WITH an inherited squad, no money to make new additions and his predecessor still employed as a player, Viv Busby did not begin his role as York City's caretaker manager in the best of circumstances.

When Busby added that he felt the board had made a mistake in sacking Chris Brass, that nothing much would change and that he did not want a title, there was also an impression that he was somewhat reluctant to be taking charge.

However, despite arriving at Bootham Crescent just two months earlier insisting he did not want anybody's job, he was suddenly assigned with the responsibility of reversing the Minstermen's on-pitch fortunes and, after whatever early reservations he might have had, Busby approached his new role with enthusiasm.

The respective records of City's two managers this season though serve almost as a prophecy of Busby's original statement because very little has changed since Brass' dismissal.

In 18 matches before losing his job because of a 3-1 home defeat to Forest Green Rovers, Brass won four, drew four and lost ten of his league and cup fixtures.

Busby's 14-game tally of four wins, two draws and eight defeats bears quite a similar resemblance.

Equally, the acting manager's efforts to improve the team's potency in front of goal as well as its defensive record both met with results that would be familiar to Brass.

Busby had a marginally better goals for column. Both managers saw their team net 15 times but Busby's achieved their tally in four fewer games.

Brass' side had the slight edge defensively conceding 28 goals in 18 games compared to Busby's 25 in 14.

Probably Busby's biggest legacy will be an improvement in the side's miserable home record.

Under Brass, City won just two of their first nine matches at Bootham Crescent this season - damaging results that included failures to beat bottom three Forest Green, Northwich Victoria and Leigh RMI.

But Busby managed three home victories from seven, beating play-off hopefuls Carlisle United, Crawley Town and Morecambe, while also holding high-flying Halifax to a 1-1 draw.

Inconsistency though has dogged Busby just as it marred Brass' reign, when thumping victories over Stevenage Borough and Dagenham and Redbridge could not lead to a sustained string of results.

Maintaining a decent level of performance from one match to the next will be the chief concern of Busby's successor.

Once Conference safety is ensured, a more attractive style of football, conducive to creating more goalscoring opportunities, should also be a major priority.

Busby's league and cup record

Overall - played 14, won 4, drawn 2, lost 8, goals for 15, goals against 25; home - played 7, won 3, drawn 1, lost 3, goals for 8, goals against 9; away - played 7, won 1, drawn 1, lost 5, goals for 7, goals against 16.

Brass' league and cup record

Overall - played 18, won 4, drawn 4, lost 10, goals for 15, goals against 28; home - played 9, won 2, drawn 3, lost 4, goals for 7, goals against 11; away - played 9, won 2, drawn 1, lost 6, goals for 8, goals against 17.

Updated: 11:14 Thursday, February 10, 2005