Despite all the troubles going on around them, the youth team travelled to Accrington Stanley on Saturday and pulled off a 3-2 league victory. Many of the youth team have been the unsung, and also unpaid, heroes of recent weeks as the Blues have attempted to fulfil their Conference fixtures. Sam Coutler scored twice with Kieran Mills Evans adding the third for the young Blues. Picture © Vicky Coulter • Youth fixtures | Table | Match pictures

The statement reads: “Member clubs of the Football Conference, at a general meeting held today, voted in support of the Board of Director’s recommendation to erase Chester City (2004) FC Ltd from membership in accordance with Article 5.2. Chester City did not attend the meeting.”

Fans reaction
City Fans United spokesman Jeff Banks gave his reaction to the Chester Chronicle: “This is a sad day in the history of the football club.”

“But the right decision was made. Conference chairmen have looked at the bigger picture and seen that this was the best way forward for the football club. We must now continue with our plans to form a new football club in the city.”

Barrie Hipkiss, once a player at the club and a fan for more than 60 years, said he was devastated.

“This is the last thing I wanted to see happen. I feel for the players, the youngsters, the groundstaff, Tony Allen the secretary, because this is a bad day for them.”

“I spoke to Bob Gray earlier and he said he was sure tomorrow’s game against Oxford would be on but he was looking at pounds, shillings and pence.”

“I would have liked to see the club survive but realistically I could not see us fulfilling our fixtures and that was the key point.”

Today is decision day as the member clubs of the Football Conference vote on whether to expel the club from the competition.

The Conference Board are advising clubs vote the Blues out after they pleaded guilty to no less that five breaches of rules at a meeting last week. Of course, some clubs will gain and some will miss out should Chester’s results be expunged and, despite the Board recommendations, clubs may well be split on the decision, with many feeling that the decision should be made by the board themselves and not the members. The board will need a 75% majority in favour of expulsion to carry through their recommendation.

The meeting takes place at Rushden & Diamonds at 11:00hrs and it’s unknown who will be there to represent Chester and hear the outcome of the vote.

The CFU have responded to Stephen Vaughan’s astonishing attack on SKY Sports News on Tuesday night. The former owner called the organisation “A bunch of idiots ‘ell bent on destroying the club. When you’re making meetings in bingo ‘alls do you need taking seriously?” The bingo hall reference is a strange one, that refers to either the fundraising event in the Home Guard Club or the public meeting last week in the Chester Guildhall!

Vaughan added: “They want a club for their own ends. This CFU’s only been formed in the last four months, they have got no credibility whatsoever. If they want credibility get behind the new owners of this football club when they take over.”

Needless to say the organisation with around 900 members including 100 juniors, sought the right of reply and Jeff Banks, CFU press officer and committee member told the Chester Chronicle: “It is all well and good for Mr Vaughan to speak out about the credibility of the CFU but where is his? He’s not even supposed to be involved in the club.

“He calls us a minority. In fact we have over 900 members – more than double the number of fans still attending the Deva Stadium when matches are played.”

“He claims we formed four months ago, but we were formed from the merger of the independent supporters’ association and the supporters’ trust, organisations with 10 years of history.

“He then shows his ignorance by stating we meet in bingo halls. The CFU hosted its public meeting last week at Chester’s Guildhall, one of the most historic buildings in the city. It’s hardly a bingo hall.

The Vaughan family have agreed to sell their 100% stake in the football club to a Danish consortium who formed an internet group to buy the club when it was announced it was for sale for £1, around that two weeks ago! It transpires, according to Stephen Vaughan jnr, that the two parties were introduced to each other through a PR company run by former Chester manager Mark Wright and Jan Molby.

The consortium, headed by Palle Rasmussen, are called Chester projekt.dk are believed to have concluded the deal at 02:30hrs this morning. The agreement must have been done without consulting the membership as a whole who don’t hold their first meeting until 6 March in Odense. They have yet to appoint their own management, or board of directors

Their website states “Interested parties can subscribe for shares / units in Chester City; a share cost 1,000 kroner (roughly £118), and one person can buy up to 10 shares. You’re only liable for the amount you chose to put in in and can not be charged more money, even if the club were to go bankrupt.”

