Boro travel to York

Middlesbrough are to travel to York City for a benefit game for long-serving centre-back and Boro fan David McGurk.

The 29-year-old defender has spent the last eight seasons at Bootham Crescent and helped the club finally reclaim their Football League status after a similar length of absence only last month.

Boro have already promised to send a strong selection of players for the testimonial game for the Middlesbrough-born ex-Darlington defender on Saturday 4th August.

"I'm delighted they will be coming for my benefit game," McGurk told The York Press. "My parents' house backs on to the old training ground in Hutton Road, so I used to watch them train out of my back window from as young as I can remember and then started going to games from about the age of five.

"I'll have a load of family and friends coming down," he added. "My aunty started taking me to Ayresome Park when I was young before the move to the Riverside where I went with my parents and mates."

Boro's other pre-season dates currently include games at Falkirk (22nd July), Hartlepool United (31st July), Carlisle United (3rd August) and Scunthorpe United (8th August).

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