Magpies spot on at the Deva

Notts came away from Chester with three invaluable points as the Magpies continue their surge to the play-off spots.

Dadi: Off the mark

The second half began as the first had finished, with far too many miss-placed passes for both sides, offering precious little hope for either set of supporters that a goal might be on its way.

This all changed, however, when Luke Dimech needlessly handled the ball just inside the Chester eighteen-yard box, leaving the referee little option but to award the spot-kick. Julien Baudet took responsibility and executed a well-placed shot just inside the keeper’s right post. Gillet chose the right way; but Baudet had placed the kick to perfection.

Almost immediately, the revived Notts side so very nearly steamed their way to a second goal, when the newly-introduced Steve Scoffham latched onto a clever header, beating the on-coming Chester ‘stopper only to strike the upright with his effort. In the ensuing scramble that followed, Eugen Dadi soemhow headed over from close-range.

Notts were bossing the game by now, and stringing their passes together nicely. This would not, however, suggest that Chester were without hope, as they did manage to bulge the Notts County goal, only for the linesman to correctly rule-out the effort for offside.

In a dramatic final ten minutes, Chester were reduced to ten men when Dave Artell bundled Eugene Dadi over in the six-yard box. Artell – a former Mansfield man like several of his Chester teammates and, of course, manager Keith Curle – saw red, and for that Artell can have no complaints.

The irony was that it was the same player whose theatrics had got Scoffham sent-off during the two sides' clash at Meadow Lane earlier in the campaign.

An insistent Dadi stepped up to convert for his first goal in Notts County colours.

Next up, third-placed Grimsby travel to Meadow Lane as the Magpies look to extend their rampant home form of late, as their promotion push gathers pace.