Liam Hardy was bound to attract interest, says Buxton boss Martin McIntosh
Hardy tops the Evo-Stik League Premier Division goalscoring charts with 19 for the season so far, bagging a total of 57 in 85 games for the Bucks in two years with the club.
His Silverlands contract was set to expire at the end of the season and, with Darlington pushing for honours towards the top of the table, McIntosh wished him well for the future.
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Hide AdHe said: “Liam is one of the best in this league and you can’t argue with his goals per game ratio. He’s hot property and was bound to attract interest.
“I think if we’d been higher up the league we’d have had more chance of keeping him but Liam wanted to go as they see him as someone who can springboard them to the next level.
“If a player wishes to go, you don’t really want to stand in his way, particularly if it’s rewarding to them financially. Darlington are also a bigger club with a great chance of promotion.
“With only a couple of months left this season we had to make the decision whether to keep him and risk losing him for nothing in the summer or do a deal now.
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Hide Ad“We wouldn’t have dreamed of letting him go to a rival for promotion earlier in the season but now it’s perhaps an easier decision to make.
“You never like to see players leave but you have to do what is best for the club overall. Had he been made to stay he might have been unhappy and that wouldn’t help the team, so we thank him and wish him all the best.”