INCOMING NEWS ; Why Chesterfield are worthy National League champions – Opinion
Why Chesterfield Are Worthy National League Champions – Opinion
At the start of the season, Chesterfield were undoubtedly one of the favourites to be crowned National League champions by the end of the 2023/24 campaign.
Having spent their budget wisely on new recruits such as Will Grigg, Tom Naylor and Michael Jacobs to create a squad worthy of lasting the distance, the Spireites should be title winners before Easter has arrived.
What wasn’t expected was the almost smooth procession to the top and the lack of challengers to keep them honest. Until Barnet visited the SMH Group Stadium in mid-November, Chesterfield were being kept in check by the Bees but after a goalless first half, the leaders stepped up a gear and rattled four goals past a bemused Laurie Walker and never looked back.
A gap of some twenty points at the time of writing shows their complete dominance of the league and while many will point to being able to spend more than others, it still needs to be spent wisely and on the right players to get the maximum benefit.
Last season, most will agree that the lack of a top striker was the difference between themselves, Wrexham, and Notts County. Addressing that in the summer with the signing of Grigg has been very fruitful despite the frontman taking a little time to get settled and start firing on all cylinders. A return of 23 goals so far has been instrumental in the side reaching the summit and staying there.
It hasn’t just been Grigg amongst the goals. 91 have so far been plundered in their 37 league games with a staggering +42 in the goal difference column. Whilst last season’s top two were less porous at the back, the champions-elect have a long way to go over the last nine games to equal Wrexham and Notts County on that score.
Naylor has chipped in with nine, whilst four others are within three or less of ten goals for the season. There isn’t a reliance on Grigg to find the net, and to win a title it’s important to find players who can contribute from all over the pitch.
What has been more impressive than anything else is the lack of another side pushing and cajoling the Spireites onto greater things. Last season. Wrexham and Notts County pushed each other week after week, neither could afford to drop a point without the other doing so.
Chesterfield have had to do it all themselves, result after result without feeling that push coming from behind. Credit has to go to Paul Cook and his management team for not letting standards slip. It’s come as no surprise they have stepped off the gas a little in the last few weeks but the points cushion they enjoy has allowed for no one to get even remotely close to touching them.
With nine games left to play, they are still on course to eclipse Wrexham’s total from last year, no mean feat when the Welsh side accumulated 111 points from 46 games and were considered one of, if not the best side to win the division.
Currently unbeaten at the SMH Group Stadium which matches the Welsh side’s record 12 months ago, making that a fortress is the foundation for any title-challenging side.
The bottleneck at the top of the National League has meant the Spireites have been stuck in non-league football for six years but the wait to return to the Football League will be over in a matter of weeks.
There is no doubt that Cook will strengthen further in the summer as both promoted sides did last year, Chesterfield will definitely be making an impression at the top end of League Two and it wouldn’t be a wise idea to bet against a double promotion.
Last season, we saw Wrexham and Notts County run away with the division, with both sides finishing over 20 points clear of Chesterfield in third place, but heading into next season, both of those sides are in the EFL, making the fifth tier much more open.
