Here we go again

Followers of York Wasps have dug deep - into their pockets and their emotional resources - to get the club this far.

However, there are still a couple of hurdles to overcome before that reward of re-admittance to the Rugby Football League can be achieved.

Therefore, the more people that go to tomorrow's public meeting (Huntington Stadium, 2pm), and the more voices that are heard, and the more money that comes in because of it, the better.

And, once again - just as it was on Sunday, March 24 when the first crisis meeting was held - there is the threat that without such wonderful support, the coffin lid might begin to close on the club.

Therefore, the call once again goes out to all fans to get down to the stadium and take with you whoever you can and whatever sponsorship or fundraising opportunities you can think of.

Apart from anything else, the working party, who have slogged their guts out, need to explain the situation to fans and get their approval to try to clear those final hurdles.

The working party have always said they as individuals are fans working with the fans for the fans.

The situation they are in appears complicated but they are staying on the level by holding this meeting and waiting to decide which way to go until the fans give them the nod.

To put it simply, a whole load of supporters need to go to the meeting tomorrow to give opinions, ideas, funds and, perhaps most importantly, the go-ahead to the working party.

WASPS supporters must be getting used to deadlines by now.

The May 10 D-day will effectively be the third deadline set by the RFL regarding the immediate future of the Wasps.

The first was March 26, the date the old board was given to find a buyer before the RFL officially accepted the club's resignation from the league.

Then, when that deadline passed, the fans launched the bid to resurrect the club and were given until May 1 to submit the business plan to resume playing in June.

That deadline, though met, has effectively been extended to May 10 for a complete plan to be endorsed by the RFL.

May 10, however, appears to be the ultimate deadline.

The RFL have said they would need three weeks before the resumption of the NFP season on June 2 to restructure the league should Wasps not get back in.

They need that time as they can not simply wipe the Wasps' results from the records due to the uneven league format whereby teams play some teams twice and others once.

Therefore, if this deadline is not met it would be the end of York Wasps, at least for this year and potentially for ever.

FOLLOWING on from that point, the RFL were criticised by some for beginning the season with that strange league format. However, it might yet prove a blessing for the Wasps.

Had the RFL plumped for a simple format of every team playing each other home and away, then there would have been no way back for the Wasps this year after the league accepted the club's resignation.

Basically, there would have been no mid-season National League Cup, which the Wasps have been able to pull out of in order to buy time.

Furthermore, the fact the RFL would have to restructure the league should the Wasps not return has perhaps made them more inclined to help as much as they can.

You see, there are unlikely to be many people at RFL HQ looking forward to the complexities of drawing up a revised fixture programme with one less team, given its already uneven format.

THE Wasps' working party are requesting that all pledges promised be realised as soon as possible.

At last count, the money pledged was nearing £20,000, a massive effort, but the club now need to turn that figure on paper into actual funds.

Many people have forwarded cash and cheques but some fans have yet to send in the money to match their pledge.

Cheques and pledges should be forwarded to Hague & Dixon Solicitors, Bank House, 1 The Square, Stamford Bridge, York, YO41 1AG. Pledge forms are on the Evening Press website (www.thisisyork.co.uk and follow the Wasps link).

Buzzing all around Edinburgh

IF the people of Scotland weren't aware of "Keep Wasps Buzzing" campaign, they will be now - following the exploits of Wasps fans who went to the Challenge Cup final in Edinburgh last Saturday.

Indeed all rugby league who went to Murrayfield would have been reminded of York's plight after the Wasps Supporters' Club turned their annual jaunt to the Cup final into a quest to up the profile of the campaign.

For a start, fans Louise Ince and Mark Hurst forfeited their seats throughout the first half to stand holding a massive "Keep Wasps Buzzing" banner.

They managed to find a prime spot near the St Helens bench - and only just missed out on national television coverage when cameras focusing on the dug-out caught a glimpse of the banner.

"We were gutted the TV cameras didn't pick it up clearly, but everybody in the stadium saw it," said Louise, who was among the York fans who stayed in Edinburgh for the weekend as part of the club trip.

"People on the opposite side said they could read it clearly so it must have been noticed."

This banner was also paraded through the streets of Edinburgh before and after the final, while a hard-sell of York RL badges added quite a few quid to campaign funds.

"We had a lot of good feedback," said Louise. "Everybody who read the banner said to keep fighting.

"Naturally we visited a few watering-holes on our way to and from the stadium and basically walked the length of Edinburgh with this banner."

Apparently the Saints fans joked how hard it must be to be a Wasps fan. However, Louise was able to get her own back - jokingly - at the final hooter as Wigan won 21-12.

"I was told I was a true RL supporter to wear a York shirt. We got some stick but it was all good fun and there was a lot of support for us," she said.

MESSAGES of goodwill from other clubs - both Northern Ford Premiership and Super League - have continued to flood into website message-boards.

Rival fans have also promised to send bus-loads to the WaspAid 2002 music event at the Barbican on June 1.

"Best wishes from all at Barrow," writes Jan, for example. "Good luck everyone," says Tommo of Workington.

And Ali Hawk G, a Hunslet-based imitation of Ali G, writes: "whun is yous and your wicked crew gonna start rukin again?

"Me and me boys from Unslet ope it is soon coz yous is not in da house. Ope you is bak to maximum strengf soon."

Respec.

All Blacks lads leg it for Wasps

THE coffers in the Keep Wasps Buzzing campaign fund were boosted this week thanks to members of New Earswick All Blacks under-11s.

Two youngsters from the team - Joe Lancaster and Adam Caddie - had stood up at the first-ever Wasps crisis meeting and offered to do a sponsored run.

And they stayed good to their word as they were joined by 20 youngsters to complete the run from their own ground in New Earswick to the Wasps' Huntington Stadium home.

They were joined by several parents and coaches in doing the distance and, at the start of the run, by Wasps stars Darren Crake and Leigh Deakin.

No less than £250 was raised on the night alone, with more money still coming in.

The final figure of cash raised by the lads is not yet known.

Updated: 10:33 Saturday, May 04, 2002