YORK and District Under 15s ended four seasons together with defeat after conceding a last minute winner in the trophy final to Rotherham.

Good first half defending for York was consolidated with a Mike Warriner strike and they went into half time with score at 1-1.

York bounced into the second half with a strong start and soon took the lead after a great solo run and finish by Mike Peace. Again, Rotherham equalised, but another sparkling individual effort from Scott Milling restored York's lead.

Rotherham pegged York back for a third time but Tom Breslin was on target to push York to the fore for what proved to be the final time as Rotherham completed the comeback to level again and snatch a last minute winner to make it 5-4 after a thrilling 90 minutes.

Everyone who has been involved in the team during the past four years was thanked by the team organisers.

Chances of cup glory for York Under-11 Schoolboys fell by the wayside as they lost 1-0 at home to Sheffield in the Yorkshire Cup semi-final.

York were hampered by a poor playing surface at the RI pitch but still performed well despite lacking the considerable physical presence of their counterparts and Sheffield thought they had taken the lead early on only for the goal to be ruled offside.

York clawed their way back into the game but failed to set any real challenges for the Sheffield 'keeper until Adam Thornton created some great chances in the second half.

But with the Sheffield back line in defiant mood, York's efforts were constantly thwarted and Sheffield finally broke the deadlock with a looping free kick from the edge of the area over James Edmond's head.

York U11s may have missed out on the final of the Yorkshire Cup, but they certainly put the city on the footballing map after a great week at the North Tyneside Festival of Football.

The team opened their week with a 2-2 draw at York Sixth Form College against Hull in a pre-festival match with debutant Steve Jarman and Adam Thornton both in form.

Chris Bilton fired the hosts ahead with a sweet left-footer and Will Pepper made it 2-0 in the second half from the penalty spot before Hull pulled two back late on.

York then marked their first ever festival appearance with a convincing 3-0 victory over Gloucester.

Tom Richardson fired York in front and Chris Bilton stretched the lead after good play by Qualter and Richardson, before David Fisher completed the scoring in the second half.

Next on the York hit list were well-respected West Tyne and York were in the ascendancy from start to finish, but struggled to convert the possession into goals. Oliver Bird eventually hit the back of the net but West Tyne stole an equaliser in the last ten minutes to deny them the win.

A lack of finishing also created problems in the third and final match against hotly-tipped North Tyneside, which ended 0-0 despite the best efforts of the battling York midfield of Qualter, Byram, Fisher and Dale.

The player's player of the year award went to captain Will Pepper, Chris Bilton took the manager's player of the year and David Fisher was presented with the festival of football player of the tournament at an awards night last Thursday.

The schoolboys have an interesting fixture on Saturday morning against their York City Centre of Excellence counterparts at the Wigginton Road training ground. Kick off is at 10am and all squad members are asked to attend with £2 subs. Meet at 9.15am at York Sixth Form College.

York and District primary schools' football annual meeting will be held at New Earswick Primary School tomorrow at 4pm.

It is important that league winners and cup semi-finalists attend. Those who cannot should contact Adam Cooper by e-mail at adq-@fsmail.net

CRICKET

The York schools' cricket league competition starts tomorrow.

The fixtures are:

U13 League Group 'A': Minster v Manor, Sherburn v Fulford, Barlby v Huntington, Lowfield v Tadcaster.

U15 League Group 'A': Huntington v Barlby, Fulford v Sherburn. Manor and Tadcaster both have a free week.

U13 League Group 'B': Oaklands v Bootham, Joseph Rowntree v Archbishop's, Millthorpe v All Saints, Burnholme v Canon Lee.

U15 League Group 'B': All Saints v Millthorpe, Archbishop's v Joseph Rowntree, Bootham v Oaklands. Burnholme has a free week.

Updated: 11:16 Wednesday, April 28, 2004