Defender Barry Fuller has told KSN of his sadness of leaving Gillingham after four and a half years at the club.

The 27 year old from Ashford was told he was surplus to requirements at Priestfield despite having featured in the club’s pre-season training trip to France and after having played in the club’s pre-season schedule.

Signed from Stevenage in January 2008 by then manager Mark Stimson, Fuller went on to captain his local club, making 149 appearances.

However, his time at Priestfield was plagued by unfortunate injuries including a bout of pneumonia, with the defender restricted to just ten appearances last season after sustaining a knee ligament injury that required surgery.

Now back fully fit, Fuller was hoping to earn a new deal at Priestfield, but that door now appears closed after he was released by the club a few weeks ago.

Speaking exclusively to Kent Sports News, Fuller spoke of his disappointment of not being offered a new deal with the club he holds dear to his heart:

“I had four and a half great years there and loved every minute of it and probably had the best moments of my career there. The one that stands out is walking up to lift the trophy at Wembley as captain.”

“I enjoyed every second there, met some great people, made some great friends and I’m sad to be leaving.”

“I’ve had to take the decision on the chin and it’s taken a good few days to sink in. Having gone through the process of going away with the boys to France, then being told I wasn’t staying was hard to take, but as a professional you’ve got to pick yourself up and be ready to go with the next challenge in my life.”

Despite being out of contract at the club, Fuller was given the chance to prove his fitness, train with the club and play a part in pre-season with the defender telling KSN how he believed he was going to be offered a deal at some point:

“The day Martin Allen was appointed, I sat down with the Chairman, my agent and Martin. We spoke about me coming in during pre-season and I’d already spoken to the Chairman about a new deal.”

“Having been out for about ten months, Martin wanted to have a look to make sure I was fully recovered. I said I was prepared to do that for about a month or so and then we’d sit down and talk again.”

“That was the one thing I was disappointed with as I had done very single training session, played in pre-season games and then told they didn’t want me.”

“They did dangle the carrot a bit and it was a kick in the teeth, but I have to take it as that’s football.”

Despite being released by the club, Gills boss Martin Allen told KSN after the pre-season game at Ebbsfleet United that Fuller may still return to the club at some point:

“He is a diamond bloke to have around the club but I have to make these decisions. I had a good honest chat with Barry and in a few weeks’ time if he hasn’t got something and we haven’t got what we want, then the door will still be left open for Barry Fuller to return here.”

With this in mind, if the opportunity arose, Fuller admitted he would love to come back to the club:

“He spoke to me about that and as a footballer that is hard to take because they might have to come back to me if they can’t find what they are looking for.”

“For me personally, that comes across as being a bit disrespectful to me. I have been there long enough and they told me that they’d have a look at what they’re looking for and if not, they’d come back to me.”

“They haven’t spoken to me since I left. I’ve spoken with some of the boys, but no one from the staff have called.”

“If I put my hand on my heart, I would say my time is done there, but I wouldn’t say I wouldn’t go back. If the opportunity came back up in the future, I’d love to go back, but at this moment in time I’d say it’s not going to happen.”

“Being this close to the season, I want to get sorted after having been out for ten or eleven months. I just want to play football wherever I can find that.”

Last week, Fuller moved on from the situation with The Gills by playing 45 minutes for Burton Albion in their pre-season friendly with Leicester City and the defender told KSN how that was one of a few irons he has in the fire:

“With only a few weeks to the start of the season and with a lot of teams now having got their squads, it narrows down the amount of clubs that might need a right back.”

“We spoke to Burton and they asked if I could go up there and play for them. I was willing to do that, I played and did well and now it’s just a case of seeing what happens as there are another couple of clubs interested too.”

“I’ve got to look at what is best for me and my family as I’ve got a wife and three kids. If a club rings up and asks me to go and train or play with them, then I’ve got to keep all my options open.”

One thing Fuller isn’t really contemplating is a return to non league, with his main desire to stay in full-time football:

“I’m not really considering playing in non league at the moment. I wouldn’t mind as much if it was full-time if I felt it was the right deal for me and my family.”

“At this stage in my career I don’t feel I really want to go part-time, but football is a tough world and if nothing becomes available and that’s the only option, then I’d have to maybe go down that road.”

“As a footballer, you want to stay in the league as long as you can and that’s no different for me.”

Fuller became a fan’s favourite in his time at Priestfield and he will leave with fond memories. Along with skippering the side to the play-off triumph at Wembley, the defender has some distinct moments to look back on:

“When I was told I was going to be made captain was a special moment for me. As a local lad, looking back on that meeting with Mark Stimson in his office, I was shell-shocked, but incredibly honoured.”

“I enjoyed every single minute of being captain of the football club. Pulling on The Gills shirt for the first time was a dream come true and something I’d wanted since I was a kid.”

“I’m grateful for everything that people did for me whilst I was there and I wish everyone at the football club all the best for the new season.”

Looking back now on the past four and a half years, Fuller was keen to stress how important a part the fans played, in the low times when he was injured and especially when he contracted pneumonia:

“It’s always nice to go to a football club and have fans on your side. With everything that I had been through and especially with the pneumonia, I had so much support from people including letters and cards.”

“The fans were brilliant to me during my time there and that makes it special to me as it’s not always the same at other football clubs.”

“I made some great friends in my time there and I really enjoyed playing with my team-mates. There were some great people there and that’s why when I played I was prepared to put myself on the line for them.”

Read part two of our exclusive interview with Barry Fuller in the coming days on his thoughts on new boss Martin Allen and the club’s chances for the season ahead.