And it wasn't until ten years later that the club moved to its current home, Bootham Crescent.

Until 1932, City played at their Fulfordgate ground. However after renting Bootham Crescent, the club made one of its shrewdest purchases when it bought the land and stadium in 1948.

On March 5,1938, the ground was packed with 28,123 fans for the sixth round FA Cup tie against Huddersfield - an attendance that's still a Bootham Crescent record today.

The first year with the ground under club ownership saw huge crowds turn out to watch York and stars such as Alf Patrick - 117 goals in 241 appearances - as an average crowd of 10,412 attended Bootham Crescent games in 1948-49.

This figure was not challenged even during the mid-1970s when York played in the old Second Division (average attendance of 8,828 for 1974-75).

But the good old days of changing ends (through the tunnel beneath the Popular Stand) at half-time disappeared in the 1970s as football learned to segregate rival fans.

In October 1991, the club opened its new stand at the previously-named Shipton Street End ("the Shippo") and named it the David Longhurst Stand after a young player who collapsed and died while playing for York against Lincoln City on September 8, 1990.

Bootham Crescent earned its biggest pay day on October 3, 1995, when Manchester United turned up for the second leg of the Coca Cola League Cup tie (winning 3-1 but losing the second round tie 4-3 on aggregate). Gate receipts
were £63,680.

But this was challenged on July 29, 2000, when Manchester United again visited Bootham Crescent for a pre-season friendly.