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"Tough decision" but Ray swayed by loyalty

27/ 6/2007

RAY Mathias has revealed that his sense of loyalty to Paul Ince convinced him to leave Macclesfield Town.

Ince's assistant during his eight months at the Moss Rose would surely have been the fans' choice to succeed Ince at the helm, but the experienced Mathias, along with fitness coach Duncan Russell, decided to join the ex-England star at the Dons' new Stadium:MK home.

The former Wigan Athletic, Tranmere Rovers and Chester City manager admits there was a large part of him that wanted to stay with the Silkmen, but said: "Paul wanted me to go with him and as he was the man that brought me back into football, I felt I had to be honourable to him.

"I'm a loyal person and I felt I had to repay what he showed me in bringing me to Macclesfield.

"If things had been different, maybe I would have stayed on. It's sad to be going, but I'll look forward to coming back to the Moss Rose in a few weeks."

When it became apparent that Ince was to end his first management job for the move south, Mathias, who was often regarded as the vital component in the turnaround, was favourite to take over the Macc hotseat.

Mathias was the figure coaching on the sidelines during games' opening 45 minutes while the high-profile Ince watched from the stands.

However, his invaluable assistance to Ince has once again been proven, as he follows his gaffer to Milton Keynes.

As Ince, Mathias and the Dons embark on their five-year plan to reach the Premiership, Mathias says he will have fond memories of his all-too-brief stay at the Moss Rose.

"It was a really tough decision to leave, especially as I had a very happy time here. The players, crowds and club have all been superb, I think we had a great relationship with the fans," he added.

"But sometimes a new challenge and a new adventure can be very appealing, and it's something we wanted to take on. We came to Macclesfield to do a job and we did what we set out to achieve.

"It's never nice to leave clubs where you've had a great time, but after we fulfilled our aim of keeping Macclesfield Town in the Football League, hopefully the rapport we enjoyed with the fans will still be there."