Fulham ended York City's brief moment in the spotlight and now they must return
to trying to ensure the club have a future. The chairman, Douglas Craig,
is demanding £4.5 million for the club and stadium - for which he
and his fellow directors paid around £200,000 - or he will sell
the ground, probably to property developers.
The deadline he has set is 1 April. He and his colleagues will keep most
of that money as, under a controversial deal, Bootham Crescent was transferred
to a holding company, which is supposed to be against FA rules.
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Fulham ace striker Steve Marlet clocks up another goal
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There was a protest against Craig in the city centre last week and a
supporters' trust is due to be launched next week, although they acknowledge
they have little chance of reaching Craig's asking price.
Craig's actions have been condemned by Alan Keen MP, chairman of the
all-party Parliamentary Football Group, who claims it is asset stripping.
He does not appear to be in any mood to back down, though. Last night's
local paper reported that a council-backed consortium had come nowhere
near offering the sum he was seeking. Supporters' hopes now rest on a
group led by a sports management company involved in motor racing.
The fighting fund will, however, have received a significant boost with
Mohamed al-Fayed's gesture of donating Fulham's share of yesterday's gate
receipts - around £30,000 - to the supporters' trust. But then the
Fulham chairman thinks nothing of getting out his chequebook to spend
£4.5m on a squad player.
It was only three years ago that these teams had played here in a Second
Division fixture, a match that coincided with the announcement that Kevin
Keegan, then Fulham manager, had accepted the England coach's job on a
caretaker basis.
York were determined to ignore the league table and, instead, pin their
hopes on omens. It was 17 years to the day that the mighty Arsenal had
been slain here at the same stage of the competition, thanks to a last-minute
penalty by Keith Houchen.
As is so often the case in these affairs, it was the lower division side
who started with the greater energy, but once Fulham found their feet on
a pitch turned into a quagmire by overnight rain, the 82 positions between
them in the league was clear.
| Match
Stats |
York |
Fulham |
| Goal
attempts |
11 |
18 |
| On
Target |
5 |
7 |
| Hit
woodwork |
0 |
0 |
| Fouls |
10 |
9 |
| Offsides |
6 |
6 |
| Corners |
8 |
6 |
| Yellows |
1 |
2 |
| Reds |
0 |
0 |
| source:
www.sports.com |
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York keeper Alan Fettis had already denied Fulham twice with acrobatic saves
before they took the lead in the 25th minute. Louis Saha's ball through
the middle split the York defence and Steed Malbranque ran through unchallenged
to score comfortably.
Attacking the end at which Houchen scored his famous goal, York began
the second half with renewed purpose and vigour. When the ball did not
fall to them in a couple of goalmouth scrambles, though, you sensed it
was not to be their day.
Having once more weathered the storm, Fulham asserted their class. Steve
Marlet should have put the game beyond the home side in the 67th minute
but drove his shot wide. Seconds later Fettis had the opportunity to demonstrate
his craft again when he turned away a low, 30-yard shot from defender
Zat Knight.
The value of that save so nearly increased significantly five minutes
later when Graham Potter put in a cross that appeared destined for the
head of Chris Brass until Edwin Van der Sar emerged to punch the ball
away.
Van der Sar turned provider six minutes from the end. His long kick sent
Marlet clear, although only after some lovely control from the Frenchman
to bring the ball down. He finished the move by firing home a low shot.
Somehow it seemed wholly appropriate that it should be a man who cost
£11.5m who should settle this tie between Harrods and the local
closing-down sale.
York: Fettis, Edmondson, Basham, Hocking, Hobson (Duffield 77),
Potter, Cooper, Brass, Bullock, Nogan (Mathie 83), Proctor.
Subs Not Used: Howarth, Smith, Richardson.
Booked: Nogan.
Fulham: Van der Sar, Finnan, Melville, Goma, Brevett, Legwinski,
Collins (Goldbaek 74), Knight, Malbranque, Saha, Marlet.
Subs Not Used: Taylor, Ouaddou, Willock, Stolcers.
Booked: Marlet(61,d) Collins(71,f).
Goals: Malbranque 26, Marlet 85.
Att: 7,563
Ref: J Winter (Stockton-on-Tees).