Bootham Crescent is not opening to the public this weekend.
It means the York City Knights Coral Challenge Cup clash with Rochdale Hornets, due to take place at the ground tomorrow, has instead been switched to the Millennium Stadium, Post Office Road, Featherstone.
In a statement today (Saturday), the Knights wrote:
The club has been informed this morning via York City Football Club that the availability of the Bootham Crescent stadium facility has been cancelled.
The Knights would like to sincerely apologise to our sponsors and fans of both York and Rochdale, we appreciate the inconvenience that this development may cause, but thank you for your continued support.
The Knights would also like to place on record our thanks to Andy Mazey & the Rochdale club, the RFL and Featherstone Rovers for their rapid cooperation.
Health concerns
Today’s York City FC game against Altrincham was postponed owing to several people at both clubs self-isolating with coronavirus symptoms.
And safety concerns were why the club had said the stadium was unavailable, a YCFC spokesperson told YorkMix. They said:
“As a precautionary measure, we took the decision not to host any fixtures at Bootham Crescent this weekend.
“The health of supporters, staff and players from both football and rugby was the basis of our decision.”