Rotherham and York are adding bloom to the White Rose

So long a graveyard of a division for Yorkshire with neither Rotherham United nor Bradford City able to justify their pre-season billing as promotion favourites year after year, the basement tier last saw the White Rose bloom in 2004.

But now, after using the Championship break to take the chance to watch all three of our sides in action, I get the sense something is stirring within the Broad Acres.

York City’s promotion from the Conference and the Millers’ return to their home town after four years in exile have, judging by my visits this month to the New York Stadium and Bootham Crescent, given the county’s football scene a major shot in the arm.

In Rotherham’s case, the move from the unloved Don Valley Stadium has allowed the club to reconnect with not only the town’s people but also the town centre itself.

That much was evident driving through Rotherham ahead of the derby with Bradford City at the start of this month.

Fans, who just a few months earlier had been forced to travel to a neighbouring city to watch their team, were strolling through the streets, many resplendent in red home shirts.

More than 2,000 Bantams supporters were also in town and it was great to see the two groups mingling and enjoying the hospitality of the local watering holes before making the short walk to Rotherham’s new state-of-the-art home.

The feelgood factor was everywhere and, for the locals, continued once inside as Rotherham claimed an impressive 4-0 victory, pictured.

The noise made by both sets of fans was impressive and I came away from my first visit to the Football League’s newest stadium mightily impressed, particularly with the design.

All four stands are very steep, giving the impression that the capacity is way higher than its actual 12,000 seats. And with the stadium having been built in such a way that 3,000 additional seats can be added without too much disruption, Rotherham’s new home is a worthy addition to the list of impressive recent builds.

Since that victory over a Bradford side that deserved better than a four-goal defeat, results have dipped with York dumping Rotherham out of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy before Port Vale inflicted a shock 6-2 defeat on Steve Evans’s promotion hopefuls.

Two days later, Evans was hit with a six-game stadium ban by the FA for indiscretions committed when in charge of Crawley Town last March. But, even the handicap of not having their manager present at a match until October 13 cannot dampen the feeling that something special is building on the back of the club’s stadium move.

After two visits to Rotherham’s new home inside a week, last Saturday brought my first trip of the season to York. Again, a feelgood factor was very much in evidence ahead of the game as supporters inched their way through the compact terraced streets of Bootham in bright sunshine.

Parking anywhere near the ground can be difficult, as an unnamed Yorkshire Post reporter (no, not me before you ask..) found last season when reversing into a lamppost. But I’ve always enjoyed trips to Bootham Crescent, in particular a visit with my late Burnley-supporting father in 1992 when the Clarets clinched the Fourth Division title and a still (just) teenage Sutcliffe chose to mark the achievement by invading the pitch along with all the celebrating Lancashire hordes.

A happy memory and one I thought of when taking my seat in the press box ahead of a 2-2 draw with Chesterfield that propelled Gary Mills’s side into the play-off positions.

The Minstermen, of course, will not be at Bootham Crescent for too much longer. A new 6,000 capacity stadium, which will help safeguard the club’s future, is on the way but until then supporters – and football reporters – can still savour a trip to a ground that is only a stone’s throw from the treasures of the city centre.

Certainly, I thoroughly enjoyed last Saturday’s visit and, as with Rotherham a week earlier, came away believing that Yorkshire is finally ready to make its mark on League Two.