A former head coach of York Wasps today told an employment tribunal that his position at the club was "continually and systematically undermined".

Dean Robinson claimed that the final straw in his decision to leave was when he heard that the club's star player, Spencer Hargraves, had been asked to collect names for a no-confidence vote against him.

Mr Robinson and former assistant coach John Paterson are both claiming that constructive dismissal led to their joint resignations from the club in March this year.

Giving evidence, Mr Robinson described how relationships with the board deteriorated from June 1998, when non-payment of wages led to a players' strike.

This, in turn, led to the club threatening to sack the entire backroom staff.

This situation was resolved, and under intense pressure, Mr Robinson steered the team to promotion.

However, he said the problems continued the following season.

He said: "The problems returned and my salary was consistently two weeks late. This continued until, in April 1999, the wage cheques bounced."

Mr Robinson then described his "amazement" at being suspended on full pay for about four weeks, then being reinstated with no charges brought against him after a 15-minute disciplinary meeting.

But he said the problems became far worse when Mrs Garvey changed her role from director to chief executive.

Mr Robinson then made a series of allegations about Ann Garvey and her conduct towards him.

They include

Being asked to leave training facilities when a session was in progress or was just about to begin

Finding training facilities had not been booked when Ann Garvey said they had

Finding Ann Garvey had taken complimentary away game tickets which were earmarked for players for her own use and then denying it

Finding the coach's column in the match programme had been amended without Mr Robinson's consent.

Mr Robinson then described how he was "gagged" by the board from talking about anything other than football-related matters to the press.

The incident in which Mr Hargraves was told to collect names, he said, was the last straw.

The hearing continues.