The club isn’t sold as yet, it’s all subject to legal conditions, but with a vote to expel City by Conference clubs due at the end of the week, and a winding-up order to be heard on 10 March, news of the potential sale has come at an opportune moment for the family!

This isn’t the first time the club have announced a sale of course. On 19 March 2009 the club revealed in a press-conference that the Vaughan shareholding had been sold to Gary Metcalf, only for that ‘sale’ to fall through at a later date.

The Vaughan’s are to defer their full payment until June 2011. Stephen Vaughan Junior told the Evening Leader:

“The Vaughan family will today contact the Football Conference and inform them that we will defer full payment until June 2011 and ensure that full funding will be made available to pay all of our outstanding creditors, i.e. rent, revenue and all players wages and players arrears, and other football creditors.”

“We will make an application to the Football Conference for them to reconsider their position so that we can fulfil the remainder of our fixtures.”

“In the meantime, the Vaughan family and Gary Metcalf met a Denmark-based consortium at the Deva Stadium on Saturday to strike a deal for the sale of the football club. The deal entails a 100 per cent buy out of the Vaughan family’s shareholding.”

“We shook hands on a deal which is now the subject of legal issues, but I feel confident that the Danish consortium can now be the new owners of the football club subject to an agreed sale through our solicitors Brabners, and the Danes solicitors who will stage talks today.”

“I feel a deal can be done between now and March 6th if the funds are put in place. They need to satisfy everyone that Chester City Football Club has a future.”

CFU Response to Potential Purchase by Danish Consortium
Members of a Danish consortium met represenatives of the CFU yesterday before they met the club. It was made clear to them that any rescue bid would need the support of the fans, the wider community, and a viable Business Plan. Despite agreeing to do so, they did not get back to us after the meeting with the club.

The Danish consortium also have no current business plan or strategy for running the club on a day to day basis. They do not have adequate finances to cover the current debt, and have no plans for community involvement.

We are saying clearly and directly to the Danish consortium: On Thursday you stated that if we did not wish you to continue with your bid, you would not proceed. We are saying that we do not wish you to proceed with your bid. We would however welcome you to be part of an exciting journey with us as we rebuild our club in our own vision. But if you proceed without us, you are proceeding against us with all that entails.

These included those in respect of failing to fulfil fixtures, non payment of Football Creditors, failing to attend satisfactorily to competition business and bringing the competition into disrepute.

At the conclusion of a lengthy meeting, the representatives were advised that the Board failed to be convinced with their presentation that the club were able to demonstrate the club's ability to fulfil future fixtures in the competition and as a consequence informed the club of their finding in relation to Conference Rule 8.6.

In compliance with Article 5.2 of the Football Conference, the Board will recommend to its Member Clubs that Chester City (2004) FC should face expulsion from membership.

To facilitate this recommendation the Board are now legally mandated to convene a General Meeting of Member Clubs to, receive, deliberate and vote on the said recommendation to expel in consideration of Rule 8.6 and Article 5.2.

Until the meeting is held the club will remain suspended from the competition and their representatives suitably advised as to any future plans or presentations they may well wish to pursue against the recommendation of the Board to its Member Clubs.

Today’s meeting in Birmingham between the Management Committee of the Football Conference and representatives from Chester City FC (2004 Ltd) should finally bring to an end this sad shambolic season. It seems unlikely that the Conference could do anything other than expel the club from this years competition, expunging their results in the process. A relegation of several divisions down the pyramid as punishment is also a possibility.

The club face five charges at the meeting including failing to fulfil two fixtures prior to last weeks seven day suspension imposed on the club. Should City be allowed to limp on until the end of season, their inability to be able to pay their ever-dwindling number of players, a coach company for several away trips and the police to man Deva Stadium will only bring a swift repeat of last weeks chaos.

