About this match programme
By Richard Snowball This programme is a souvenir issue for the first Football League match played at Bootham Crescent on August 31, 1932 against Stockport County. The attendance was 8,106 and the match ended in a 2-2 draw with the first York City goal at the new ground being scored by Tom Mitchell, who later went on to the manage the club from 1937 to 1950. Later, he also had a sportswear shop in the City. As the programme shows from the photographs, there had been a pre-season "reds v blues" practice match played, and these show the main and popular stands which have changed very little over the past 87 years, apart from the main stand being extended. The new ground did not initially prove lucky in this first season as they only avoiding finishing in the bottom two, and having to apply for re-election, by winning their last match 6-1 at home to Darlington who finished bottom of the table. The average League home attendance for this first season at Bootham Crescent was 4,370, possibly due to the team’s low League position. The notes in the programme make interesting reading as it appears the ground was built in only three months and some fans were not happy about leaving Fulfordgate. Interestingly, for the move to the new ground they also wore new colours; chocolate and cream striped shirts and white shorts, possibly a reference to the confectionery industry in York. Acknowledgement This facsimile of the match programme was created by the publisher of There’s Only One Arthur Bottom, the daily email newsletter for fans of York City FC. www.tooab.com