Rampaging midfielder Alan Pouton is clear to continue in York City's relegation scrap after emerging from an FA panel hearing without a ban.

Pouton went before the panel at the Woodlesford base of the West Riding County FA yesterday after collecting 11 bookings. But City caretaker boss Neil Thompson was breathing a huge sigh of relief today. He confirmed that Pouton had escaped with merely a £100 fine, leaving him available for selection for the four-match run-in, starting at bottom club Macclesfield on Saturday, that will determine relegation-haunted City's fate.

It means that apart from Andy McMillan, who is out for the rest of the season, Thompson has a full strength squad to select from.

A dose of deja-vu saw City's Bootham Crescent encounter with Blackpool last night called off for the second time in little more than a month. The match was postponed yesterday afternoon after a 4pm pitch inspection by match referee Alan Wiley.

The original fixture was also cancelled on March 9 due to heavy afternoon rain.

A new date for the match has yet to be arranged, but it will have to be either during next week, or the midweek after with the season set to end in a Maine Road cauldron on May 8.

Thompson said the postponement had changed his training plans for today. "The ones due to play last night would have had a day off today," he said, "but now we've got them all coming in today."

The weather put paid to two crucial matches involving City's relegation rivals last night. Northampton, level on 44 points with City and currently in the final drop zone place, had their game at home to Wigan washed out; while the clash between Notts County, five points above City with a match in hand, and bottom club Macclesfield, five points below City and also with a match in hand, was postponed.

Bristol Rovers stayed seventh from bottom after collecting a point in a 0-0 draw at Chesterfield. This puts the Pirates two points above City from the same number of matches, and leaves them having scored one goal more.

Wrexham just about ended their own lingering relegation worries by beating play-off chasing Gillingham 2-1.City's youth team were in action at Chesterfield this afternoon.

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