YORK City Knights seem to be following in the footsteps of one of the NRL's recent success stories.

The New Zealand Warriors, set up in the mid-1990s as Auckland Warriors to compete as the Kiwi side in Australia's National Rugby League, were close to bankruptcy in 2000 but thereafter rose so rapidly they reached last year's Grand Final.

And similarities between the rise of the Warriors and the pattern at Huntington Stadium have been noted by Knights fan and management team member Eric Deighton, who recently embarked on a fact-finding mission at the Kiwi club.

Deighton travelled to New Zealand for a birthday bash for his daughter, Hannah, who is living there, and took the opportunity to visit the Warriors and investigate the possibility of establishing links.

He wanted to see how the Warriors had become one of the forces in the NRL, so the Knights could adopt any ideas to help them achieve their own lofty ambitions.

He arranged the visit in advance via Warriors assistant-coach Tony Kemp, who was on the staff at Wakefied while Knights chief executive Steve Ferres was there.

"They were so welcoming," said Deighton. "They were fantastic people. It was a great visit, and one of the biggest lessons I learnt was that we're not doing much wrong as we are."

The Warriors remain a relatively new club, especially in their 'New Zealand' guise, which was introduced after they were taken over in 2000.

"They have totally restructured the club, with no board of directors, just four dedicated owners and a strong management team, which consists of highly motivated, loyal people," said Deighton.

"The Warriors were in a similar position to us not too long ago and look where they are now," he said.

"The thing we've built up to now - by either accident or design - is following their example in a lot of areas."

Deighton met ex-Parra-matta player Paul Donkin, the Warriors' football development manager. "He told me about the 'Pathway', a superb system of producing top class players on a rolling ten-year plan. It depends on fantastic links to the amateur clubs, backed by rugby and local authorities. It means the coaches can plan for the next five years.

"They have an advantage in that rugby is the dominant sport and they have access to almost all the talent in New Zealand. Other clubs are poaching now, but they are building a playing environment the players can't turn down. We are trying to make parallels with York."

Deighton learned about the Warriors' sponsorship and team spirit. "They build relationships with sponsors which makes them want to keep coming back. They are the grass-roots - again there are similarities with us," he said.

"The players were unaffected by their fame and were very approachable. They are cared for and developed in the best environment so they want to stay. It feels like you are in the middle of a happy family unit - again similarities."

He added: "I believe the visit was a success. We've made the first steps to establishing links and we've learned a lot about sponsorship and team development. Moreover, we've learned we're on the same track to the big time as the Warriors.

"What Roger Dixon, John Guildford, Steve Ferres and the Knights management team are building is a business plan-led club with its roots in the community, which sponsors, management, players and fans feel proud to be associated with."

TICKETS are still selling well for the Race Knight being staged by fans at Hun-tington Stadium on Friday.

The bash starts at 7.30pm and, due to the success of the first 'Race Knight', is ticket-only.

Tickets, priced £4 to include a pie and peas supper, are available from the club office on 01904 656105.

A LIMITED number of places remain in the City Knights Summer Roadshow organised in partnership with City Of York Council.

The roadshow comprises training sessions for boys and girls of all abilities, aged eight to 12. Tickets are £5 each and can be booked through the Knights on 01904 656105.

Sessions will be held from 10am to 3pm on Thursday, July 24 at Huntington Stadium; July 31 at York Acorn; August 7 at New Earswick All Blacks; and August 14 at Heworth ARLC.

Updated: 10:56 Saturday, July 19, 2003