The prospect of entering into a Company Voluntary Arrangement has received a mixed reaction from York Wasps supporters.

It is widely accepted that the CVA, if it gets the green light from creditors, could finally rid the club of its long-term financial problems.

But there is also a feeling of apprehension as fans remain unclear about what it means in real terms.

There is also concern about whether the creditors, in particular the two biggest, the Inland Revenue and City of York Council, will agree to the proposal.

Dorothy Dawson has been watching for York for 52 years and is in two minds about the benefits of the CVA.

She also claims some fans have become despondent as a result of what has become an annual crisis.

She said: "We're getting rather sick of it. It's the same thing year after year. At the shareholders meeting they said it (the debt) had all been cleared. A lot of supporters couldn't care less anymore because we've heard it all before.

"The CVA will be a good idea if the Inland Revenue and the Council agree to it but I can't see the council agreeing to it because they've got debts of their own."

John Matthews is another long-standing season ticket holder who attended his first Wasps game in 1954.

Like many fans he has contributed plenty of cash to the club through buying shares, merchandise and season tickets and is concerned about their state of affairs.

However, he believes the CVA could be the way forward. He said: "They seem to be lurching from one crisis to the next and this seems to me like the last way out of a difficult situation.

"It's the only way out because the alternative is frightening. If the Inland Revenue and the council don't go for it they'll wind up the club.

"I think this is a really good idea if it clears our debts and we make a fresh start."

He added that he had sympathy for the smaller creditors, who are likely to emerge with nothing, and the players, whose contracts will be renegotiated.

Supporters Club committee member Ann Wright praised the efforts of the players but is demanding answers before making up her mind about the CVA.

"The supporters don't really know what it means. I don't think we've been kept informed with a lot of the financial issues. Where did the money go from the Warrington game last season? How much Sky money have we got left? Where's the new Inland Revenue debt come from?," she said.

"If this goes ahead we want someone to hold the purse strings."

Fellow committee member Louise Ince questioned the club's handling of off-field activities, saying: "We seem to be a reactive club rather than a proactive club."

And she summed up the feelings of many when she added: "It's a great way to start a season. Last year at least it was the middle to the end of the season. To start the season like this doesn't do any good for morale on the terraces or on the pitch."

dianne.hillaby@ycp.co.uk