Out! Gary Mills sacked as York City manager after cup exit

Gone… Gary Mills. Photograph: York City FC
30 Sep 2017 @ 8.56 pm
| Sport

Gary Mills has been sacked by York City for the second time.

The football club terminated the contracts of the manager and his assistant Darren Caskey with immediate effect on Saturday night (September 30).

It followed City being dumped out of the FA Cup by South Shields – a team two divisions below them.

This result followed a lacklustre start to City’s first ever campaign in National League North, which has left them in seventh place after 12 games, 11 points behind the leaders Harrogate Town.

Many of the fans had demanded that City, with one of the largest budgets for players in this lowly league, go for automatic promotion.

City said their decision to sack Mills is based on the club’s performances and results both last season in the National League and this season in National League North.

Chairman and 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.

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

Rollercoaster ride

Mills has won trophies with City – but not this season. Photograph: York City FC / Action Images

Mills, who previously managed the club between 2010-2013, was re-appointed as manager in October 2016. The club has won 13 out of 43 league games since his return to Bootham Crescent.

A statement by York City said: “The club is now in the process of finalising a new management structure and more details will be released in due course.

“There will be no further comment from the club at this stage.”

Mills was the fans hero after guiding York City to FA Trophy victory at Wembley in 2012, followed a week later by play-off victory against Luton Town at the national stadium. That finally ended eight-years of non-league football at Bootham Crescent.

But on his reappointment he failed to keep City in the Conference, as the club slid to a new low.

Another FA Trophy victory followed this May, but the high hopes coming into this season have gradually diminished.

And today’s 3-2 defeat by South Shields was another historic low. They were the first team to knock York out of FA Cup as early as the third qualifying round in 92 years.

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