This update was originally printed in the match day programme for Newcastle United U21 on 15.09.2026.
Well, the Swindon game was fun wasn’t it?
Four goals, a clean sheet, and an Alex Newby strike from twenty-five yards that I suspect a good number of us have watched back more than once since Saturday. It was a spectacular team performance, and I’m sure we all got more entertainment than we bargained for. Twelve consecutive home league wins, and third in League Two. Good evening, and welcome back to the LNER Community Stadium.
Tonight is a different sort of evening, and that is rather the point. This is our first EFL Trophy campaign in a decade – the last one ended in 2016, in a competition and a division that feel a very long way away now. Newcastle United’s Under-21s tonight, Rotherham United here next Tuesday, then Bradford City away in November.
I know academy sides in this competition divide opinion, and I will happily count myself among the sceptics. Our focus this season is undoubtedly on the league, but we can still enjoy it for exactly what it is. A midweek game under the lights at a tenner for adults, a fiver for concessions and a pound for kids and students is about as good a night out as football offers. If you have brought somebody with you tonight who has never been before, thank you. That is how this club grows.
It is almost a year since we launched our new membership system, which means a great many of our annual memberships are about to come round for renewal. If you opted for automatic renewal, our systems should do all the work for you and you need do nothing at all. If you did not, you will receive an email before your renewal is due.
Either way, please keep an eye on your inbox over the coming weeks – and if you think something has gone astray, drop us a line at membership@ycst.org.uk and we will sort it out.
There has never been a better time to be a member – our local business discount scheme now includes four brilliant York businesses: 10% off at Plonkers Wine Bar on Cumberland Street, £11 taster sessions and 10% off classes at Pureform Studio, 15% off drinks at SPARK York, and £3.50 pints and bottles at The Terrace before every home game.
Just show your digital membership card – no vouchers, no codes. More are joining all the time, and the current list is always at ycst.org.uk/member-discounts.
That scheme exists because members asked for it, which is rather the story of everything we do. We have two representatives on the Club Board carrying supporters’ views into the room where the decisions get made, and the weight they carry depends on how many of us stand behind them.
Membership starts at £10 a year. We are aiming for 2,000 members by our 25th anniversary this coming February, and every single one makes us harder to ignore. Join at ycst.org.uk/join, or come and find one of us on match-day. If you have an idea for the Trust, info@ycst.org.uk comes straight to us.
Enjoy the match and 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.