The Spireites deservedly eased their way into the first round of the Emirates FA Cup with a 3-0 victory at Anstey Nomads.
It was a disciplined, professional and patient performance against a team four levels below Chesterfield but one that fought hard from the first minute to the last.
After three defeats on the bounce it was vital to end that run and get back to winning ways but Anstey can be proud of their showing and they forced Ross Fitzsimons into action on several occasions; however the early goal from Armando Dobra initially settled the nerves and Kabongo Tshimanga’s late strike put the game to bed.
Tony Blanchard, Anstey’s boss, can fly off on holiday on Tuesday knowing his team made their community proud and Paul Cook can plan for the next league game knowing that the team went some way to putting behind the bad experience of the three previous fixtures.
To go from playing Chelsea, in the club’s previous FA Cup game, who were European champions at the time, to the lowest ranked team in this season’s tournament is exactly what makes the FA Cup such an attraction. but it also presents a real challenge.
The game, chosen by the BBC as their featured lunch-time game because it pitted an in-form team that is undefeated in the last 15 games, including seven FA Cup matches, and averaging three goals a game against one of the highest ranked sides at this stage of the competition. The BBC saw it as a “banana skin” – Paul Cook’s difficult challenge was to avoid an upset at such an early stage of the competition.
The good news was that Armando Dobra was passed fit to return; his creativity had been missed. Cook chose to make five changes to the side that fell to a last-minute defeat, the previous weekend at Eastleigh. In came Dobra, Mike Jones, Darren Oldaker, Joe Quigley and Bailey Clements – who made his debut – as Branden Horton, Tim Akinola, Ollie Banks, George Cooper and Kabongo Tshimanga missed out. Goalkeeper Luke Chadwick made the bench for the first time and Tom Whelan also featured after returning from his loan spell at Aldershot.
First there was an immaculately observed minute’s silence to commemorate the passing of John Duncan. Anstey won the toss and the Spireites kicked off eager to make a good start, on an autumn day perfect for football.
Dobra gained an early corner kick and took it himself, the one-two with Jeff King didn’t pose a threat.
Moments later the Nomads’ centre forward, Michael Reeve, burst forward strongly on the right, his ball into the box was rushed and easily cleared.
Dobra received just outside the area but went down on the edge and looked in vain for a free-kick.
A throw in on the right started the move that saw King provide a peach of a cross for Dobra to head home coolly from just inside the six-yard area.
So so close after 14 minutes when Darren Oldaker’s superb diagonal ball found King who controlled well and hit home only for the left upright to save Anstey as Conrad Logan claimed thankfully.
Anstey broke immediately and grabbed their first corner, taken by Armeni, but Jamie Grimes headed clear.
A second Armeni corner saw Sam Hollis blast wildly over.
The Spireites were attempting to regain their earlier dominance after the Nomads had inched their way back into contention by limiting the Spireites’ options.
They almost levelled after a throw on the right saw Anabelle pick up six yards out and hook goalwards. Fitzsimons’ instinctive reaction save kept his team ahead.
A through ball found Asante on the left, his ball across goal found King but his on- target effort was blocked well.
Just after the half hour mark, Anstey again threatened but Corey Armeni just failed to control a long kick from Logan, that would have put him clear.
The Spireites hit the woodwork for the second time after Joe Quigley managed to hit the crossbar when a simple touch home from another quality ball in from King was all that was needed.
The much-needed second goal for the Spireites came in the last minute of the first half after Liam Mandeville found Akwasi Asante in the area. He jinked closer to goal and, with his back to the net, swivelled and hit his angled shot home from 15 yards.
Cook chose not to risk Dobra further and, at the start of the second period, George Cooper took his place.
Home keeper Logan was alert as he cleared King’s blast after been set-up by Mandeville.
Asante tried a snap shot from just inside the area; Logan saved well but the offside flag made his effort unnecessary.
Within a minute Asante was the second goalscorer to be replaced when Tshimanga took his place.
Joe Cook picked up Chesterfield’s first yellow card after a clumsy – but effective – challenge on Hollis, who was set to begin a run.
From the next phase Fitzsimons did well to tip away Michael Reeve’s strong hit from the edge of the area.
The game had lost a little of its momentum with tiredness and cramp starting to feature.
The Spireites steppped up a gear and Quigley hit well only for Anabelle to block his effort.
Logan did so well again after Tshimanga had set up Cooper. Logan blocked Cooper’s first shot and tipped away his second.
From the corner Mandeville received in the box, took a couple of strides before laying on an inch-perfect ball for Tshimanga to hit home from just three yards.
The final change for the Spireites saw Whelan take over from Quigley with just under four minutes remaining. The Spireites eased through the four added minutes to see out the game comfortably.
Chesterfield: Fitzsimons, King, Cook, Grimes, Clements, Jones, Oldaker, Asante (Tshimanga 57), Mandeville, Dobra (Cooper 46), Quigley (Whelan 87)
Unused Substitutes: Chadwick, Uchegbulam, Williams, Akinola