| Club: | Chester |
| Season: | 1982–83 |
| Manager: | Cliff Sear John Sainty |
| Stadium: | Sealand Road |
| League: | Football League Fourth Division |
| League Result: | 13th |
| Cup1: | FA Cup |
| Cup1 Result: | Round 1 |
| Cup2: | Football League Cup |
| Cup2 Result: | Round 1 |
| Cup3: | Football League Trophy |
| Cup3 Result: | Semifinal |
| League Topscorer: | John Thomas (20) |
| Season Topscorer: | John Thomas (24) |
| Highest Attendance: | 4,056 vs Port Vale (22 January) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 1,114 vs Hartlepool United (4 December) |
| Average Attendance: | 1,904 21st in division[1] |
| Prevseason: | 1981–82 |
| Nextseason: | 1983–84 |
The 1982–83 season was the 45th season of competitive association football in the Football League played by Chester, an English club based in Chester, Cheshire.
Also, it was the first season spent in the Fourth Division after the relegation from the Third Division in 1982. Alongside competing in the Football League the club also participated in the FA Cup and the Football League Cup.
| Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score | Scorers | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 August | Crewe Alexandra | H | W | 1–0 | Edwards | 3,180 | |
| 4 September | Rochdale | A | W | 1–0 | Thomas | 1,489 | |
| 7 September | Northampton Town | A | D | 1–1 | Thomas | 2,171 | |
| 11 September | Torquay United | H | D | 0–0 | 2,370 | ||
| 18 September | Port Vale | A | L | 1–2 | Sproson (o.g.) | 3,303 | |
| 25 September | Hereford United | H | W | 5–0 | Ludlam, Thomas (2, 1 pen.), Simpson, Sloan | 1,828 | |
| 29 September | Blackpool | H | L | 1–2 | Thomas | 2,256 | |
| 1 October | Halifax Town | A | D | 0–0 | 1,925 | ||
| 9 October | Darlington | A | W | 2–0 | Thomas, Kinsey | 1,387 | |
| 16 October | Mansfield Town | H | L | 1–3 | Ludlam | 1,668 | |
| 20 October | Peterborough United | H | D | 1–1 | Zelem | 1,401 | |
| 30 October | Swindon Town | H | L | 0–1 | 1,544 | ||
| 2 November | Bristol City | A | D | 0–0 | 3,942 | ||
| 6 November | Bury | H | L | 0–1 | 2,023 | ||
| 9 November | Colchester United | A | L | 0–1 | 2,362 | ||
| 13 November | Aldershot | A | W | 2–1 | Allen, Sloan | 1,675 | |
| 27 November | Hull City | A | L | 0–2 | 5,047 | ||
| 4 December | Hartlepool United | H | W | 2–1 | Storton, Thomas | 1,114 | |
| 11 December | Bristol City | H | W | 1–0 | Cooper (o.g.) | 1,163 | |
| 18 December | York City | H | L | 0–1 | 1,185 | ||
| 27 December | Tranmere Rovers | A | W | 4–2 | Lane (2), Thomas, Ludlam | 5,245 | |
| 28 December | Stockport County | H | L | 0–2 | 2,459 | ||
| 1 January | Scunthorpe United | A | L | 0–2 | 3,639 | ||
| 3 January | Wimbledon | H | L | 1–2 | Thomas | 1,549 | |
| 8 January | Rochdale | H | W | 5–2 | Thomas (3), Zelem, Wilson (pen.) | 1,562 | |
| 15 January | Crewe Alexandra | A | L | 2–3 | Thomas, Cooke | 2,895 | |
| 22 January | Port Vale | H | W | 1–0 | Moss (o.g.) | 4,056 | |
| 29 January | Blackpool | A | D | 1–1 | Ludlam | 2,054 | |
| 5 February | Hereford United | A | L | 2–5 | Bulmer, Williams | 1,961 | |
| 12 February | Halifax Town | H | W | 2–0 | Zelem, Williams | 1,907 | |
| 16 February | Peterborough United | A | W | 1–0 | Wilson | 1,661 | |
| 19 February | Darlington | H | L | 2–3 | Simpson, Thomas | 1,323 | |
| 26 February | Mansfield Town | A | L | 1–2 | Thomas | 1,803 | |
| 5 March | Colchester United | H | D | 1–1 | Simpson | 1,136 | |
| 12 March | Swindon Town | A | W | 3–2 | Sloan, Thomas (2) | 3,238 | |
| 19 March | Bury | A | L | 2–3 | Simpson (2) | 2,453 | |
| 26 March | Aldershot | H | D | 1–1 | Manns | 1,197 | |
| 2 April | Stockport County | A | D | 3–3 | Thomas, Simpson, Manns | 2,008 | |
| 4 April | Tranmere Rovers | H | D | 0–0 | 2,897 | ||
| 9 April | Hartlepool United | A | L | 0–1 | 1,034 | ||
| 16 April | Northampton Town | H | W | 2–1 | Allen, Manns | 1,121 | |
| 23 April | York City | A | L | 0–1 | 3,264 | ||
| 30 April | Hull City | H | D | 0–0 | 2,281 | ||
| 2 May | Wimbledon | A | L | 0–4 | 2,576 | ||
| 7 May | Torquay United | A | W | 1–0 | Thomas | 1,478 | |
| 14 May | Scunthorpe United | H | L | 1–2 | Thomas | 2,560 |
See main article: 1982–83 FA Cup.
| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First round | 20 November | Northwich Victoria (5) | H | D | 1–1 | Lane | 4,400 |
| First round replay | 22 November | A | L | 1–3 | Williams | 4,014 |
See main article: 1982–83 Football League Cup.
| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First round first leg | 1 September | Blackpool (4) | H | L | 1–2 | Sloan | 2,557 |
| First round second leg | 14 September | A | L | 1–5 | Thomas | 3,429 |
See main article: 1982–83 Football League Trophy.
| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score | Scorers | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group stage | 14 August | Chesterfield (3) | A | D | 1–1 | Sloan | 1,149 | |
| 18 August | Tranmere Rovers (4) | A | L | 1–2 | Simpson | 1,143 | ||
| 21 August | Shrewsbury Town (2) | H | W | 5–0 | Sloan, Thomas (2, 1pen.), MacLaren (o.g.), Edwards | 1,022 | ||
| Quarterfinal | 26 January | Newport County (3) | H | D | 0–0 | 999 | ||
| Semifinal | 8 February | Lincoln City (3) | H | L | 1–3 | Thomas | 1,058 |
| Player | Total | League | FA Cup | League Cup | FL Trophy | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | ||||||||||||
| Phil Harrington | 22 | – | 19 | – | – | – | – | – | 3 | – | ||
| Grenville Millington | 15 | – | 11 | – | – | – | 2 | – | 2 | – | ||
| Mike Salmon | 18 | – | 16 | – | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| Field players | ||||||||||||
| John Allen | 15+3 | 2 | 12+3 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | 2 | – | ||
| Paul Blackwell | 24+1 | – | 23 | – | 1+1 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
 | Noel Bradley | 36+4 | – | 27+4 | – | 2 | – | 2 | – | 5 | – | |
| Peter Bulmer | 9+5 | 1 | 9+5 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| Terry Cooke | 21+8 | 1 | 16+6 | 1 | 1 | – | 2 | – | 2+2 | – | ||
| Mark Dean | 23+2 | – | 19+2 | – | – | – | 1 | – | 3 | – | ||
| Nigel Edwards | 11+1 | 2 | 8 | 1 | – | – | 1 | – | 2+1 | 1 | ||
| Paul Harrison | 0+1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 0+1 | – | ||
| Paul Johnson | 23+2 | – | 18+1 | – | 1 | – | 2 | – | 2+1 | – | ||
| Steve Kinsey | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| Martin Lane | 50 | 3 | 41 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | – | 5 | – | ||
| Steve Ludlam | 33+2 | 4 | 28+1 | 4 | 2 | – | 1 | – | 2+1 | – | ||
| Paul Manns | 12 | 3 | 12 | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| Greg Moffatt | 6+1 | – | 6+1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| Paul Needham | 22 | – | 21 | – | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| Gary Simpson | 32+2 | 7 | 24+2 | 6 | 1 | – | 2 | – | 5 | 1 | ||
| Tom Sloan | 53 | 6 | 44 | 3 | 2 | – | 2 | 1 | 5 | 2 | ||
| Trevor Storton | 43 | 1 | 37 | 1 | 2 | – | 1 | – | 3 | – | ||
| John Thomas | 52 | 24 | 44 | 20 | 2 | – | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | ||
| Mike Williams | 11+3 | 3 | 10+2 | 2 | 0+1 | 1 | – | – | 1 | – | ||
| Clive Wilson | 23 | 2 | 21 | 2 | – | – | – | – | 2 | – | ||
| Ian Workman | 5 | – | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | 2 | – | ||
| Peter Zelem | 43+1 | 3 | 34+1 | 3 | 2 | – | 2 | – | 5 | – | ||
| Own goals | – | 4 | – | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | ||
| Total | 55 | 67 | 46 | 55 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 8 | ||
Book: Sumner. Chas. 125 Years on the Borderline: The Complete History of Chester City F.C. 1885-2010. 1 November 2011. Yore Publications. 978-0956984821.