Chester currently sits third in the Vanarama National League North and have secured a spot in the playoffs come the end of the season as they look for a return to the top division of non-league football.
In their 44 league games to date, the club had scored 67 goals and 20 of those belong to 25-year-old striker Kurt Willoughby, affectionately known as King Kurt by the Deva Stadium faithful. With the former York City man’s contract running out in the summer, as per Transfermarkt and the Chester announcement of his signing last summer, I wanted to look at possible destinations for the Blackpool-born forward.
Chester
He could, of course, stay with his current team and look to fire them to promotion or help establish them in the National League. Willoughby certainly seems to have found a home at Chester and has returned his best goalscoring season since 2018-19 with FC United of Manchester. As the nickname ‘King Kurt’ suggests, he is loved by the supporters and the feeling of being settled at a club and in a team that suits him may well be enough to persuade him to stay.
https://twitter.com/ChesterFC/status/1645511072839872513
Notts County
Hear me out on this one! After Notts’ defeat to Wrexham on Easter Monday, it looks increasingly likely that their method of reaching the Football League will have to be through the lottery of the playoffs. Should they fail in that quest and someone from higher up the pyramid comes knocking for 40-goal man Macauley Langstaff then County will require a replacement.
Willoughby can play on the shoulder of the defenders and attempts to find space between the centre-backs looking for a through ball to latch on to and these attributes, among his many others, may suit a Notts County team who may need to fill the gap (potentially) left by Langstaff.
Doncaster Rovers
Rovers have not had the best of seasons in League Two, occupying 15th, losing four of their last five and only scoring 41 goals in 41 goals. That lack of goals is where Willoughby comes in!
Doncaster have been accused of having a losing culture due to the awful run of 63 losses in their last 110 games but club owner Terry Bramall has promised a significant financial injection, so could this injection be enough to entice the Chester frontman? Willoughby could play through the middle or coming in from the left to provide a threat for goal-shy Donny.
Bradford City
It might seem a little unusual to suggest a team on such a fine run of form with a striker who certainly knows where the net is but could Willoughby be what the Bantams are looking for?
As it stands, main man Andy Cook stands way out ahead at the top of the club’s goalscoring charts with 24 league goals which is an almost unbelievable 19 goals ahead of the next top scorer, Scott Banks. Banks is only on loan at Valley Parade, from Premier League Crystal Palace, and the next highest scorer on Bradford’s list is Tyreik Wright who isn’t at the club anymore.
Despite Cook’s consistency, having a player to take the load off him would surely be welcomed and Willoughby could play as a wide forward in support of Cook or provide a goal threat from the bench. There is, of course, a possibility of Cook not being at the football club next season as his contract approaches the end so there could be space at the club for a new main man to fire the club forward.
Lincoln City
Jumping into League One for this one and an even bigger jump up the levels, but could Kurt Willoughby do a job for the Imps? City have been incredibly hard to beat this season with a solid defence but have found scoring tricky, netting less than one goal a game in League One.
With Ben House leading the way with a very respectable 11 goals, could the addition of Willoughby take the goal scoring pressure off the former Eastleigh man? With Lincoln playing House through the middle being supported by two wingers, there is a possibility that Willoughby could take one of those wing positions. He could provide cover for House as a central striker or be one of a two-man frontline, providing a threat on the defender’s shoulder to compliment House’s hard work and industriousness.
Writer’s View
Of course, this is all conjecture and Willoughby will likely have a plethora of clubs interested in his services after his fine season in front of goal. His immediate priority will be firing his current side through a successful playoff campaign and getting them back to non-league football’s top tier, the rest, as they say, will take care of itself.
