it was rearranged.  It led to an almighty bunfight, especially as it looked as though the re-arranged game would be vital. 

As all tickets disappeared in a ludicrous lottery, which seemed to have no rules whatsoever, I was left without one.  A little bit of forethought would have saved an awful lot of problems.   But there again I always thought that Beverley was just a useful front man for Maguire who I had little confidence in. His programme notes over a number of years were an amalgam of what I had come to know as “management speak bollocks”.  I’d seen enough of it in my professional life and knew that kind of thing was the refuge of the those who are evidence of the “Peter Principle”.  (For those not au fait with the term it reflects the tendency in most organisational hierarchies for every employee to rise in the hierarchy through promotion until they reach a level of respective incompetence). 

I had on occasion written to him offering some constructive ideas.  But who was I – just turnstile fodder.  I never had the courtesy of an acknowledgement never mind a reply.  What I was saying may have been nonsense – but the point is that a customer facing business should at least engage.  It would be easy to go off at a tangent at this point and  wonder about Maguire’s contribution to the descent into regional football, but that is something I shall return to later.

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Photo from “All Things Stockport County”

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My last visit was just over a year ago we were on the run in to the end of the season.   With 5 games left, (one more than Chorley), we were two points behind.  A win was more than vital.  So often over the years I had seen the Hatters go into these kind of games and fall.  Not so last April.  We were rampant, firing in 3 goals in each half to come out 6-0 winners.  We went back to the top, and whilst there were still hurdles to overcome, as both sides faltered in the run in, losing 2 games each, that one point advantage proved crucial.  Looking back at my records, it is the only time in the 57 years I have seen us score 6 away from home.  (We did of course get the same result at Hurst Cross, Ashton 5 months previously but my wife’s return home from hospitalisation precluded that visit).  So it was a history making game, and continued what has been a good record for me at the Deva.  Seven visits, four wins, a couple of draws and only a single defeat.  A financial necessity for Chester to move away from Sealand Road maybe, but the Deva will never have the same kind of attraction.

May 2020

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VISITS

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Day	Date	Competition	Tier / Round	Opponents	Res	F	A	Crowd	Away Day
Tues	25/08/92 (Highlights)	Coca-Cola Cup	Round 1 – 2nd Leg	Chester City	W	2	1	4,505	238
Sat	19/09/92	Barclays League Division 2	Tier 3	Chester City	W	3	0	3,627	242
Wed	02/11/94	Endsleigh League Division 2	Tier 3	Chester City	L	0	1	2,400	289
Sat	11/02/06	Coca-Cola Football League – League 2	Tier 4	Chester City	W	2	1	3,446	548
Fri	17/11/06	Coca-Cola Football League – League 2	Tier 4	Chester City	D	1	1	3,624	565
Tues	29/04/08 (Highlights)	Coca-Cola Football League – League 2	Tier 4	Chester City	D	0	0	3,060	605
Tues	09/04/19 (Highlights)	Vanarama National League North	Tier 6	Chester FC	W	6	0	2,565	844

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ON MY JOURNEY WITH COUNTY AROUND 180 GROUNDS

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Previously – WEMBLEY STADIUM (OLD) Next stop – THE CITY GROUND