HE may have left his paranormal powers at home, but Uri Geller's motivational magic seemed to do the trick for his Exeter side, as they beat York City 2-0.

Spoonbending celebrity Uri and his son, Daniel, both directors of Exeter City, were at Bootham Crescent for the game on Saturday.

Before the match Uri said his paranormal talents had no impact on the outcome of matches - but he still used the power of the mind. He said: "I can only help with being positive, to motivate. I see the players, I tell them: 'You can do it, you can score'. It's motivation.

"We have to win or at least draw and we will fight with all our might. I know you (York City) are playing for promotion, there's no way you can compare falling out of the league and going for promotion."

Uri, who appeared in I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, also praised York City players and supporters for their determination to save their club. He said: "These are the people you need in football."

He was staying in York overnight and popping in to astrologer Jonathan Cainer's shop in Stonegate, York, where the pair plan to open a paranormal museum this year.

He said: "We are opening the museum hopefully by the end of this year.

"There will be different tours, introducing the paranormal. Jonathan Cainer is the greatest guy in the world, he's my best friend."

Updated: 11:07 Monday, April 28, 2003