DOUBLE Wembley-winning captain Chris Smith was delighted to repay York City Supporters’ Trust last weekend after remembering the part they played in saving the club during his first spell at Bootham Crescent back in 2003.

Smith was only 21 when the fans’ body raised £92,000 and £50,000 to twice stave off the threat of closure during the second half of the 2002/03 season, following John Batchelor’s disastrous spell as chairman.

Boosted by a £50,000 donation by current chairman Jason McGill, the Trust then assumed control of the club at the end of March 2003.

Plenty of water has passed under the bridge since, but Smith remains grateful to the contributions of everyone during those dark days which meant, more than nine years later having returned to the club as captain, he could lift the FA Trophy and Conference play-off cup during two magical consecutive weekends at the national stadium.

Smith was among six members of that Wembley squad to play in Sunday’s City Legends match, which raised “thousands of pounds” for the Trust, joining Jon Challinor, Michael Ingham, Scott Kerr, David McGurk and Jamie Reed, with Paddy McLaughlin, who is still playing professionally for Hartlepool but currently recovering from meningitis, also watching his former promotion-winning team-mates pull on the boots again at Tadcaster Albion’s Ings Lane ground.

Understanding the significance of the Trust’s role in the Minstermen’s history better than most past players, having lived through that traumatic period, Smith said: “When I was first at the club, the Trust saved York City.

“The club was so close to being liquidised before a lot of people stepped in and helped, so I wanted to be involved in this event for that reason. The likes of York City don’t have millions of pounds and fans do save clubs at this level, so they are massively important. They are why York City still exist today and can look forward to good times at a new stadium next season.”

Smith, who journeyed up from Derby for the day, also admitted the match was a great opportunity for the history-making side to get together for a rare meet-up.

“We keep in touch through Facebook and by text, but it was great to join the boys again for a game, a bit of banter and a few beers, because you miss the days we had together,” he confessed. “Some people left after Wembley, then a lot of people left the year after and most people had gone the season afterwards, so it was the first chance we have had to get together for a game again.

“Nobody has changed. They’re maybe a bit bigger and heavier, but it was like we’d never been away.

“You spend every day together when you’re footballers, going on overnight stays – sometimes twice a week – so you do get close and the days that we had bring you a lot closer. We’ll certainly never forget those nine days in May. I was very lucky to lift those two trophies at Wembley and it does take a couple of years really to fully appreciate what happened.

“The chairman (Jason McGill) was brilliant, taking us all away on holiday and it was just an amazing time. I don’t think I was sober during the two weeks afterwards!”

Smith went on to play a key role in preventing City from being relegated during their first season back in the Football League, winning the April League Two Player of the Month award.

But he left Bootham Crescent in January 2014 and spells with Halifax, Alfreton, Tamworth, South Normanton and Heanor followed before he spent last season in the Central Midlands League, deciding to call time on his playing days at the age of 36 on a winning note.

“I played for Pinxton – a level lower than Tadcaster,” he revealed. “We won the League Cup (a 4-3 victory against Cottingham) and I scored, so I thought it was a good time to bow out.”

While running a pub used to be the preferred profession for retired players, Smith has taken a very different route as he embarks on life after football, opening a coffee shop – the White Orchid in Ashbourne Road, Derby - which has attracted a glut of five-star Facebook and Google reviews.

“I run it with my mum and love it,” he enthused. “We’ve been open two-and-a-half years and do everything from full English breakfasts to fish and chips too.

“It’s hard work, because I’ve also started another business with my friend, who is a building contractor. We clean the outside of houses before people move in and have contracts with some big building developers, so that’s taken off quickly and I’m very busy, because my son is also getting into football and loves watching Derby.”

The Legends match saw two group of former City players pitted against each other with Smith and his former Wembley team-mates joined by Andy McMillan, Dave Merris, Lee Bullock, Richard Cresswell, Dave Spofforth and Chris Porter in the Reds’ side.

An opposition Whites team included Russ Howarth, Anthony Lloyd, Greg Young, John Fielding, Paddy Atkinson, Darren Williams, Iain Dunn, Neil Campbell, Marc Thompson and Dean Lisles.

Wembley-winning boss Gary Mills was unable to attend as planned, but Denis Smith – the club’s legendary 1983/84 fourth division championship manager - did pop by on his way to working as radio summariser during Stoke’s Championship match at Leeds United.

Alf Patrick – the first man to score 100 goals for the Minstermen and the only player to net five times in a first-team fixture at Bootham Crescent – was also, at the age of 96, among a crowd that was announced as 596 on the day and included 1970s’ heroes Graeme Crawford, Chris Jones and Chris Topping.

Others present were 1993 Wembley winners Tony Canham and Ian Blackstone, as well as 2006/7 Press Player of the Year Craig Farrell.

The match saw Reed open the scoring with a well-planted header from Merris’ cross. Cresswell’s 20-yard effort then pinged in off Howarth’s left-hand upright and a third goal was added before the half-hour mark with Reed pouncing on a loose ball inside the penalty box to drill in a low drive.

Guest player Jon-Paul Vass reduced the deficit just past the hour mark, but the Reds went 4-1 up when Bullock tapped in from a Challinor cross.

The Whites hit back when McMillan tripped Campbell and Dunn confidently despatched the resulting penalty to Porter’s left.

Dunn went on to convert at the far post on 77 minutes, but the Reds held out for a 4-3 triumph.

Back in the present, Russ Penn and Jake Wright are the early leaders of 208/19’s first Press Player of the Month contest.

Penn was our second-highest rated player during Tuesday’s 1-0 home win over Stockport and equalled the two points he collected for that recognition by receiving the most man-of-the-match votes during our on-line Twitter poll.

Wright, meanwhile, received four points in the exact same manner following the 1-0 opening-day defeat at Chorley last weekend.

The other Press points against Stockport were awarded to our man-of-the-match Wes York (three) and third highest-rated performer Joe Tait (one).

At Chorley, the remaining Press points went to Sean Newton (three) and Kallum Griffiths (one).

The Press Player of the Year standings: Newton 3, York 3, Penn 2, Wright 2, Griffiths 1, Tait 1.

The Press Player of the Month standings for August: Penn 4, Wright 4, Newton 3, York 3, Griffiths 1, Tait 1.

Goals: York 1.

Assists: Langstaff 1.

Bad Boys: Bencherif one yellow card, Heslop one yellow, Kempster one yellow, Newton one yellow, Tait one yellow, Wright one yellow.