• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

News and entertainment worth sharing – York and North Yorkshire

  • News
  • Radio
  • Vouchers
  • WIN
  • More
    • Tickets
    • Lifestyle
    • Advertise
    • About
    • Contact

Steve Watson helped beat Barcelona in the Champions League. But Saturday is his ‘biggest game’

Fri 24 Jul

He's ready… Steve Watson, manager of York City. Photograph: York City FC

Fri 24 Jul 2020  @ 12:55pm
YorkMix
Sport

Steve Watson is preparing for the ‘biggest game’ of his career when they run out for their play-off showdown with Altrincham.

The 46-year-old tasted Champions League football – he was part of the Newcastle side which famously beat Barcelona 3-2 in September 1997 – and appeared in an FA Cup final during his playing days, which also took him to Aston Villa, Everton, West Brom and Sheffield Wednesday.

However, he insists Saturday’s post-lockdown National League North semi-final showdown is as important as anything he has experienced in the past as he makes his way as a manager.

Steve said: “This is my most important game, absolutely, I’ve said that to the players. The next chapter in my life and career is to be the most successful manager possible for me, and this is without a doubt the biggest day of my career as well.

“I’ve said to the players, even the players who have been promoted, it has to be the same for you because to have a promotion on your CV, your futures, your next contract, everything depends on it.”

‘This is absolutely huge’

“I know it’s not life and death compared to some things that have gone on – and always try to make a point of saying that because the world has changed completely,” Steve said.

“Thousands have lost lives, thousands have lost jobs, thousands have lost businesses.

“But in football terms, my career terms and the players’, this is huge, absolutely huge, and for the fans and the club.”

How to watch the match live

You can livestream the match thanks to a partnership with BT Sport and Sportradar.

VNL Play-Off Passes come in four individual and multi-match packages.

Single game passes are available from £5.99, while access to both Promotion Finals costs £9.99.  

To access every match live and on demand, the full Play-Off Pass is priced at £14.99.

Viewers will be able to access the streaming platform via web, mobile devices and tablets, in addition to connected TVs via Chromecast.

Go to the streaming platform here

York sat at the top of the table the day the league programme was suspended as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, but crucially had played two games more than second-placed King’s Lynn.

The Minstermen, who have spent the last three seasons in National League North after back-to-back relegations, lobbied for the top two to be promoted automatically after clubs voted to end the season, but ultimately had to make do with a play-off semi-final berth after being leapfrogged by their closest rivals on the basis of points-per-game.

Finish the job

Let’s hope we see Steve doing this on Saturday. Photograph © Ian Parker / Ice Photography

Watson and his players swiftly put their disappointment to one side as they returned to prepare for the game, the winners of which will face either his former club Gateshead or Boston in the final, and their sole focus after a 20-week lay-off is taking a step back towards the Football League.

He said: “When I came to the club, my goal was to immediately try to turn it around. To all intents and purposes, we still consider ourselves to have finished at the top of the league.

“Obviously points-per-game has made us finish second, but still from where we have been for four years to where we are now, whatever happens the club is certainly going back in the right direction and where a club like York and the fans deserve it to be.

“We just want to finish the job off, we desperately want to finish the job off.”


Trending »


Primary Sidebar

Footer

Contact us

General
01904 375 029

Studio/competitions
01904 375 030

Email YorkMix »

5-6 King's Court
Shambles
York  YO1 7LD

Listen to us

You can listen to YorkMix Radio using your DAB+ radio, Alexa or Google smart speaker, or online using the links below.

Click here to listen to YorkMix Radio »

Download the app from Google Play store
Download the app from Apple App store
About us

YorkMix is a trading name of
York Sound Ltd

Registered in England
Company no: 12831940
VAT no: GB289462452

YorkMix Radio public file

  • About
  • Public file
  • Privacy policy
  • Corrections & complaints
  • Contact

Copyright © 2025 YorkMix