JOE Tait will face a fight to win back both the York City captaincy and his place in the team on his return from suspension.

The former Spennymoor centre-back will complete the three-match ban he incurred for a red card against Bradford Park Avenue following tomorrow afternoon’s National League North clash at Altrincham.

Tait was sent off for striking Bradford striker Jake Beesley with his arm, with the latter also going on to open the scoring with the subsequent penalty in his team’s 4-1 victory at Bootham Crescent.

During the 28-year-old defender’s enforced absence, six-goal top-scorer Jordan Burrow has taken over as skipper, while the new on-loan centre-back pairing of Joe Davis and Kennedy Digie helped the team keep their first league clean sheet in nine games during Tuesday night’s 0-0 home draw with Chester.

Digie has not been given permission to play in City’s FA Trophy third qualifying round tie at Kidderminster a week tomorrow, meaning that Tait, with Dan Parslow injured, could be contesting a recall with Hamza Bencherif at Aggborough.

Equally, City chief Sam Collins could choose to field Sean Newton in the heart of the defence and reinstate David Ferguson at left back – a tactic he employed during the 2-1 FA Cup defeat at League Two Swindon.

On Tait’s Minstermen outlook, Collins said: “The two lads who are playing at centre half are doing great, so it’s up to Joe Tait to get back in the team first and foremost, because he’s got competition on his hands with those two.

“Likewise, if Jordan (Burrow) keeps playing like he is, the captaincy will stay the same. I’ve said in the past that, if we need to change captain to get a bit more out of someone, that’s what we’ll do and, while Jordan doesn’t shout or bawl, I like to think that when I played, I was like him.

“He makes sure everybody knows to go about things the right way and sets an example for people to follow.”

Most observers expected previous captain Sean Newton to don the armband when Tait was banned but, explaining his decision not to go down that route, Collins reasoned: “Sean will give you the same whether he is captain or not in terms of the way he goes about the game, trains and flies down the line.

“I want a team full of leaders and, with the way they are playing at the moment, Joe Davis, Kallum Griffiths and Kennedy Digie could all do it and we need that bit of fighting spirit from everybody.”

City's home match with Leamington, which was postponed after the club reached the first round of the FA Cup, has been rearranged for Tuesday, December 4, kick-off 7.45pm.