Today I'm going back 40 years to 1981 and York City's home game against Hereford United at Bootham Crescent. It still feels strange to think of Bootham Crescent as York City's former home because it only became so earlier this year. The ground had become increasingly dilapidated in the final few years of use but that was largely because the club, perhaps understandably, spent the minimum possible on stadium upkeep knowing that they weren't far away from the move to the new stadium. The state of the ground virtually demanded that it be put out of its misery towards the end. A sad end for a proper football arena.
Back in 1981 City and Hereford fought out a seven goal thriller. I say thriller but I distinctly remember that the game was a poor one with a number of defensive errors and general sloppiness on show. It was the second time that York had lost 4-3 at home in the month of October that year. On the 3rd October Sheffield United had come to York and won and now, four weeks later, Hereford United came and did the same thing.
There were a couple of less familiar names in the York City line up shown on the give-away programme that day. Middlesbrough midfielder Graeme Hedley was on loan to City at the time and made just five League appearances for York in 1981 amongst a grand total of 107 League appearances in a career that stretched from 1975 to 1985. Local boy Tommy Stanley made 18 League appearances for York between 1980 and 1983 before moving on to play in local football for Rowntree Mackintosh, Selby Town, Harrogate Railway Athletic and Pickering Town.
Come the end of the season, York found themselves in 17th place in the League, just four points clear of the bottom four teams obliged to submit themselves for re-election. Hereford United finished comfortably in 10th place themselves but were a long way off of the automatic promotion places.
CRB Match No. 135
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