Young defender Kevin Roberts has left City to join fellow Conference side Cambridge United. Roberts, a product of the club’s youth policy, had given the club 14 days notice of his intention to leave. Roberts scored 9 goals in 105+10 appearances for the Blues. It also appears that another young player who made the first team from the youth ranks, Shaun Kelly, may soon join former manager Jim Harvey at Stalybridge Celtic. Picture © Evening Leader

With the threat of expulsion from the Football Conference highly likely at this Thursday’s meeting in Birmingham, City Fans United have called a public meeting for the same evening, at the Guildhall in Chester, commencing at 20:00hrs. All supporters are urged to attend and demonstrate that our city does want a football club. Help us demonstrate that there is the backing for football to continue in Chester – but run in a way that is driven by the community and reflects well on all of us.

Once again the plight of City will be discussed with a representative of Supporters Direct on the Non League show tonight (20.30hrs). The programme, on BBC London (94.9FM), will be available as a podcast to download later. You can send in messages at nonleague@bbc.co.uk

• More details of the CFU meeting

The club have been given a seven day suspension by the Football Conference and must appear in Birmingham next week to answer five charges against them relating to breaches of Conference rules, including failing to fulfill two fixtures. Next Tuesday’s home match against Kidderminster Harriers has also been postponed.

Following yesterday’s meeting the Conference management committee issued the following statement: “The board of the Football Conference has given exhaustive and thorough consideration to matters at Chester City FC following the club’s failure to fulfil its fixture at Forest Green Rovers on Tuesday, February 9.”

“The Cheshire Constabulary has withdrawn Special Police Services due to be provided at the club’s match at the Deva Stadium on Sunday, February 14 against Wrexham, for failing to pay policing costs by a due time.”

“As a consequence the Cheshire West & Chester Borough Council has issued a Prohibition Order on the club preventing the admission of spectators into the ground, as the inadequate number of police officers will involve a risk so serious that admission ought to be prohibited, until appropriate steps have been taken.”

“Pursuant to other matters currently existing at the club, the Football Conference has served charges for breaches of five separate competition rules upon the club which include the failure to fulfil the above two fixtures.”

“The club has been given seven days to respond to the charges, and/or request a personal hearing. The charges, and a personal hearing if requested, will be considered on Thursday, February 18.”

“Meanwhile, the club’s fixtures have been suspended – resulting in Chester City’s home fixture on Wednesday, February 17 against Kidderminster Harriers being postponed.”

“Further news has been received today, Wednesday 10th February 2010, that Chester City’s home ‘derby’ fixture with Wrexham on Sunday has been postponed after Trading Standards of the Cheshire West & Chester Borough Council issued a Prohibition notice on the Deva Stadium.”

“These matters are now being considered in accordance with Membership Rule 8.6 regarding the failure to fulfil two fixtures.”

The Exiles will be holding an emergency meeting for all Chester supporters tonight at the Rugby Tavern, 19 Great James Street, London, WC1N 3ES (upstairs area) from 7.30pm onwards. (Nearest underground station is Holborn and is within walking distance of Kings Cross and Russell Square).

David Evans, Board Member of City Fans United (CFU) and representative of the Chester City Exiles, will give members an update on CFU activities. This will be followed by a general discussion about the current situation at CCFC.

The Exiles will be holding an emergency meeting for all Exile members on Thursday, 11 February at the Rugby Tavern, 19 Great James Street, London, WC1N 3ES (upstairs area) from 7.30pm onwards. (Nearest underground station is Holborn and is within walking distance of Kings Cross and Russell Square).

David Evans, Board Member of City Fans United (CFU) and representative of the Chester City Exiles, will give members an update on CFU activities. This will be followed by a general discussion about the current situation at CCFC.

Two more players have given the club 14 days notice that they intend to leave. They are young defenders Kevin Roberts and Rhys Meynell. Roberts (pictured) has come through the youth team ranks at Chester and looks to have a good future in the game. The 20-year-old has scored nine goals in 104+10 appearances for the Blues. Meynell, 21, was signed by manager Mick Wadsworth for the Blues last summer and has played 10+5 for the club. He’s looking to to join one of his previous managers, Steve Burr, at Conference side Kidderminster Harriers. Picture © Evening Leader