I HAVE been following, with some interest, the debate on how best to repair or replace the unsightly remnants of the Parliament Street fountain.

I was rather intrigued to see a letter (The Press, April 22) from Ken Thorpe suggesting that, if York City avoid relegation this season, a statue of Gary Mills might be an appropriate replacement.

A common criticism of our city is that it is slowly descending into nothing more than a destination for dispensing alcohol to voracious and often unwanted visitors; and that there is an urgent need to add a more discerning antidote into that mix.

If, and as I write “if” rather outranks “when” on City’s see-saw of likely success, this plan does come to fruition and Parliament Street is to be graced by a statue of Gary Mills, then an opportunity to attract that “discerning antidote” suddenly exists.

A festival of celebration, every year, where hundreds of locals would line up under the clock at Marks & Spencers, and aimlessly aim footballs at the statue in the forlorn hope that one or two of them would bounce off the head and land in an “onion net” erected beyond and behind the statue.

As a City fan and occasional attendee, I sincerely hope we survive but sadly, in my opinion, the more likely result of the contest between good luck and good management is going the way of “luck”.

Richard Bowen, York