A "long-running dispute" between League One rugby club York City Knights Chair John Guildford
and the local authority took a "dramatic twist on Tuesday when the
council finally ruled out a deal with the owner of the League One club," according to the PA. The Knights left their home at Huntington Stadium at the end of
the '14 season and "were due to share Bootham Crescent with the city's
football team until a new community stadium, being built by the council
to house both professional clubs, is completed in two years' time." However, talks between Guildford and the council on a short-term
lease "broke down before Christmas and Sarah Tanburn, the council's
interim director for city and environmental services, said they would
not be resumed." Tanburn said in a statement, "We share fans', players' and staff's disappointment and
frustration that an agreement could not be reached with Mr. Guildford
during the last two years." Tanburn insists the council "remains committed to the success of
professional rugby league in the city and will press ahead with the nine
long-term partners in the stadium project." Guildford said that he would be "seeking legal
advice and claimed there was a conspiracy to force him to hand over
ownership of York City Knights to York City Football Club" (PA, 1/6).