Chesterfield previews
Bookies favour Spirites

He has been used in the last five games, capping his comeback with the fourth goal against Chelmsford last week and an injury-time equaliser against Wycombe. Whitehall's return has put the spotlight on leading scorer Mark Allott, who is going through a quiet spell after previously hitting five goals in seven matches. With so many strikers waiting in the wings, Allott cannot afford to stay below his best for too much longer. 

The game at Saltergate brings together two teams who are in the bottom six but have contrasting recent records. Athletic have suffered only one defeat in their last six games and, after draws at Reading and Cardiff, plus a victory at Blackpool, they are unbeaten in three away from home. Chesterfield, meanwhile, have not tasted victory since September 4 and, stretching back to last season, have won only three times in 26 attempts. Already depleted by injuries, they will also need to confirm the fitness of defenders Steve Blatherwick and Ian Breckin.

Both are expected to play but, with Chris Beaumont already out, Chesterfield may yet to have to use former Notts Forest forward Jason Lee as an emergency centre-half. John Duncan, their under-pressure manager, moved to end the slump yesterday by signing Gillingham's Mick Galloway for a nominal fee. Galloway will step straight into midfield.

ATHLETIC (probable): Kelly, Adams, Holt, Graham, Hotte, S McNiven, Duxbury, Sheridan, Rickers, Allott, Dudley. Subs: Miskelly, Futcher, Innes, Tipton, Whitehall.

CHESTERFIELD (from): Gayle, Hewitt, Blatherwick, Breckin, Galloway, Carss, Ebdon, Reeves, Howard, Lee, Perkins, Wilkinson, Woods, Pearce, Willis, Armstrong, Leaning. 

Wheel turns full circle for John

AS recently as April, 1997, John Duncan became the focus of national attention by guiding little, unfashionable Chesterfield to within minutes of the FA Cup final. Now, in a story which sums up the way football kicks in the teeth more often than it pats on the back, he presides over a club which is going through a torrid spell in the doldrums. Duncan, whose injury-hit team entertain Athletic tomorrow, is a man under pressure after seeing his side fail to win for over two months.

They have scored an abysmal four goals in 12 games, are playing to the lowest gates for 11 years and, having already lost two key players in the summer, have just sold a couple more to help balance the books. The Saltergate faithful have staged protests against both manager and board and the unrest reached such a level last week that chairman Norton Lea put the club up for sale. Duncan, however, is remaining steadfast. Having brought stability and a brief spell of glory during his six years in charge, he isn’t about to give up without an almighty struggle. Duncan said: “You get periods like this in football and, for a club of our size, we’ve had an extended run of doing well. “There are a few things happening off the pitch at the moment, but we are just concentrating on doing our jobs and getting things back on track. “The Oldham game will be a big one, a real test. We have 11 points, they have 12 and it looks like being tight all the way through the season. “What’s for sure is that we need to start taking more points than we are at the moment. “Although injuries have stopped me from having a settled side in the last few weeks, I think our play has been much better than our points tally suggests.” Striker David Reeves made a stunning start by notching nine early goals, but he has now hit the same drought as his shot-shy colleagues. As a result, The Spireites are the lowest scorers in the second division — a fact which makes the return of Athletic’s Craig Dudley all the more ironic for Duncan. 

Dudley had an early-season loan at Saltergate, but his spell coincided with Reeves’ fine form and he was restricted to just a few minutes of action. Since his return, the forward has been the inspiration as Athletic’s own goal-scoring record has improved. Dudley said: “I was mainly there as cover and, because the strikers were doing well, it would have been unfair for me to go straight into the side. “I waited for my chance, but it never came. I just had to accept that and get on with it as best I could. I now know a few things about Chesterfield and they are a very organised team who will make it hard for us to break them down. “But I trained with them for a month so they also know all my strengths and weaknesses. If I’m picked, we’ll just have to see how they handle them.” A major blow to Chesterfield came during the summer when defender Mark Williams left for Watford under the Bosman ruling. Full-back Shane Nicholson then joined Stockport, having had a year of rehabilitation after testing positive for drugs while at West Brom. The most controversial losses, however, came more recently. Though the sales of midfielder Paul Holland and goalkeeper Billy Mercer brought in a total of £600,000 from Bristol City, the money was of little consolation to the fans on the terraces. They claimed their club was being sold down the river, with finances coming way ahead of football. Sadly, that is a fact of life in the no-man’s land of the division two basement. Chesterfield may be the latest Athletic opponents to qualify for the label of ‘Crisis Club’, but they certainly won’t be the last.