A certain League One club is set for their under 23s team to groundshare at a non league stadium with talks allegedly in progress.
York City went against letting Hull City play matches at Bootham Crescent now that it’s tenants have moved elsewhere.
The National League North club have finally been given the keys to their new 8,005 capacity LNER Community Stadium.
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However, now it will also be home to Hull City’s youngsters with Bootham Crescent now out of the question.
York’s last game at their old ground was a 1-0 victory over Guiseley, however the stadium went on to host under 23s football.
On the 18th of February, the non league outfit stated: “The club would like to keep supporters updated with a Commercial hire deal for Bootham Crescent, which will bring much needed income into the club.
“Hull City U23s will hire Bootham Crescent for four matches over February and March:
- Thursday 18th February – Hull City U23s vs Wigan Athletic U23s
- Monday 22nd March – Hull City U23s vs Ipswich Town U23s
- Thursday 25th March – Hull City U23s vs Nottingham Forest U23s
- Monday 29th March – Hull City U23s vs Crewe Alexandra U23s
This then went on to cause a huge backlash with the supporters, feeling it was in bad taste to let anyone else play their when the fans were yet to give it a final farewell.
Now the history books will have Hull City under 23s team’s match against Wigan as the last match to be played at Bootham Crescent.
York issued another statement: “You asked. We listened. We have listened to our supporters and withdrawn Hull City FC’s pitch hire of Bootham Crescent.
You asked. We listened.
We have listened to our supporters and withdrawn Hull City FC’s pitch hire of Bootham Crescent.#YCFC 🔴🔵 pic.twitter.com/VmkIUx3FWK
— York City FC (@YorkCityFC) February 19, 2021
“After the devastating impact of the pandemic on the club’s income we had intended to hire Bootham Crescent to Hull City FC for four matches, to bring some much-needed funds into the club, but after receiving feedback from supporters these games will not go ahead.
“Your feedback is noted and valued. Thank you.”
Since then, it’s claimed Hull City’s under 23s team will play at the 8,512 capacity LNER Community Stadium from the 8th of March.
So far, only one game of football has been played there, that was a 3-1 win in favour of York’s opponents AFC Fylde, in front of no fans due to the pandemic.
A risk assessment was done to discover whether it was viable for Hull and York to both play matches at the new ground.
That’s now done and it will be tenants to York City FC, York City Knights rugby club, and now Hull City U23s.
There were also rumours that they were trying to get Harrogate Town to play at the LNER too, however that looks no longer an option.
YORK’S NEW STADIUM:
York Community Stadium – which is known for sponsorship purposes as the LNER Community Stadium – is a multi-purpose stadium based in Huntington, York, England. It is owned by City of York Council, and be shared by York City FC and York City Knights Rugby League Club.
The move to a new stadium was necessitated by the terms of the loan York City secured from the Football Stadia Improvement Fund to purchase their Bootham Crescent ground. Planning permission for the current design, put forward by Greenwich Leisure, was given the green light in March 2015. After several frustrating delays, construction began in December 2017 before finally getting completed in December 2020. In addition to the stadium, the site will house a leisure complex and a community hub.
The stadium has an all-seated capacity of 8,512 and comprises of four stands; the East Stand (Main Stand), the West Stand, the North Stand and the South Stand. The East Stand is three floors and accommodates hospitality guests, players, officials and the media, and will be connected to the adjacent retail and community facilities. The stands are the length of the pitch, and each corner will host stadium facilities, including matchday emergency services, stewarding, groundsman accommodation, plant space and a fan zone. The seats, which has been quite a talking points, are coloured red, white and blue, a combination of the colours of both of the ground’s main teams.
The pitch will use reinforced natural grass, with provision to counter frost. The dimensions for football pitch will be 105 by 68 metres (115 by 74 yd), with 3-metre-wide run-offs on the sides and 6.5- metre-wide run-offs behind the goals, meeting FIFA recommendations. The dimensions for rugby league matches will be 100 by 68 metres (109 by 74 yd), with 6-metre in-goal areas, and 3-metre-wide run-offs on the sides and after the dead ball lines.
The stadium has a leisure complex, which will include a 25-metre, six-lane swimming pool, a sports hall for netball, badminton and basketball, a gym with dance and spinning studios, an adventure sports zone and three 3G five-a-side pitches. A community hub will be a centre of health and well-being services for York residents and visitors, including clinical services, an independent living assessment centre and a library.
For those getting to the ground, there will be a regular bus service from the city centre, and additional services to other areas will be considered if there is sufficient demand. A review of the park and ride operating times will take place, with an extension to the service to be sought. On matchdays, the ground will have 400 car parking places and 355 cycle parking places will be available. A cycle route exists between the site and the city centre.
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