There has been quite the confusion regarding Grays' first match. Three separate press releases can be found below. Each demonstrates the on again, off again scheduling nightmare for Grays Athletic.

1. With less than 22 hours to kick-off Grays Athletic have been informed that due to certain complications with the sanctions given to Chester City, the fixture between Grays Athletic and Chester City will now not take place. A further statement will be issued later.

2. Following the press release on Sky Sports, indications are that Chester City Football Club will be fulfilling the fixture against Grays Athletic Football Club this Saturday. However, Chester City Football Club may start the BSP season with a 25 point deduction.

We are still awaiting confirmation from both The FA and The Football Conference about the above reports, but we are now fairly confident that the game will go ahead as scheduled.

3. Grays Athletic Football Club are extremely disappointed with both The FA and The Football Conference over the continued delay regarding Chester City Football Club. We were initially informed that we would be told of the outcome by 17:00 this evening. However at the time of going to press, 20:55, we have still not had a response at whether our first fixture in the Blue Square Premier will indeed take place.

We have had numerous fans contacting the club to see if the game will be played and as we cannot give them a guarantee some 48 hours before the kick-off. They have stated that they would seek football elsewhere for the Saturday as we cannot confirm our fixture. This will impact our revenue on top of all the pre-match preparation and expense that has already taken place.

Grays Athletic Football Club will be seeking financial compensation from The FA and The Football Conference for any expenses occurred during this  period.

4. Grays also announced that they came to terms with the following players:

-Defender Billy Crowther, Ex Brentwood Town

-Forward Lee McEvilly, Ex Cambridge United

-Midfielder Adriano Rigoglioso, Ex Morecambe & FGR

-Defender Frederick (Fred) Murray, Ex Exeter City

-Left Back Ronnie Bull, Former Grays player, most recently with Exeter City

-Midfielder Sam Cutler, Ex Charlton, Cambridge & Exeter

-Goalkeeper Preston Edwards, Ex Millwall & Dover Athletic, also England U19

-Defender Ken Davis, Ex Grays

-Defender Cameron Mawer, Former Grays Player, recently with Weymouth

-Goalkeeper Billy Lumley, Former Wolverhampton Wanderers trainee

-Defender Gavin Hoyte, Ex Cambridge United

-Forward Jamie Slabber, Ex Stevenage & Havant & Waterlooville

-Midfileder Sam Long, Ex Charlton Athletic

Our Take: It has been a busy few days for Grays Athletic Football Club. There has been a flurry of activity and press releases during the past week. There seems to be quite a controversy (and a lot of confusion) surrounding the Chester City match. Grays made a massive amount of roster moves, signing 13 players in less than a week. The best of the bunch looks to be keeper Preston Edwards, who is a raw talent that could move quickly to the Football League and beyond.

English Football Daily for Thursday, August 6

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