Dyer on fire for Peterborough Sports, but it's defeat on the opening day of a new season
Two goals for summer signing Josiah Dyer on his debut couldn’t save Peterborough Sports from an opening day defeat in National League North at Chester on Saturday.
It was always going to be tough for the city side against one of the title favourites, but Dyer twice found first-half equalisers before the hosts sealed a 3-2 win nine minutes into the second-half.
Fin Roberts opened the scoring for Chester in the 20th minute after a pass from Offrande Zanzala, but Sports were level within a couple of minutes as Dyer, found a pocket of space inside a congested penalty box before his effort bounced past the outstretched hand of home ‘keeper Lewys Benjamin.
Zanzala came close to a goal of his own, but he limped off soon afterwards and replacement Dylan Mottley-Henry headed home from a Fin Shrimpton cross to restore Chester's lead in the 42nd minute.
But once again Sports showed great spirit to quickly draw level as Dyer showed great composure to fire past Benjamin from 18 yards.
The second period began at a slower pace after a frenetic first period, but Mottley-Henry scored his second goal on 54 minutes after a free kick fell kindly at his feet.
And there was to be no third comeback for Sports despite some decent play with Dan Jarvis forcing a superb save from Benjamin with a 20-yard curler. Substitute Sam Bayly shot just over the bar from the edge of the penalty area after joint-player boss Michael Gash had headed just wide from a Bayley McCann set-piece.
Mottley-Henry was denied his hat-trick goal by a post after breaking clear in the final stages. The crowd was over 2,300 with 44 travelling from Sports.
Chester: Benjamin, Kelly-Evans, Woodthorpe, Weeks, Leak, Jones, Bainbridge, Zanzala, Shrimpton, Woods, F. Roberts. Substitutes: Barlow, Mottley-Henry, S. Burgess, Murphy, K. Roberts, Rawlinson.
Sports: Crook, Powell, Gash, Fryatt, Felix (sub Mensah, 54 mins), Straughan-Brown (sub Hickingbottom, 64 mins), McLintock (sub Miller, 83 mins), McCann, Jarvis, Dyer (sub Bayly, 83 mins), Booth. Unused subs: Fox, Cavallo, Edwards.
Attendance: 2,383 (44 Sports).