Leeds Sport
Bett didn't take long to sting former club Avenue
4:15pm Friday 3rd September 2010
Farsley boss Neil Parsley released Mark Bett just in time for him to play a part in the downfall of his former club Bradford Park Avenue but he insists it was pure coincidence.
Former Avenue player, coach and then manager Phil Sharpe is now in charge at Ossett Town and he snapped Bett up.
That was last Monday morning, and Bett netted the only goal in a tense West Yorkshire derby at Horsfall Stadium the same afternoon.
Parsley said: “It was all down to finances, and by that I don’t mean he would be getting more for playing at Ossett. Bettsy isn’t like that - he wouldn’t move just for an extra few quid somewhere else.
“It was the resources available to me as Farsley manager that dictated the move. I have to stick within the budget that the club has made available to me, and even though that is a very generous budget for the league we are in, a line has to drawn somewhere.
“I didn’t want to lose Bettsy and he told me that he didn’t want to go - he wanted to stay and play for the club. I looked at my squad and decided it was a bit top heavy with forwards.
“It was a choice between Bettsy or Amjad Iqbal, and I had to go with Ammers because I believe he is the best centre back - not just in our league but from the Conference down.
“That was the scenario I was faced with, and if I had known earlier in the pre-season that Bettsy would be with us I may not have pursued other targets.
"But the fact is that we had a lot of forwards in the squad before Bettsy joined us late on in the preparations for the season.
“The bottom line is that I sacrificed one player to get another one. I hope time will prove that decision to be a sound judgement in terms of balancing the squad.”
Sharpe was delighted to reunite with his former Avenue striker.
Following last Monday’s game, he said: “I had set us up not to lose, so to win was the icing on the cake and I don’t mean that just because it’s my former club.
“Bettsy came off the bench to get the goal but that’s what he does for you and why I got him in. I had been chasing him for five weeks but Neil at Farsley didn’t want to let him go - you can see why.”