The 2008–09 season was the 67th and final season of competitive

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

played by Chester City, an English club based in

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

. Also, it was the fifth season spent in the

Football League Two The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English Football League (EFL ...

, after the promotion from the

Football Conference The National League of English Football Clubs is a professional Association football, football league in England that consists of 72 teams, divided equally between the National League (division), National League North and National League South ...

in 2004. Alongside competing in the Football League the club also participated in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

, the

Football League Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

and the

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and U-21 teams from the Premier Le ...

Season summary

In 2007–08, Chester finished the season in 22nd place, only one spot above the relegation zone, on just 47 points from the 46 matches. Chester began the 2008–09 season with a squad of only 22 players and a transfer embargo, including youth team players given professional contracts just prior to the season. However, at the start of the campaign it seemed unlikely for City to get relegated, as

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional association football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. The team plays in EFL League One, the third tier of English football, after suffering relegation fr ...

and A.F.C. Bournemouth had both been deducted 17 points for rules violations before the start of the season, and Luton Town faced a 30-point penalty. A poor start to 2008–09 saw Davies sacked in November 2008 with the club out of all cup competitions and struggling in League Two. Mark Wright returned for his third spell as manager on a non-contract basis. Beset by an ongoing transfer embargo, Chester continued to struggle throughout the remainder of the campaign, and a 2–1 home defeat by

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...

on the final day of the season sealed Chester's demise and a return to non-league football after five years back in The Football League. Two weeks after the final match the club entered administration.

Football League

Results summary

Results by matchday

Matches

FA Cup

Football League Cup

Football League Trophy

Season statistics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chester City F.C. season 2008-09 2008–09

Chester City F.C. Chester City Football Club was an association football team from Chester, England, that played in a variety of leagues between 1885 and 2010. The club played its home games at Sealand Road from 1906 to 1991 and moved to the Deva Stadium in 1992 ...