I am the historian and statistican for Chester Football Club and have written a number of books on the subject. The most recent of these is 125 Years On The Borderline - The Complete History of Chester City Football Club 1885-2010
At the start of the year a former player asked where he stood in terms of Football League appearances for the old Chester club. I produced a table of all 767 players who played a Football League game and below is the top 50. It covers league games from 1931 to 2000 and 2004 to 2009 so the Conference years are not included. The first column combines starts and substitute appearances but I have also split them off in column two and three.
I thought it would also be a useful exercise to do the same thing for Chester FC appearances from 2010/11 up to the end of the 2024/25 season. Again this is league games only but note that it includes appearances from the aborted 2020/21 campaign when 17 games were played.
For the record there have been 309 different players to feature in a league game and listed below are the top 50.
Barney Daniels, who became Chester’s record signing in summer 1975, has passed away at the age of 74. A stocky striker with a powerful shot Chester never saw the best of the centre forward and he only managed nine Football League appearances for the club before departing for Stockport County where he was more successful.
Signed as an amateur by Manchester United Barney spent two years at Old Trafford before moving on to Salford Amateurs but it was his goalscoring prowess at Ashton United that attracted the attention of Manchester City who signed him for £1,000. He made an explosive start at Maine Road with two goals on his debut in a 4-1 televised win against Leicester City and went on to make 10 appearances in the 1974/75 season.
In July 1975 Ken Roberts brought Barney to Sealand Road in order to bolster the attacking options following promotion to Division Three. Chester paid a reported £25,000 for the Salford born player and Roberts saw him as a strong and quick striker who could cause defences problems. After making his debut as a substitute, in a League Cup tie at Wrexham, Barney made his first full start in Chester’s opening Division Three home fixture against Southend United. Although he was on target with a 25 yard effort this was as good as it got and his only other goal for the club came in an 8-1 thrashing of Kidderminster in the Welsh Cup. Four days after the Southend game Barney was substituted in the return leg of the League Cup tie against Wrexham and reacted angrily by throwing his shirt to the ground and storming into the dressing room. Although he apologised for the gesture he was disciplined by the club and thenceforth found it difficult to make an impact.
At the end of the 1975/76 campaign Barney was released by Chester and joined Stockport County where he showed Chester what they had been missing by scoring 11 goals in his first 11 league games. He went on to finish leading scorer for County and after dropping out of the Football League had further spells with Ashton United, Hyde United and Prestwich Heys.
Former Chester striker Eddie Loyden, who had two spells with the club during the late sixties and early seventies, has sadly passed away at the age of 79.
A traditional centre forward Eddie was an out and out goalscorer and not the sort of player to track back or link up play. This is reflected in an impressive goal scoring record that saw him score 48 goals in 99 Football League appearances. Dominant in the air, many of his goals were scored with his head and his tall and rangy physique made him an awkward presence and a handful for defenders.
Born in Liverpool, Eddie started his career as a junior at Blackpool and made his debut during 1965 in a Division One fixture against Liverpool. After a season at Carlisle Eddie was snapped up by Peter Hauser, in July 1967, on a free transfer and made a dream debut with two headed goals in a 2-1 victory at Notts County. He went on to score 22 goals in 37 games that season, including four in a 6-0 win over Lincoln City, and comfortably finished leading scorer for a struggling team that had to apply for re-election. At the end of the campaign Ken Roberts, looking to raise funds to rebuild the team, made the pragmatic decision to sell Eddie to Shrewsbury Town for a club record fee of £13,000.
After only six months Eddie was on the move again when Barnsley signed him for £10,000 but he returned to Sealand Road in November 1970 in unusual circumstances as Ken Roberts looked for a tall goal grabber to play alongside Alan Tarbuck and Derek Draper. Although an agreement had been reached for Eddie to move to Chester the Yorkshire side selected him to play against a full strength Sheffield United team in the Yorkshire Senior Cup. Eddie promptly put the cat among the pigeons by scoring an eight minute hat-trick to overturn a 2-0 half time deficit and give Barnsley second thoughts. Nevertheless Chester insisted a gentleman’s agreement had been in place and handed over £7,000 to the reluctant Yorkshiremen.
The move proved successful as the big man formed an effective partnership with Tarbuck and managed 15 goals in 28 games as Chester finished just outside the promotion places. Unfortunately a missed penalty by Eddie, in a crucial Easter fixture against York City, proved decisive and although the game finished 1-1 Chester missed out on a top four spot by a single point.
The 1971/72 season saw Eddie once again finish as leading scorer with 11 goals but, as a whole, the team struggled to find the back of the net and after the start of February appearances were limited as Ken Roberts sought to find the answer to the goalscoring dilemma. In June 1972 Eddie signed for Tranmere Rovers for £4,000 and will be remembered at Prenton Park for scoring the only goal in a famous League Cup victory over Arsenal at Highbury. After two years at Tranmere Eddie moved to South Africa to play for Highlands Park and then on to Hong Kong before retiring in 1978.
In later life Eddie resided in his home town city but suffered from Alzheimer’s disease and passed away on June 5th.
