Chesterfield

Last Season at a glance

21st in League One

Ultimately a disappointing season for Chesterfield which resulted in relegation to League Two. It started well enough, as they were top of the league after just one game, and then they started dropping and dropping and dropping.

They were relegated in bizarre circumstances, as they hammered relegation rivals Bradford City 3-0 at home, but results elsewhere ensured that the Spireites were down.

Richardson will be enjoying his first season in charge at Saltergate this year, having been given the job earlier this year following the sacking of Roy McFarland.

Dale fans will remember Richardson from his days as a player, when he used to terrorise the midfield for both Halifax and Oldham. He finished his career at Chesterfield before moving into coaching there, and becoming assistant to McFarland.

I've always been a little sceptical about assistant managers stepping up to take over. I'd have thought if they'd had decent ideas in the first place, they'd have contributed them as assistant rather than waiting in the wings for the manager's job if it was ever to become available.

Well they won't miss out on experience this season.

Their biggest problem last season was scoring goals. With Folan off to Wigan, you have to look about see Allison with five goals, the departed Larkin with four and then trickles elsewhere.

The signature of Jack Lester should go along way to solving that. He's featured further down because he's a class act and should find this division a walk in the park.

Unproven manager? A load of signings in their mid 30's? Dropping down into a relatively unknown division? A leading scorer left over from last season's squad with just five goals?  It's got disaster written all over this.

Fair enough, the untested Richardson has brought some new faces in, and there should be no worries at all regarding Jack Lester, but the others make me feel youthful.

Kevin Gray was old about five years ago, and my Dad tells me that Steve Fletcher used to be a good player. And as for Wayne Allison, not even  my grandparents can remember him. Apparently he was even born in an era when Dale had never ever won promotion.

but the jewel in the crown is most certainly Jack Lester. He might not be a spring chicken, but at 31 he's certainly got plenty of life in him, and with the right service could be absolutely dynamite in this division.

And if there's any concerns about his age, then he managed 35 games in League One last season for a team who reached the play offs. He got a tally of seven goals, but when you consider he wasn't used as an out and out striker, he should be alright for a minimum of fifteen this time round.

You'd think from reading everything that we've put above we'd be tipping the Spireites for a second successive relegation, as we've done nothing but tear them to shreds throughtout.

I can't see that being the case at all. For a start, much as they were relegated last season, they were the highest placed of the four relegated sides, so you have to work on the basis that they are at the very least better than three sides they are coming up against this season.

Had it not been for the signing of Lester, then we may well have been tipping them for a season of doom and gloom, but he'll be enough to keep them ticking over, and if Richardson manages anything like how he used to play, then they won't suffer a lack of effort.

But that'll only carry them so far, and if they have any hopes of making the play offs this season, they'll be greatly disappointed.