Patience pays off for boss Dolan

The City chief admitted he had been alerted to the possible availability of the former Ipswich Town striker during the summer but banked on a canny waiting game.

"We had to be patient because he would have cost us money then," explained Dolan.

"He was able to negotiate a settlement and his release from Dundee United and we got in smartly and I am delighted we have got him so quickly."

Dolan said he was confident Mathie, who was set to make his debut at Hartlepool today, would be the man to produce the goods in front of goal.

"We have got him for nothing but the good thing is he is an experienced goalscorer.

"He came down and trained with us, was impressed with the set-up and the reception he got from the rest of the players which helped.

"He wants to move down here as quickly as possible which is great as far as I am concerned.

"Let's hope it is the start of more goals going in for us now.""

And Dolan was equally confident Mathie's arrival would prove a shot in the arm for his new team-mates.

"In the training sessions you could see that with a different player involved there was a spring in everybody's step," he said.

He joked: "I have said to the chairman we need to be bringing a player in every week if that is the case but he didn't respond to that."

IT appears the signing of Mathie caught all the nationals on the hop.

Some 24 hours after the Evening Press first revealed City chief Terry Dolan was lining up a bid for Mathie most of tabloids were still claiming the striker was set to sign for Colchester. D'oh.

CITY stalwart Wayne Hall's testimonial fund appears set to benefit from a wacky indoor race night - and pigs might fly, so to speak.

Fund-raising for City's popular left-back is about to take a weird porcine twist with a floodlit pig-racing event at the South Bank Social Club, Ovington Terrace, in York.

However, real pigs will not be involved - rather wind-up porkies from a toy shop.

Like the more traditional race night involving horses, "Go Racing with Ginner" punters will still get the chance to back their favoured fluffy pigs.

But for each race batteries of differing strengths, needed to propel the pigs, will be drawn from a bag guaranteeing some trotters will be left stalling while others charge down the floodlit course.

The event will be staged on Monday, October 9, starting at 7.30pm.

THE Bootham Crescent grounding served by Bradford City's Mark Bower appears to be paying off.

The youngster became an integral part of Terry Dolan's red revival at the end of last season during an extended loan spell.

But this week, after featuring for the Bantam's in their short-lived Intertoto campaign during the summer, Bower made his first senior appearance for Bradford in more than a year in their 7-2 Worthington Cup pasting of Darlington.

Bower capped a promising performance by being singled out for praise by Bradford boss Chris Hutchings.

"We had eight players injured so I tried a few youngsters, including Mark Bower. He came through well and it was good experience for him," said the Bantams' chief.

Interestingly enough, the night also proved something of a first for former York forward Glenn Naylor.

As Darlington manager Gary Bennett shuffled his pack, Naylor was handed the unusual role of left-back and was forced to mark speed merchant Jamie Lawrence.

WITH the York City Supporters' Club recently enrolling its 600th member for the season it can now boast members from every corner of Britain and beyond.

Overseas Minstermen fans can be found as far afield as Australia, Finland, Japan, America and the Ukraine.

The supporters' group press and membership officer Rob Havercroft has produced a breakdown of where the club's members can be found:

York 326, Selby 21, Malton-Pickering-Scarborough 20, Tadcaster-Wetherby 18, Harrogate-Knaresborough 17, Boroughbridge-Ripon-Easingwold 16, Northallerton-Thirsk 8, Pocklington 8, Scotland 3, North East 8, North West 9, North 38, Midlands 17, London and the South 75, south West 3, overseas 11.

Application forms to join are available from the club shop, programme shop and the YCSC office or by post at the following addresses :

YCSC London and South branch YCSC, 34, The Weavers, Allington, Maidstone; YCSC Malton and Norton branch, 15 Wold Street, Norton; YCSC York, 3 Wandhill, Haxby, York.

NEXT week's City club shop sale has been brought forward 24 hours and will now take place on Tuesday, October 3.

The new date will coincide with the changed reserve team fixture, between City and Shrewsbury Town on the same night.

All goods in the shop will offer a 25 per cent discount on stock between 5pm and 7pm.

The shop, meanwhile, has reported a brisk trade in orders for York's new navy blue shirt.

Only 100 shirts have been ordered and already around 30 priority orders have been taken.

To order a shirt, telephone 01904 624447 extension 4.

A City Reds night is being organised for Wednesday, between 6pm and 8pm. Depending on numbers, the event maybe staged in the Social Club at Bootham Crescent.

Players and Yorkie are expected to be in attendance.

THE York City Worthington Fives team claimed a place in the third round of the national five-a-side competition - without kicking a ball.

After hammering Stoke City 17-1 in the first round of the competition, it was perhaps not surprising their scheduled opponents in round two, Newcastle United, failed to turn-up.

The Newcastle no-show gave York a walkover and success in the third round, to be played on Sunday, October 29 against as yet unnamed opponents, will leave them two games away from a place in the final.

At least last weekend's journey to Nottingham, the venue for the opening round matches, was not an entirely wasted trip.

I understand the organisers not only reimbursed their travelling expenses but gave the squad free-tickets to a future Worthington Cup-tie involving Liverpool.

The Worthington Fives tournament gives amateur players the chance to compete in a national 5-a-side competition, climaxing in a final to be played as the curtain-raiser to this season's Worthington Cup final.