YORK CITY 0 : 3 OLDHAM ATHLETIC
One question I was asked when I first came to York was: “Does York even have a football team?” It certainly does, and it has been an incredible season in the National League for York City, finishing a well-deserved second behind Barnet.
Unlike play-off fixtures in the EFL, only two teams go up from non-league, with the Minstermen entering the play-offs to reach League Two for the first time since dropping out in 2013. I should know. I kept relegating them on FIFA.
Besides, both sides clearly fancied their chances ahead of the game. Unlike in the League, this is not a two-legged affair, so there’s no rematch ahead of the winners’ trip to Wembley.
The opening fifteen minutes were in York’s favour: while Oldham had a couple of chances, York seemed more inclined to create them, until Joe Garner’s goal for the Latics seemed to come from absolutely nowhere (read: York didn’t spot the ball in a good position for him). So much so that I didn’t even have my camera ready.
A half hour in, and Mike Fondop almost struck for the visitors, but York’s keeper Harrison Male had it covered with an artsy save to tip it behind for the corner. Special mention to mascot Yorkie (yes, like the chocolate bar), who kept the South Stand animated throughout the first half.
The second half got underway with the run of play against the Minstermen, with a second goal for Oldham coming soon after, two minutes later, the third. York’s chance to grab a goal back came a minute after, but Joe Felix’s head couldn’t meet a neat cross.
By half-time, the result wasn’t ideal but 1-0 isn’t such a bad result to take to the second half. However, after two goals five minutes later, York knew the game was up. A triple substitution came from Minstermen manager Adam Hinshelwood to bring on some much-needed fresh legs, but it didn’t change the run of play.
That said, a return to the League would be particularly nice for Oldham, who achieved the unwanted record of becoming the first ex-Premiership side to drop into non-league back in 2022. This was a particularly sobering moment all around.
Speaking to York Vision after the game, manager Adam Hinshelwood said: “It’s a big disappointment, and it will hurt for a few days. We’ll have to take all the hurt and disappointment, and make sure that we learn and come back stronger.”
One may also question the unusual format of National League play-offs, in which the 4th and 5th placed teams fight teams finishing 6th and 7th for the right to face teams finishing 2nd and 3rd. It may have gone against York, with Oldham having played much more recently, making York at times seem lethargic by comparison.
We put that to Hinshelwood, who said magnanimously: “Yes, there is that potentially. But I won’t use that as an excuse. We didn’t give them enough to worry about: they took their chances, and I wish Oldham all the best.”
York’s season saw them net a total of 96 points: the second-highest in the club’s history. On next season’s plans, Hinshelwood said: “I think last summer, the recruitment we had was brilliant, and we’ll come back even better.
“There’s a lot [of players] in contract still. We’ll learn a lot from this, maybe we’ll have a bit more experience and know-how to get us over the line.”
The Minstermen will take another season of non-league football, but after a season where fans readily admit they have surpassed all expectations, York will be ready to go again.