Tranmere’s effort swayed special Kay

Jul 12 2007 by Nick Hilton, Liverpool Daily Post

ANTONY KAY wasn’t short of suitors when the time came to make the first move of his career in professional football.

One club was more persistent and determined than the rest however – and that was enough to persuade the 24-year-old midfielder turned defender to join Tranmere Rovers this summer.

Kay had been with Barnsley since his schooldays, progressing through the junior and youth ranks to make close to 200 first team appearances for the Tykes.

But after winning promotion from League One via the playoffs in 2005/06 and spending last season in the Championship, Barnsley and Kay reached a parting of the ways in May.

Kay said: “There were other people interested in me when I left Barnsley but Tranmere were the club that really wanted me.

“They made a lot of effort to sign me. When I spoke to the gaffer, Ronnie Moore, that just made up my mind for me.

“Being from Barnsley I knew of the gaffer from his time at Rotherham. He is respected as a manager for all the success he had there.”

Kay agreed terms with Tranmere and signed at the start of this month.

He is part of the strengthening of Tranmere’s defensive resources that Moore identified as a priority. A shortage of options at the back last season ultimately cost the team dear.

Centre-back Ben Chorley, recruited from MK Dons, quickly followed Kay into Prenton Park this month.

The new signings mean Rovers should go into the League One campaign with four centre backs to choose from: Kay, Chorley, Ian Goodison and Shane Sherriff.

Kay may come to be regarded as the most natural ball player among the quartet.

Moore said: “Antony is a natural footballer. I was looking at him in training the other day and he has tremendous feet and natural ability.”

Kay is comfortable and confident on the ball partly because he spent most of the developing years of his career as a central midfielder.

He explained: “I came up through the ranks and started as a pro at Barnsley as a midfielder. It is only in the last three or four years that I’ve been playing centre-back.

“A couple of the managers at Barnsley saw me as a player who could adapt to playing centre-back and now I would say I probably prefer playing there.

“I’m quite comfortable. I think if you ask any midfielder, they will say they appreciate having more time on the ball when they play in defence. On the other hand, you have to concentrate a lot more.

“The bottom line is being in the starting XI in some position.”

The move to Prenton Park reunites Kay with Chris Shuker, a former Barnsley team-mate who joined Tranmere year ago.

The two players shared the exhilaration of Barnsley’s promotion campaign on 2005/06, brought to a thrilling climax when Kay scored the decisive penalty in the shootout against Swansea in the final in Cardiff.

Kay said: “That promotion campaign was a great experience and it will always stay with me.

“I want more of that – which is why I came here to Tranmere.

“I think that this team, this squad, has a chance of getting promotion.

“It will not be easy of course. League One is a difficult divsion to get out of. It is very unpredictable.

“At the beginning of each season the bookies post the odds but the favourites rarely come through. Look what happened to Nottingham Forest last year.

“There are always surprise packages. Scunthorpe were quoted as rank outsiders last season and came through as champions.

“Barnsley were not expected to do anything in the year we went up.

“So I will not be worried if Tranmere are not mentioned amongst the favourites this summer.”