RELEGATION-DOOMED Grays Athletic will be bidding for their first victory in 17 matches when York City arrive at the Recreation Ground tonight.

Julian Dicks’ men enjoyed their last win back in November, beating Tamworth 1-0.

That triumph also represents Grays’ only success in 26 fixtures – a sequence that stretches back six months to the end of September.

Having taken maximum points from just three of their 37 Blue Square matches this season and also fallen at the first hurdle in the FA Cup and FA Trophy, Cambridge United (2-0) and Eastbourne (1-0) are the only other sides the Essex outfit have beaten this season.

All three victories came on home soil but Grays have taken just one point from a possible 24 during the last eight games in front of their own fans, scoring only three times during that run.

Two-time FA Trophy winners Grays are 16 points from safety, having scored 30 goals and conceded 77 – the division’s worst tallies on both counts.

Jamie Slabber is still the club’s leading marksman on four goals despite leaving for Woking in November.

Grays’ cause has also not been helped by their customary high turnover of players with 63 having been used by Dicks so far during 2009/10.

Only four – Kenny Davis, Gavin Hoyte, Richard Graham and Cameron Mawer – have started more than 20 games.

Mawer has since joined Weymouth and Hoyte is currently sidelined with a broken toe.

Striker Wayne Gray also remains doubtful for this evening’s game and former Bradford City and Rotherham winger Alex Rhodes was crocked during Saturday’s 3-0 defeat at Cambridge.

But captain Harlee Dean is available again after serving a two-match suspension.

The 18-year-old, on-loan midfielder is expected to go straight back into Athletic’s starting XI.

Despite his side’s apparently helpless league position, Dicks is refusing to accept relegation is inevitable.

Following the Cambridge loss, the former West Ham and Liverpool full-back said: “It’s going to be tough for us, we know that but it’s not impossible.

“I keep reading that I’m preparing for Blue Square South but I didn’t say that. We have to keep going and try to get out of it.”

Team (probable): Garner, Davis, Reynolds, Bunce, Clarey, Graham, Cissoko, Dean, Harvey, Guy, Bajowa.


Match facts

In four previous Conference visits to Grays, York City have won once and drawn twice.

The victory was in 2007/8, when Onome Sodje and Stuart Elliott scored in a 2-0 success and City finished the game with nine men, having Mark Robinson and Richard Brodie sent off.

Last term, City suffered their first defeat on this ground when they went down 1-0.

The line-up on April 4, 2009, was: Ingham, Pejic, McGurk, Parslow, Robinson, Purkiss (Boyes), Rusk, Mackin (Greaves), McWilliams (Russell), Sodje, Brown.

It happened on March 30

1955: City’s great FA Cup run ended when they lost 2-0 to Newcastle United in a semi-final replay at Roker Park in front of 58,239. The side that day was: Forgan, Phillips, Howe, Brown, Stewart, Spence, Hughes, Bottom, Wilkinson, Storey, Fenton.

1956: In a Third Division North Good Friday fixture at Bootham Crescent, a crowd of 13,476 saw City defeat Chesterfield 3-1 with Clive Colbridge (2) and Arthur Bottom on target. City were just above mid-table.

1959: Peter Wragg and Norman Wilkinson scored in a 2-2 draw at Workington and City were in the top four of Division Four.

1968: A 5-1 home win over Port Vale with Ted MacDougall hitting a hat-trick. The attendance was 5,153 and City were 15th in the Fourth Division.

1974: A 3-0 home win over Brighton & Hove Albion, managed by Brian Clough, with Chris Jones (2) and Phil Burrows on the scoresheet. The attendance was 7,252 and City were second in the Third Division (League One).

1976: A Roker Park crowd of 33,462 saw top of Division Two (Championship) Sunderland narrowly beat bottom of the table City 1-0.

1996: Gary Bull hit a hat-trick – City’s last in the Football League – in a 3 -2 win at Wrexham and City were 19th in the Second Division (League One).

Compiled by David Batters