Andy Warrington was the only change to the Shakers side in the Bury goal, but began the opening minutes of the game watching in awe as Bury crafted together some great early plays, and forced a free kick on the edge of the Chester penalty area. Andy Bishop stepped up calmly and fired the kick straight at goal, which to the relief of Chester keeper John Dandy went straight into his arms.
It was only two minutes later that the Shakers were literally centimetres from taking as a superb knock on saw Glynn Hurst with time and space on the edge of the six yard box. Hurst fired on the volley at goal, but the fingertips of John Dandy did enough to deflect the ball from its path into the goal, and just wide of the bar.
Despite half chances for Chester, the Bury defence stayed strong and did well keeping them at bay, and had a chance of their own on 11 minutes as a cross from the right by Tom Kennedy skilfully curbed in the air towards Andy Bishop, who headed the ball just over the Chester crossbar.
Andy Warrington was called into action for the first time on 15 minutes when Ryan Semple fired a shot at an awkward angle near the left hand post, forcing Warrington to spread across goal to make a superb save. Not a bad way to introduce yourself to the Bury fans.
As the game approached the 30 minute mark, both teams were having their fair share of chances but couldn't find the finishing touch. Chester had an opportunity on 26 minutes however when Sandwith took a corner from the right hand side. The Shakers defence stood tall however, and cleared the ball away from danger.
On 28 minutes, Bury earned a free kick on the edge of the area after Marc Pugh was brought down. Kennedy fired the kick into the area, but no one could get to the ball, leaving the Chester defence an easy opportunity to clear. Just two minutes later, a similar foul was committed on the opposite side of the field. Kennedy tried to fire the ball into the area, but the Chester wall blocked the ball and cleared away.
As the half entered its final quarter of an hour, Bury began to take command of the game, as they pilled pressure on the Chester defence. However, with 5 minutes remaining Chester had a few half chances but couldn't manage a shot at goal, ending the first half goalless.
Halftime: Bury 0-0 Chester
Chester began the second half with a good chance when Jon Walters fired a close range shot at goal, forcing Warrington to make a spectacular save. However, the ball was deflected directly towards the goal line, but Paul Scott stayed calm and cleared the ball off the line.
The opening moments of the second half started like the first ended, with both teams still fighting to get the opening goal. Chester had a good appeal for a penalty on 58 minutes when Lee Steele went down in the area, but the referee showed that he was not going to stand for diving in today's game and gave Steele a yellow card.
The Bury defence was finally broken on 63 minutes when Lee Steele managed to beat Warrington after a ball into the area left them both one-on-one. Steele managed to tap the ball underneath Warrington to give Chester the lead.
Bury 0-1 Chester (Lee Steele 63)
Just 3 minutes later, the Mighty Shakers equalised as Andy Bishop received the ball near the left hand post, leaving Andy Bishop with an easy tap in to tie the game at a goal a piece.
Bury 1-1 Chester (Andy Bishop 66)
After Bury's equaliser, they began to take a grip on the game and pilled on the pressure at the Chester goal. Just 3 minutes later, Bury took the lead when Andy Bishop went one-on-one with the keeper, forcing Dandy to make a quick reaction save. However, the ball deflected out to Richie Baker, who had no difficulty fired the ball into the empty net to put the Shakers in the driving seat.
Bury 2-1 Chester (Richie Baker 69)
Chester had a good chance to equalise just one minute later as a cross in met the head of Walters, but the header was well knocked wide by Warrington.
Chester equalised just moments later when Lee Steele tapped the ball underneath Warrington at close range near the right hand post to tie the game yet again. However, bad news was just around the corner for Chester after Lee Steele ran into the crowd in celebration; the referee saw it as a second booking and sent off the Chester striker.
Bury 2-2 Chester (Lee Steele 71)
After the equaliser, the game began to calm down after 10 minutes of non-stop attack on the two goals. The game began to enter it's last ten minutes, with Bury still in command of the game.
On 86 minutes Bury had a good chance when Andy Bishop played a good ball into the area for Jake Speight, who fought hard with the Chester defenders, but they eventually overpowered him and knocked the ball out of play for a corner.
As the game came towards extra time, the Shakers still had a chance of taking the win in the final minutes as they pounded the Chester penalty area. It began to look like a replay was on the cards, until the 4th official announced that 7 minutes of injury time would be played, which was met with spectacular support by the Bury fans.
The Shakers fought as hard as they could to try and find the goal that would take them into the 3rd round, but neither team managed to get winning goal, so a replay will have to be played at Chester.
Fulltime: Bury 2-2 Chester
Attendance: 3,428
