Midfielder speaks to the Lancashire Post to reflect on his Preston North End career.
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00:00Obviously, we're going to talk about North End, but you've got yourself sorted really quickly with a big club in League One who are going to be going for promotion. Was it something you wanted to do quite quickly, get it sorted and enjoy your summer?
00:10Yeah, it was. It was a big thing for me just to sort of get myself sorted. To be fair, I had a couple of teams interested, but the vision and the talks I had with others' fields was one that really suited me and I'm really looking forward to.
00:35Yeah. Sort of two questions in one this, Ryan, but how did you feel when you found out you weren't going to be staying at Preston and how do you sort of feel now? You've had a few weeks to digest it and I'm sure you're looking forward.
00:48Bad. To be honest, yeah. It's a bit of a tough one to take, really. I thought I'd probably desert it to maybe get a new deal there, but looking now, it is what it is.
01:12I'm really, really excited. I've joined a team which is on the way up with the talks of obviously us getting promoted and that's a big thing.
01:27It's sort of going to a team where you've got to win games and real pressure on you. So it's something that I haven't really done in my career is play for a team which is going to be at the top of the table fighting. So I'm looking forward to that.
01:45Yeah. Was there any sense, I saw at the end, you know, in the sun at Bristol, you know, the outcome was what everybody wanted. The fans were all singing for you. Was there any sense there that it was a bit of peace with it?
01:59Because not everybody leaves in that way, do they? They don't get the good farewell and that seemed like quite a nice moment.
02:06Yeah, it was. It was brilliant. But I got told three weeks before that I weren't getting a contract, which is fine. I wanted to know early. I wanted to know either way.
02:19And then I picked up an Amstring injury and I rushed back. I rushed back for the Plymouth game and the Bristol game and I just wanted to be involved. I just wanted to be involved. I wanted to play like me last time for Preston because I knew it was going to be.
02:36And I just wanted to leave everything out there for the club, for my mates, for the fans, for everyone. And it was a real nice moment at the end. And yeah, I think I am at peace with it, yeah.
02:51Yeah, I think you said to Tom, didn't you, that you wanted to get back and play. And I don't think every out-of-contract player would have done that. But would it have really hurt you to have to watch that last game and potentially see North End go down? Thankfully, they didn't.
03:05But was it never, there was never any doubt in your mind, I need to get back here?
03:11Yeah, there was no doubt. Listen, I was, I just picked up an Amstring injury and I'm out of contract. Like, for me, it's a risk. It was a risk for, I could have played and ripped me Amstring and be sitting here now with no club.
03:25But I just, I just didn't want to, I just didn't want to do it. I just, I just wanted to be involved. We had a few injuries, we had key players out and, and I watched a couple of games and, you know, we were unlucky.
03:38We were, we were just, and it just wouldn't have sat right with me knowing that if I was fit that, that I would have just said, oh no, I'm just going to sit at this one.
03:47That just doesn't sit right with me. Not for the, not for the club that I've been at for seven years and I wanted to welcome all my teammates and, and obviously, and the club as well.