York City's 18-year wait for new ground is over as first game at LNER Community Stadium is finally confirmed

The new community stadium at Monks Cross was signed off before Christmas but an issue over the lease and matchday arrangements prevented them from hosting Fylde there on January 12 as planned.

Instead, that will now be the club's final game at Bootham Crescent, and it will now be manager Steve Watson's former club Gateshead who provide the opposition in the first game at the 8,500-seater stadium, which will be shared with rugby league side York City Knights, and is due to host Rugby World Cup matches this year.

The plan to move away has been a 19-year saga. Bootham Crescent has been the football club's home since 1932 and the site of some memorable games, particularly in the FA Cup, but had ceased to be fit for purpose in the post-Taylor Report world.

An acrimonious dispute at the weekend over the lease has now been resolved, and according to a York City statement: “The (City of York) Council recognises that recent public statements regarding elements of the YCFC lease were unfortunately misrepresented and we look forward to building on this positive working relationship moving forward.”

“The new stadium has already been recognised by the FA and RFL as one of the finest smaller stadiums in the country, with both organisations looking to use the site in the future, not just for the Rugby World Cup later this year,” said Cllr Nigel Ayre.

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