A typical goal against Northampton – January 1971
Scoring the first goal in a 2-1 win over Notts County – January 1971
Eddie in action in the FA Cup 2nd Round tie against Crewe – Dec 1970
Playing in the FA Cup 3rd Round tie against Derby County – Jan 1971
It is difficult to think of a player who has made such a lasting impression at any football club than Grenville Millington who has sadly passed away at the age of 73. The much-loved former goalkeeper made more than 300 first team appearances for Chester between 1969 and 1983 and was widely recognised as the best number one to have played for the club. However it wasn’t just on the field of play that he will be remembered as Grenville was an active supporter and volunteer at the Deva Stadium proving to be a hugely popular host in the Legends Lounge on match day. In addition he also acted as chairman of Chester FC during the 2010s and was a founder member of the Chester Former Players Association for which he served as both chairman and president.
Grenville signed for Chester as an amateur from Rhyl and made his debut in the final home game of the 1968/69 season against Lincoln City in a match that also marked the debut of Nigel Edwards and the final appearance for his friend Gary Talbot.
Grenvile on his debut against Lincoln in 1969 with Nigel Edwards and Gary TalbotReuniting the players in 2011
Returning to Rhyl, he started to build a name for himself earning nine amateur caps for Wales and represented the Great Britain Olympic team while also working for British Steel in Shotton.
Grenville with his Olympic shirt
After a period with Witton Albion he joined Brighton in summer 1973 but the move didn’t work out and when he returned to Chester he went to see manager Ken Roberts, a man he always admired, and was offered a 12 month contract as understudy to John Taylor.
In November 1973 he replaced the sick Taylor in an FA Cup tie against Telford United, never put a foot wrong and became the first choice keeper. The 1974/75 season proved to be a momentous season for both Chester and Grenville with the club earning a first ever promotion and reaching the semi-final of the League Cup. In the Fourth Round of the competition the Seals crushed league champions Leeds United 3-0 at Sealand Road with Grenville making a crucial save from Terry Cooper with the score at 1-0.
Grenville saves from Terry Cooper in the League Cup tie against Leeds United in 1974
He was again in outstanding form when Chester travelled to Newcastle United in the next round and drew 0-0. In the replay at Sealand Road a world class save from Malcolm MacDonald early in the game paved the way for a monumental 1-0 victory. It was during the same season that Grenville had the game of his life when a string of remarkable saves at Barnsley helped secure a 1-0 victory and earned Grenville a 10 out of 10 rating in one national paper
Grenville in action against Barnsley in 1974
Chester’s first season in Division Three saw Grenville presented with the Player of the Season award, a feat that he repeated in both 1980/81 and 1981/82. He would have made more than 290 Football League appearances had it not been for a period under Alan Oakes at the end of the 1970s when he shared goalkeeping duties with Brian Lloyd.
Grenville’s last game for the club was in the final home game of the 1982/83 season against Scunthorpe and the following season he linked up with Ken Roberts at Oswestry. In 1983/84 he briefly returned to the Football League with Wrexham to help them through an injury crisis and also played for Holywell Town, Connah’s Quay Nomads and Buckley.
After the club reformed as Chester FC in 2010 Grenville became a key figure at the Deva Stadium and during the 2010s served on the board and even had a short spell as chairman. He was always keen to be involved in any activity that would improve the profile of the club and was reliably on hand to assist any organisation associated with Chester. For many years he was the driving force behind the Former Players Association and always did his best to help any player who he thought might be struggling with health or other issues. In later years he will be remembered for his role as host in the Legends Lounge where his natural enthusiasm, positivity and rapport with the fans proved to be a massive hit.
Reunited with the 1974/75 team in November 2024
Grenville’s passing will leave a huge hole in the lives of everyone that knew him and the club send out their deepest condolences to his family and friends.
Former Chester full-back Bryn Jones, who made 30 Football League appearances for the club between 1964 and 1967, sadly passed away in January at the age of 85. Bryn will be remembered for an incident on New Year’s Day 1966 when he and fellow full back Ray Jones ended up in Chester Royal Infirmary together after both suffered a broken leg in the league match against Aldershot at Sealand Road.
Born in Bagillt Bryn started his career with local club Holywell Town, becoming a Welsh amateur international in 1961. At the start of the 1962/63 season Bryn signed for Bangor City but his stay proved brief and he returned to Holywell after only a few months. In January 1963 he was offered the opportunity to turn professional with third Division Watford but only made two Football League appearances for the Hornets before being released in summer 1964.
Peter Hauser brought Bryn to the Stadium in August 1964 and was quickly given his debut at right back against Bradford City as a replacement for the experienced Johnny Molyneux. His stint in the first team proved short-lived and following the next game against Torquay he was replaced by Ray Jones and spent the remainder of the season in the Cheshire County League team.
In September 1965 Bryn returned to the first team at left back establishing an effective partnership alongside Ray Jones before the New Year’s Day tragedy when both players broke a leg. With neither player adequately replaced the strong promotion challenge faded and it was December 1966 before Bryn was able to return to first team action. Unfortunately a further leg injury against Lincoln in February proved to be his final first team match and Bryn was amongst eight players given free transfers at the end of the campaign when he signed for New Brighton.
Chester Football History 