 Smith left to take over at Sunderland in May 1987 , and former Blackburn Rovers manager Bobby Saxton was appointed in June . Only two players were under contract at the time of Saxton 's arrival ; his hastily arranged squad struggled from the start of 1987 – 88 , and only won their first match in late @-@ October 1987 . York were bottom of the table for most of the season , and were relegated after finishing in twenty @-@ third place . The season was statistically the club 's worst in the Football League , with the fewest wins ( eight ) , most defeats ( twenty @-@ nine ) and the fewest points since the three points for a win system was introduced ( thirty @-@ three ) . York made a poor start to 1988 – 89 , and Saxton resigned with the club bottom of the Fourth Division in mid @-@ September 1988 . Swallow took over on a caretaker basis before the former Hartlepool United manager John Bird was appointed in October 1988 . York 's away form improved in the second half of the season , and in the last week they had a slim chance of reaching the play @-@ offs . They missed out on a play @-@ off place and finished the season in eleventh place . A record loss of £ 190 @,@ 000 was posted for the season , but the club carried no overdraft because of interest @-@ free loans from directors and a £ 100 @,@ 000 share issue . York started 1989 – 90 strongly and were in third place by mid @-@ December 1989 . Successive home defeats in late @-@ December 1989 marked the start of a decline that saw them finish the season thirteenth in the table . 
