YORK City Knights’ opening pre-season friendly against Hull FC will now be played at Doncaster’s Keepmoat Stadium – with the club saying the switch will cost them more than £10,000 in revenue.

The January 11 game was scheduled to be played at York City’s Bootham Crescent ground after the Knights’ lease of Huntington Stadium was ended as part of City of York Council’s community stadium project. But the council has recently withdrawn from negotiations with the Knights, seemingly meaning that agreement no longer stands.

The club, already without a training base after the council stopped them using York St John University facilities as planned, tonight announced they could wait no longer for clarification and have been forced to switch the fixture.

They are hopeful the current issues "can be resolved" but their temporary move to Bootham Crescent for the coming season is now shrouded in doubt.

A club statement said: “York City Knights have been forced to take action and rearrange the friendly that was to take place against Hull at Bootham Crescent next weekend.

“The fixture will now be played at the Keepmoat Stadium, Doncaster, next Sunday (January 11), with a 4.45pm kick-off as part of a double-header, with Doncaster taking on Hull FC’s young guns at 3pm.

“The loss of the home game will be a cost of over £10,000 to the club.”

James Ford’s new-look Knights squad will face a Hull team made up predominantly of Super League first-teamers and a sizeable crowd had been expected at Bootham Crescent.

Ticket prices are £10 for adults, £7 concessions and £3 juniors and will be valid for both of the day's matches.

A Knights spokesman said: “We are disappointed that promises and assurances have not been met by City of York Council, but we will just bat on until we hear from the council on the reasons why they have not been in contact with the club since early November.

“We are optimistic that the issues can be resolved very quickly once the council confirms when we can meet.”

According to Guildford, the current impasse arose when the council, having previously agreed the Knights could play at Bootham Crescent until the community stadium is built, then offered only a two-year guaranteed stay. The rugby club did not sign up to the new terms, fearing they could be made homeless if the new stadium is not ready by then.

The council then withdrew from negotiations, saying it had done so due to a “legal dispute” with the Knights stemming from “litigious comments” from club chairman John Guildford. The Knights are adamant no dispute exists and the council has provided no further details.