JON VISCOSI took advice from two former Chester goalkeepers before deciding to join the Blues.

The 24-year-old Canadian-born goalkeeper, who penned a deal with Chester in January and made his debut as a late second half substitute for Jon Worsnop during the final fixture which they won 5-3 to notch-up 63 points, revealed he had been told to sign by his coaches and mentors Wayne Brown and Billy Stewart.

“I hadn’t seen any Conference teams play before I joined Chester, but I thought it was a good standard and that Chester is a good set up and a really nice club with a lot of history.

“I know two former Chester goalkeepers who are mentors to me as goalkeeping coaches - Wayne Brown and Billy Stewart - so as soon as I told them that Chester were interested in signing me they were both made up and said that Chester was a great club and I would enjoy my time here and I have.

“It would have been nice to have made more of an impact, but it was good to be part of Chester’s season and hopefully I’ll come back next season and play a bigger role.

“The gaffer has mentioned that he’d like to see me at Chester next season, but I just want to hear what he has to say and we’ll go from there.”

Before arriving at the Swansway Chester Stadium, Viscosi was offered professional terms to sign for Hungarian Premier League side Kaposvári Rákóczi and has represented Canada at the World University Games in Kazan, Russia. He also spent four years playing in the United States, where he captained the University of Buffalo in division one of the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) football league.

He has also attracted the attention of a number of League One and League Two clubs, including AFC Wimbledon, Oldham Athletic, Carlisle United and Tranmere Rovers, prior to dislocating his shoulder while playing for Brackley Town in the Conference North in November 2014.

However, the Ottwanian goalkeeper was eager to play regular first-team football while respecting that Worsnop had already established himself prior to agreeing terms with the Blues.

He added: “I was pleased to have got some pitch-time against Nuneaton on Saturday, and hopefully I can look to capitalise on this in the summer and when the season re-starts in earnest.

“When I arrived at the club in January the gaffer told me that his team had been conceding a lot of goals and that the team hadn’t been playing very well, but he wanted me to come in and compete with Jon.

“The gaffer told me that whoever was training the best would then be selected, so I maybe could have been playing in the first team after the first game, but Jon then went on a good run and had five cleansheets which obviously kept me out.

“At that point in the season it was always going to be difficult to break into the team with only so many games left, but I was always waiting for an opportunity.

“The bad run that we had didn’t really help me, but in the end at least I got to come on in the final match and now it’s just a case of looking towards next season when I can hopefully make my mark.

“On personal level, I feel in great shape and, importantly, I am hungry for success and to carve out a career for myself in English football.

“I like the set-up at Chester. They have a loyal fan-base, good facilities, and a positive outlook for the future, which is an attractive proposition for any young footballer.

“When I put pen-to-paper in January, I knew that I wouldn’t regret my decision, and I haven’t. It’s now about seizing the opportunity to show everyone what I’m about during the 2015/6 season.

“I have always been an avid follower of football scene in England, and felt great to have a genuine opportunity to be part of it this season and meet some really good people in the process.”