STAUNCH York City supporter John Dodsworth today launched a double plan aimed at bringing the club back from the dead.

Dodsworth, whose company J Dodsworth Coaches is owed almost £9,500 as one of 145 creditors of the cash-strapped club, has agreed to waive the debt he is owed.

The much-respected Dodsworth has called on all creditors to do the same at the make-or-break meeting organised by administrator Jacksons Jolliffe Cork on March 17 when everyone owed money will be urged to accept a Company Voluntary Arrangement, whereby they can only expect a fraction back of what they are due.

But Dodsworth also exclusively told the Evening Press today of an initiative that could realise a major sum for the Supporters' Trust, whose bid to buy the club has been accepted by the administrator.

Dodsworth today declared that he would return all profits made from his minority share-holding in Bootham Crescent Holdings, the landlords of the club, who initially put City's ground up for sale 15 months ago.

He explained that he was among ten to a dozen minority share-holders, all having around 200 BCH shares, and all keen to return any profit to the Trust provided certain conditions were met.

That gesture alone would realise close on £34,000. And on the back of former club director John Quickfall, who, while announcing he had quit BCH as a director 48 hours ago would 'redirect' any profit from his BCH shares to the football club, Dodsworth urged BCH board members Barry Swallow, Colin Webb and Douglas Craig to do likewise.

That call for the other BCH directors to follow Quickfall's lead was also made by fans' pressure group Friends of Bootham Crescent today.

"It's time for BCH to show their face," said Dodsworth, whose firm have been associated with providing travel to away matches for York City teams and fans for almost the last two decades.

"I know for a fact that there are between ten to a dozen of us minority share-holders, who are all quite willing to give any profit made from the sale of those shares back to the Supporters' Trust. The Trust would have to meet with certain conditions, but that's what we would be prepared to do.

"This week John Quickfall has said he would do the same. Now I want the other majority shareholders to follow his example. If they don't, how could they hold their heads up in York after that?"

Dodsworth was equally passionate about his appeal to fellow creditors to accept the proposed CVA at the historic March 17 meeting at Bootham Crescent. For the CVA to be carried there would have to be a majority above 75 percent of the value of the creditors either attending the meeting or voting by proxy.

"If as creditors we don't accept the proposal then the job will be finished. The club will die," he said.

"As creditors we have got to be sensible. We are owed about a total of £170,000, but we should not be bringing down the club for £170,000. After being involved with the club for so long that would not be right."

FoBC spokesman Ian Savage welcomed the news Quickfall has pledged to forgo any profit he may receive on his BCH shareholding, and will instead use the money to help City find a new home.

Savage said: "If Mr Quickfall is true to his word, then he is going a very long way to repairing some of the appalling damage caused by BCH.

"The issue of personal gain has always been one which has angered supporters, and although we still query why BCH was set up in the first place, Mr Quickfall has at least shown that he does not intend to gain financially from the transaction himself, which we applaud."

Savage also appealed to the remaining directors of BCH to at least follow suit or, better still, negotiate to sell Bootham Crescent to the Supporters' Trust for no or minimal personal profit.

Savage urged Quickfall to donate the money he received, around £32,000, when ten per cent of his shares were sold to Persimmon last year, to the Supporters' Trust if he had not already done so.

Updated: 11:31 Friday, March 07, 2003