Report by North Derbyshire Radio’s Senior Football Correspondent Ben Smith
Chesterfield concluded their pre-season schedule on Saturday, losing out 4-1 to Championship side Sheffield United at the SMH Group Stadium.
Jefferson Cáceres, Ehije Ukaki, Anel Ahmedhodzic and Tom Cannon all found the net for the away side, whose dominance was only briefly interrupted by a goal from Lee Bonis.
The Spireites returned to action having been held 1-1 at National League North and fellow North Derbyshire outfit Alfreton Town the weekend previous.
Their last home outing saw another draw (this time a commendable goalless one) against Premier League Nottingham Forest, and a similarly solid display would have been the ideal outcome going up against the second-tier Blades.
However, Paul Cook’s team would retain their clean sheet for less than five minutes in this one, with Louie Barry latching on to a misplaced clearance from Chey Dunkley before going on to tee up Cáceres for a straightforward finish.
The second would come soon after as United carved right through the middle of the hosts’ defensive unit, this time allowing Ukaki to apply the relatively routine final touch.
Just past the half-hour mark it was three, as the towering figure of Ahmedhodzic rose highest to head home from a set-piece, beating out opposing ‘keeper Zach Hemming in the process.
But just as things threatened to get a bit out of hand the hosts did start to rally, with Bonis pulling one back after Dilan Markanday had stolen the ball and seen his subsequent effort saved.
The Northern Irish striker would then have the ball in the net again before the break, only to see the offside flag deprive him of his second.
If momentum appeared to have shifted though that was not something that would carry through the half-time interval, as the visitors swiftly restored their three-goal advantage through Cannon once play resumed.
That scoreline would then hold for the remainder of the game, with the second-half containing the typical series of substitution breaks.
So defeat it was for Chesterfield whose attention will now turn swiftly to next Saturday, when they are at home again to kick-off their League Two campaign against Barrow.
