By Brian Bennett

Gary Ormston said he got emotional when his footballing career came to an end at Bradford Park Avenue’s Horsfall Community Stadium on Saturday.

The Ashington defender looked back on the game which the Colliers won with a goal by Josh Gilchrist and said afterwards: “The football was quite decent and we played all right. It’s a 4G pitch which is a good surface and I know we’ve been brushing relegation but we proved that we can hold our own at this level.”

On the decision to hang up his boots, Ormston said: “Nick (Gray) and Liam (McIvor) have been brilliant with me since I told them I was retiring. There’s a lot of people say there shouldn’t be a lot of sentiment in football – but actually there is and people play with a bit of sentiment. Nick told me that after 60-65 minutes I was going to come off and as the time got nearer, it started to get a bit more emotional for me. Early in the second half, I had an opportunity and I desperately wanted to score. I knew where my family were and I think if that had gone in, I would have just ran off the pitch there and then!”

The Ashington players and management formed a Guard of Honour for Ormston before he left the pitch and he added: “I didn’t realise they were going to do the Guard of Honour. I wanted to thank the fans who were great when I went off and I was tearing up. Former chairman Brian Shotton and my wife Gemma came over with a few others and it was teary. Brian said to me “It feels like you have been with us for ten years not a year and a half” which is quite a statement and it will probably stick with me.”

He continued: “I have made so many friends and this is what football is about. I said in the dressing room ‘I know it’s been a tough season but stick with football because it opens up so many doors and so many avenues.’ I’m quite a humble person and not one for the limelight but my wife Gemma told me ‘Celebrate a good career. You have touched so many people’s lives so go and embrace it.’