YORK City legend Iain Dunn has backed the Minstermen in their push for promotion, with the iconic winger reviewing the season so far.

After only surviving on the final day of the 2023/24 season by one point, despite a 1-0 defeat to Solihull Moors, York confirmed their spot in the National League under manager Adam Hinshelwood, who would be allowed to build his own squad over the Summer.

Since that day, City have gone from strength to strength, with Hinshelwood’s side well within the promotion conversation now that the halfway stage of the campaign has passed.

A 0-0 draw between Barnet and Forest Green Rovers on Tuesday evening meant that the Minstermen dropped to second with two games in hand on Forest Green, but should they be victorious in both fixtures, they could garner a five point lead at the top of the fifth tier.

Dunn looked back on the progression the club has made under Hinshelwood this season, with the York stalwart believing that the stability provided by joint owners Matt and Julie-Anne Uggla to be a driving factor behind the success of the campaign so far.

“I think when we came into the season, baring in mind that we stayed up by just one point last year, I think going into this season there was probably a lot of people just hoping that we would stay up,” Dunn explained to the Press.

“I think that we had got our heads around that Adam Hinshelwood and his team were the people to lead the club forward, but at the start of the season we certainly just wanted to stay up again.

“To build a team and build a squad that was going to be competitive over the next few seasons. As it turned out, we got off to a really good start and I think that the manager, the board and the owners have signed some really good players, some really good technical footballers and good people.

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“Adam keeps telling us that he wants good people at the club and when we speak to the players that he’s signed, they all seem like really good lads. They are all committed to the cause and are invested in his project.

“The backing from the club that Adam has been given from the owners has given us some real stability, and that’s a great environment for everybody to work in.

“I think that as the season progresses, and we’re more than halfway through the season now, going from a let’s not get relegated and let’s stay in the league, there has to be genuine optimism now that the least we should be aiming for is the play-offs.

“That’s not to put pressure on the players, they’ve done this themselves and as a team, they have managed to get themselves into a position where they can challenge.

“Looking at it, there’s nobody who has really outplayed us, Forest Green for maybe about 30 minutes at the end of that game looked good, but they’re on a wobble a little bit, Barnet aren’t winning consistently.

“You just get the feeling that if we can carry on doing what we’re doing and stay strong, this team come the end of the season will have a real mouthpiece for who goes up and who goes into the play-offs.”

York have shown an unfathomable improvement from their performances of last season, with City now battling at an opposite end of the table than they did last campaign.

Dunn feels that Hinshelwood’s attitude has rubbed off on the players, and praised the impact of the Summer signings that the management team and board brought in.

Dunn continued: “The vital signings that the manager has made, all the players that he signed in the Summer have all had an impact.

“I also think that the stability that the owners have given the club, they’ve stuck by their manager and they chose him.

Iain Dunn believes that stability has been key in York City's season so far, praising Matt Uggla (left) and Adam Hinshelwood (right). (Image: Tom Poole) “It might have been easy at one point at the end of last season to have held their hands up and said that they made a mistake, but they didn’t.

“They stuck by their manager, they were convinced that he was the right man for the job and my word, I think that if you spoke to any City fan today, they would be happy that the owners stuck by their manager and gave the manager and his team a chance to improve upon what they inherited.

“They inherited a team that was really struggling, it seemed to lack character.

“I think that Adam Hinshelwood and his team have managed to instil their character on the team and on the players that were already here, but also those big signings that they have made have proven to be big.

“I just think that the attitude around the club is really positive, everyone seems to be aiming in the right direction and the work rate, and the ability, of the players that Adam has at his disposal are why we’re up near the top of the table.

“There’s still a long way to go and anything can happen, but you just don’t see this team dropping off, even when they have an upset or get beat.

“You always feel that they’ll bounce back, or if they don’t then you have that feeling that they have got it within them to bounce back. Every good team has a little bit of a wobble at some point, and it’s how you react to that wobble.

“Every time that City has had a wobble, they’ve reacted in a really positive manner, and that’s because of the attitude.

“They work hard for each other, they’re all invested in the project and if they can keep it up until the end of the season, there’s absolutely no reason why they can’t a real say in those play-offs.

“Dreamers can dream, we can dream and the players will.

“If we can win the games in hand, then suddenly we’re the team that everybody is chasing down and you just never know in this league how things will materialise.

“I don’t want to put pressure on them because even now, you’d probably say let’s get in those play-offs.

“I think that Matt Uggla said it as well, it isn’t about this season, it would be a massive bonus if we went up, but this season is about building the football club back up from what was a pretty dire period in its history.”

Now that York are in this position, there is a real belief growing that this season could be the year that the club make their return to the Football League.

Iain Dunn hailed the attitude of this group of York City players. (Image: Tom Poole) Dunn detailed on what it might take for the squad to gain promotion this season, and admitted that he didn’t feel as if anything needed to change, with the BBC York summariser being confident that the attitude will be a key factor.

“I just think that we need to keep the attitude right.

“There’s a good enough squad there, it’s proven that it’s good enough.

“We’re over the halfway period and this squad has got us to where we are, they’ve just signed a new striker which will hopefully be a benefit to the club. You never know, he’s a young lad so you’ve got to give him time as well.

“Like Matt Uggla said, we’re building a squad for the future, if it works now as well then that’s a bonus.

“I’m not sure if there is much they need to do, if they can keep themselves fit with the new signing coming in and you know that if they do need to dip into the market or the loan market, then the manager will more than likely get the backing of the owners.

“But then again, why upset the apple cart when he’s got a really good squad of players that are all invested in how he wants them to play and they’re playing well.

“Sometimes you don’t need to change things massively to cement that position, I think that this team is in an upwards trajectory.”