This update was originally printed in the match day programme for Bristol Rovers on 15.08.2026.
Good afternoon, and welcome back to the Football League.
Three thousand, seven hundred and fifty-two days. That is the gap between this afternoon and the last time York City played a match in this competition — Morecambe away, the 7th of May 2016, a dreary 1–1 draw at the end of a wretched season.
Some would draw a line under those ten years now they are over. I would not. You cannot walk out into a new future and pretend the past did not happen, and we own our history.
We played 403 league games outside the EFL. We faced 68 different clubs. We visited 70 different away grounds — places most of us would never otherwise have gone. Some of them had us reaching for a map (Burton Latimer), some of them had us questioning our sanity (Curzon Ashton), some fantastic adventures (Torquay, Truro & more). We scored 629 league goals along the way, and none more special than the last one.
And there were 2,501 of us. That was our average home league crowd in 2018–19 — our second season in National League North, twelfth place, three managers. Last season it was 6,657. A higher average than any of our final four seasons in the EFL. That did not happen by accident. That was you, and it is why we are here.
The past earned the future. Both things are true at once.
We know as City fans that we never do things the easy way. The change of manager in July came as a shock, and the explanation offered since has not answered the questions supporters are asking. The Trust has put those questions directly to the Club and will keep putting them. With the season now underway, it would be best for all if the air were cleared properly and cleared soon. Our full position is at ycst.org.uk — this page is not the place for it.
What I will say is this. The players did not make that decision, and none of it is theirs to carry. Whatever any of us are feeling this afternoon, they need and deserve our support — through the good spells and the difficult ones, and right through to the end. We of all people know what can happen in the final minute.
We are stronger when we stand together, and that is as true off the pitch as it is on it. We have two representatives on the Club Board whose job is to carry supporters’ views into the room where the decisions get made. That only works if we know what those views are. Tell us at info@ycst.org.uk and it goes to the Board. On our own we are six thousand opinions in the stands. Together we are a shareholder with a seat at the table.
Membership of the Trust starts at £10 a year. Every new member makes us harder to ignore. Join at ycst.org.uk/join, or come and find one of us on match-day.
Keep The Faith.
Seth Sowerby
Chair, York City Supporters’ Trust
chair@ycst.org.uk
About York City Supporters’ Trust
Established in 2002, York City Supporters Trust is a not-for-profit Community Benefit Society, regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. We were formed to protect the long-term future of the football club and represent the interests of the fans. We are also 25% shareholders in York City Football Club Ltd.