MIKEY'S THE GRAND OL' DUKE OF YORK

MIKEY Morton grew up in York, which is just as well. Without emotional those ties, the man who saved the Minstermen from an instant return to National League North might well have walked away.

- CHRIS DUNLAVY

When the 39-year-old arrived at the LNER Stadium in February, he was the third boss of an increasingly chaotic season.

John Askey, the architect of last season's promotion and a hugely popular figure on the terraces, was mystifyingly sacked in November having been asked to collect his own P45 from the printer. Successor David Webb lasted 69 days.

Stung by the criticism of dismayed supporters, owner Glen Henderson then offered to sell his 51 per cent stake in the club.

He would later claim to have spoken rashly whilst suffering from Covid-19 but the Supporters Trust-who own the other 49 per cent accepted the offer and entered an exclusivity agreement that gave them until April to rustle up the cash.

They failed, and whilst Henderson has publicly committed to providing financial support, his shares are now for sale on the open market.

Against this backdrop, Morton somehow cajoled a bloated and confidence-shorn squad to survival, a 2-2 draw with Aldershot on the penultimate weekend ensuring another season in the top flight.

"I could write a book on what happened in the last few months," laughs Morton, who has over 20 years experience as a coach. at Leeds United and Manchester City.

"My own experiences, everything going on around the club. Because there wasn't just one issue, there were several. Every week, you felt like you were putting one fire out only to find another had been lit.

"I've got good mentors in the game who I can call on for advice but even they were like 'Wow, I don't know how you deal with that'.

"There were times when I questioned myself. I left a perfectly good job at Leeds United and walked straight in here. Was that the right thing to do? It did get to a point where I wanted to get up and leave.

"What helped was speaking to my wife, my family and my close mates. They pointed out that players didn't have anyone at the club who could help.