Minstermen aiming to put Pirates to the sword

The Minstermen have taken nine points from three games since the turn of the year to soar eight places up the table to 14th.

Five points still separate York from the drop zone, a margin so slim that no one at Bootham Crescent can rest on their laurels just yet.

Nevertheless, Worthington has been delighted with the form shown by his players, who before beating Morecambe on New Year’s Day had drawn seven and lost two of their previous nine games.

He said: “I wouldn’t say our performances in the three recent wins have been very different to how we had been playing when drawing all those games.

“The difference is the players are getting the rewards and putting some points on the board. Clean sheets always help, of course, and we have had a couple of them since the start of the year. Whoever has been in the right position – whether it be Ryan Jarvis, Wes Fletcher or Ryan Bowman – has also been taking the chances when they come along.

“But, overall, I wouldn’t say we have been doing a lot differently.”

York today host Bristol Rovers, the side who ended their FA Cup hopes in the first round after a replay.

Worthington was hugely critical of his players in the immediate aftermath for their display in the first hour as the Pirates were allowed to build what turned out to be an unassailable 3-0 lead.

As angry as he was, however, the York boss insists today is not about avenging that 3-2 defeat.

“It isn’t like we owe Bristol Rovers one or anything like that. Instead, we owe ourselves something after how we played in that first hour,” he said. “The same goes for the supporters. That just wasn’t good enough and it would be nice to keep our run going with another win.

“The key is how we perform. Credit to Bristol for doing their job in that replay, but we were our own worst enemies because we just didn’t play in that opening hour. We can’t afford a repeat of that and I am sure there won’t be one in the league game.”