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Indeed it would be crass to even discuss events that didn;t concern the ref, other than Francis Greens opener in the first half, a clever volley following a Jamie McCombe flick on.
After that it was Mick Fletcher who decided who would take what from the game. A 50 / 50 ball ended up at the feet of city debutant Simon Rayner, and as any goalkeeper should he gathered it close to his chest. The misguided official saw fit to award an indirect free kick for a backpass. The free kick was duly converted direct at goal by Kevin Ellison.... and the goal stood. Ellison wheeled off towards City fans to intiate a celebration that by rights should have seen him dismissed for enticement, but the unpredictable Fletcher plumped for a sole yellow.
There was NO DOUBT in the minds of fans and players alike that Ellison struck the ball directly at goal, the City players didn't move until after the ball was struck. It all added up to a moment of madness for the official that was to define his behaviour for the rest of the game.
After the half time whistle Taylor Fletcher decided to remonstrate with Fletcher, earning him a yellow card. Fletcher had to be flanked by stewards as he left the field.
The next 45 minutes saw City throw everything they could forward, without success. When they did manage to hit the target through a Jamie McCombe header, the officials wrongly called it offside. In fact whenever a City player broke free of the defence, the flag seemed to go up. If it wasn't a flag, then it was woeful finishing with Taylor Fletcher, Yeo, McCombe, Gain, Butcher and Bloomer all failing to convert chances against an atrociously bad Ian Rush led Chester City.
In the final ten minutes Keith threw big forward Marcus Richardson into the fray to attempt to pinch something from the game. However Fletcher had other idea's. Following a corner for City the ball was cleared forward after a half hearted attempt at a header from Ben Futcher. With Chester making a rare break forward Fletcher blew his whistle. It seemed for a second as if he may have awarded a penalty to the Imps as Chester players began to argue. The true size of the mans incompetence was highlighted however as he drew a red card from his pocket and sent off Richardson.
Unfortunately once again a completely inept and woefully inadequate official has marred a game that could have brought a certain amount of delight to both sets of fans. City now sit with 10 points from 10 games, which would be 14 from 10 had it not been for Fletcher and his associates from the FA.
Its a crying shame that in this day and age of technology and wonderful gizmo's the bastion of a male Saturday afternoon: namely the football, has been placed in the hands of a group of officials who seem to have discovered their cards and whistle at the bottom of a cereal packet.