NATHAN JARMAN plans to be the driving force when Chester face Worksop Town in tomorrow night’s FA Trophy replay.
The 26 year old striker, who commutes from Scunthorpe to play for the table-topping Blues, netted both goals in Chester’s 2-2 weekend draw.
Jarman’s two goals in the opening 15 minutes put the Blues in the driving seat against Worksop, and he came close to completing a hat-trick before the break when a shot crashed against the bar.
But Jarman’s contributions were wiped out by Northern Premier League club Worksop after the break.
“We were 2-0 up at half time and in the ascendency, but we switched off in the second half,” Jarman said.
“The gaffer told us before the game that we can go a long way in the FA Trophy, but Saturday was a wake up call.
“I thought all the right things were said in the changing room at the break. The gaffer was telling us to make sure we did our jobs in the second half.”
Jarman, who signed for Chester from Conference Premier club Alfreton Town in May, is now keen to help his side translate their league form into progress in the FA Trophy.
He added: “The lads in the changing room were down after Saturday’s match, but I’m trying to figure out why because we’ve got two games in hand in the league and we can go four points clear if we win both matches.
“I don’t see any reason why there should be any doom and gloom, but maybe that’s just me.
“Our performances have probably not been as good as they could have been in the league, but we have still been winning games.
“We have got to take our chances, but if we did take all our chances then we wouldn’t be playing in the Conference North – we’d be playing in a higher division. We are still a good team and we are still in the FA Trophy.”
Jarman, who admitted he had been disappointed about being substituted by Tony Gray eight minutes from the end of Saturday’s tie, is hoping he can better his goalscoring tally of 17 achieved with Alfreton.
He said: “I don’t like coming off the pitch at the best of times and that’s why I’m never smiling when I’m substituted.
“It’s good for Chester that they have managed to sign Tony (Gray) and now brought in Craig Curran on loan because it keeps the lads on their toes, but as long as I’m playing then I’ll be happy.
“I’ve scored eight goals so far this season and I scored 17 goals last season, and I’ll be happy so long as I score more than that.
“I’m disappointed that I’ve only had one penalty so far this season compared to last season when I scored nine, so I’m hoping I can get a few more.”