SIDELINED defender Gary Hobson believes York City must stand down from their panic stations to spark a rise up the table.

As a member of the Chester City team that was relegated to the Conference last season, Hobson knows all about life at the wrong end of Division Three.

"Playing in pressurised games where you are playing for your livelihood is a horrible situation to be in," he told the Evening Press.

"I know what it is like and it is horrible to play in.

"You can see the effect it has on the players; confidence is low because you think every mistake is going to cost the club.

"That's how you feel and that is why the lads need to put a few points between ourselves and the bottom two teams.

"A lot of people are afraid but we need to keep plugging away and fight and battle for a couple of points and those couple of points might allow us to play with a bit more confidence.

"When you are at the bottom it is amazing what a win can do. We need to try and relax and be confident and that is not happening at the moment.

"But if you can win and others around you lose you've suddenly got a little bit of a cushion and you can get out of the bottom five within three games and be pushing for mid-table."

Hobson, a summer signing from the Deva Stadium, still winces at the painful memory of last season. A 2-0 win over City had given Chester hope that they would beat the drop. But then two defeats in their final two games sealed the Blues' fate.

"We were off the bottom going into our last two games but lost them against Cheltenham away and Peterborough," said the 28-year-old. "A draw would have been enough but it wasn't to be. It was very sad because we thought we'd done it at one point."

Hobson has suffered a luckless first season in City colours. A knee operation has ruled him out since mid-September and has only just returned to full-training.

His availability is still a couple of weeks away but Hobson admits his return and that of one or two other injured players could give the club a massive boost.

Comparing it to when he signed for Chester towards the end of last season, he said: "To get the injured players back would be bonus.

"When I arrived at Chester it was a difficult time because the club was at the bottom and about six or seven points adrift.

"You could see how affected the lads were who had been there all season.

"I was probably able to make a difference to morale because I wasn't one of those who'd been dragged down by it all."

Updated: 10:51 Saturday, February 03, 2001