Exclusive by Tony Kelly, Chief Sports Writer

Three York City players - Wayne Hall, Alan Pouton and Rory Prendergast - have been disciplined by the club over the sale of FA Cup tickets.

The move stems from an allegation that the three were seen in a public house shortly before the FA Cup tie at Enfield on Saturday when tickets for the first round game were exchanged for cash.

The main stand tickets were sold for half their £10 face value, it was alleged by supporter Pete Lewis in a letter to the Evening Press.

Club secretary Keith Usher today confirmed: "The three players have been dealt with under the club's internal disciplinary procedures."

He would not disclose what punishment had been handed to Hall, Pouton or Prendergast, but he added that all the 'monies received' from the sale of what he confirmed were complimentary tickets were to be donated to a local charity. Usher assured the Press that it 'would never happen again'.

The City secretary said there was no need to report the matter to the Football association, whose FA Cup rules afford 100 complimentary tickets to the home club and 50 to the away team for each tie.

Under FA rules it is technically not an offence to sell tickets below their face value, according to a spokesman at FA headquarters at Lancaster Gate.

But the sale of the tickets left former City season-ticket holder Pete Lewis disgusted.

Lewis, who bought one of the tickets, alleged that '20 or more' must have been sold in the few minutes that Hall and team-mates Pouton and Prendergast were in the Southbury Arms shortly before the kick-off of the tie, which City eventually drew 2-2.

He added that he did not see either Pouton or Prendergast selling tickets, but claimed Hall had 'a fistful' of tickets for the main stand.

Some of those tickets, he claimed, ended up in the hands of a knot of fans who verbally abused City chairman Douglas Craig and fellow directors throughout the tie.

Lewis insisted it showed a contempt for fans and he wondered where the money had gone believing host club Enfield had lost out on potential income.

He said: "I was in this pub, the Southbury Arms, when Pouton, Hall and Prendergast came in.

"It was just one of the lads who said tongue in cheek 'any tickets?'. Wayne Hall came back and said '£5 each if you want one'. He then said 'how many do you want?'.

"I bought one off Wayne Hall. They were only there for about a quarter of an hour. Wayne Hall had a fistful of tickets.

"If they were complimentaries then Enfield are losing out on money. And where has the money gone?"

Lewis said he still had the ticket for the main stand - block 'D', row 'K', seat 10. The price of admission to the main stand was £10.

"I just thought that basically it's the way things are, either so lax at the club or that they are just sticking two fingers up at everybody. That's the final straw to see players coming in flogging tickets.

"It does show a contempt for the fans. I was disgusted. It does not show any ounce of professionalism."

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.