YORK City have terminated the contracts of manager Gary Mills and his assistant Darren Caskey with immediate effect.

The Minstermen were knocked out of the FA Cup at eighth-tier South Shields following a 3-2 defeat this afternoon with a club statement reporting that the decision had been based on the club’s performances and results both last season in the National League and this term in National League North.

City chairman and club owner Jason McGill said: “It is never an easy decision to sack a manager but the club needs to take this action based on the evidence of performances and results over the course of the last 12 months. Having kept faith with Gary Mills in the wake of relegation last season, we are now 12 games into the new campaign and the current league position is unacceptable.

“Despite relegation, we have maintained our status as a full-time club. Since his appointment last October, the manager has received our full backing in his plans to overhaul the squad with one of the biggest spending budgets in this division.

"Unfortunately, the board does not feel that the aim of winning promotion this season is going to be achieved without this change.”

The Minstermen are now in the process of finalising a new management structure with more details to be released in due course.