IT was a genuine privilege to be at Bootham Crescent on Saturday.

There were emotional and touching scenes with fans saluting the start of a new era as the Supporters' Trust took over York City FOOTBALL Club.

Waves of optimism swept round the ground - literally. "Terry, Terry, give us a wave: boomed the Shippo. The City chief, who has handled the last few fraught months with skill, responded with gusto.

It was an evangelical afternoon as the club and its supporters became one and were blessed by club chaplain Chris Cullwick.

The new board has an awful lot of hard work ahead to answer supporters' prayers. They face the same problem of their predecessors - increasing the fan base.

Once the board's cost-cutting measures kick in the club will no longer have to get an unrealistic average of 6,000 through the turnstiles each home game.

City have not had those kind of average gates since the old Second Division days of the mid-1970s.

Had former chairman John Batchelor done his sums and a basic bit of research he would have realised that his break-even figure was a non-starter from the kick-off.

Batchelor did, however, raise the club's profile and crowds are well up on last season. But for a club sitting in a promotion place in the Third Division there is still scope for improvement in attendances.

The new board are already making plans to put community initiatives in place, particularly in local schools, to attract the fans of the future.

Next season promises to be the last ever at Bootham Crescent - a selling point which the club will no doubt latch on to before the proposed move to a revamped Huntington Stadium.

Whatever future lies in store for the club and the Trust, the fans will need to show some patience as the board goes about the business of delivering the goods on and off the field.

IT is not often that crowds at Bootham Crescent are bigger than those watching a full England international.

That was the case on Saturday as 4,312 went to Bootham Crescent while 3,548 (plus a lot of policemen) were in Vaduz to watch our collection of multi-millionaires labour against the part-time pygmies of Liechtenstein.

The tiny principality has a population of around 33,000 - that's about a third of the size of York.

Perhaps a York and District League side may wish to invite Sven-Goran Eriksson's team to play them when the new-look Huntington Stadium opens.

On second thoughts, perhaps not. Sven may not be in charge if we get stuffed by Turkey tomorrow night.

WHAT a weekend for self-confessed York City supporter Clive Woodward.

His England rugby union team turned on an awesome display in Dublin to demolish Ireland and storm to the Six Nations Grand Slam.

Some critics, including former Australian Test great David Campese, would have dumped head coach Woodward at the start of the campaign on the basis that he should be making more of his multi-talented squad.

Having shaken the Grand Slam monkey from their backs, England, the kings of the Northern Hemisphere, must take their form to the World Cup in Australia in October.

It promises to be a different ball game Down Under. The Aussies are still smarting from their Twickenham defeats, while the All Blacks will be fierce opponents.

It will be hard, particularly if Jonny Wilkinson gets crocked, and the fear must be that England may have peaked too early with that magnificent display at Lansdowne Road.

- TKO was compiled this week by Martin Jarred

Updated: 10:17 Tuesday, April 01, 2003