John Sheridan's first game back at the Proact Stadium ended in a 1-0 victory in the second round of the FA Trophy.
Substitute Tom Denton netted with just a minute to go with a side footed effort into the back of the net for his tenth goal of the season and eighth in cup competitions.
Sheridan made four changes to the side that dramatically drew 3-3 against Ebbsfleet United as Joe Rowley, Robbie Weir, Kyel Reid and Shwan Jalal were all brought into the side.
Both sides started the game cautiously with the first effort coming after 10 minutes. Curtis Weston let fly from just outside the box but the shot went wide of the goal.
Joe Rowley came close nine minutes later. The midfielder's powerful drive forced Ashlee Jones into producing a fine stop.
The 19-year-old was causing a lot of problems, with his cross finding Reid who saw his low shot saved again by Jones.
Bedford were struggling to cope with the pace of the Spireites. Jerome Binnom-Williams made his way into the penalty box, but his shot was deflected just wide of the goal.
With ten minutes of the half to go, Marc-Antoine Fortune had a golden chance to put the hosts 1-0 up, as the ball fell to the veteran striker in the box but his shot ballooned over the bar.
The visitors came quite close to going into the break with the lead. Callum Donnelly's 30 yard volley dipped just over the crossbar.
Jonathan Smith, who was placed at right-back in place of Barry, dragged his shot from long range shortly after the break.
A few minutes later, Reid's cross was begging for someone to tap home, but Rowley could not get the right connection on the ball.
The away side continued to be stubborn throughout the second half and Lee Shaw was the latest to be denied by Jones with 18 minutes to go.
Just a minute after Robbie Weir was forced off with injury, Shaw went close again as his shot from outside the box was defected wide.
A replay loomed closer, but with just a minute to go, Denton finally broke through the stubborn Bedford defence.
The forward headed down Smith's cross. Luckily, the ball went back to Denton who fired home from close range.
The win provides Chesterfield with more momentum heading into the big clash with Aldershot Town next Saturday.
Draw for round three of the FA Trophy will take place on Monday and the game with Braintree Town on February 2 will now be rescheduled.
Post-Match Verdict: Into the next round
It may have been harder work than expected, but a win is a win and Chesterfield are into the next round of the FA Trophy.
It's a competition that John Sheridan is taking seriously as the Spireites aim to get to Wembley and stave off relegation.
The new manager said in his post-match press conference that Callum Burton will return to Hull City following the completion of his loan.
It has also been confirmed that Hadyn Hollis' loan is until the end of the season (Martin Allen had said it was only half a season in his press release).
Getting back to the game, Sheridan said, "I've seen things why probably they've ended up losing games and made themselves vulnerable throughout the season, so we'll try and work hard on that and make us stronger."
The Chesterfield manager also said that Alex Kiwomya is likely to feature against the Shots next week and Bradley Barry might also return.
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