THE York City board are hoping Nigel Worthington will manage the club next season after staving off the threat of relegation from npower League Two.

Sophie Hicks, communications and community director, said no formal talks over his future had been held while the club concentrated on their survival battle.

She said: “Nigel was already planning pre-season fixtures before Saturday, which has been great to see and he was always confident that we would stay in the Football League. He has been calm through the whole process, unlike most of us, because he’s an experienced manager who knows what he’s doing.”

Hicks was pleased, meanwhile, that safety was not secured at the expense of Saturday’s hosts Dagenham, who stayed up as a consequence of Barnet’s 2-0 defeat at Northampton.

“I’m really pleased for the people at Dagenham because they are good people,” the City board member said.

“Before the game, everybody was hoping that we would be celebrating together and it’s great that Dagenham stayed up as well, even though we commiserate with the clubs that were relegated and their fans because we know what a tough situation it is to be in.”

Finally, Hicks dedicated the successful battle against relegation to City’s super fan Kath Rowe, who once went 24-and-a-half years without missing a game but sadly passed away last month.

“Kath was a great fan of the club and a wonderful character and we have not lost a game since she was taken from us,” Hicks added. “I’m sure she’s been looking after us and the club would like to dedicate our survival to her memory.”