Lewis Fensome's 'proper crowd' comments were disrespectful to Lancaster City's fanbase says boss Mark Fell

The defender departed the club for Macclesfield on the eve of last Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Ashton United – and then conducted an interview which appeared to disrespect the Dolly Blues’ fanbase.

The Silkmen – who have been reformed in recent years after the original Macclesfield Town went into liquidation – are a former Football League club who now play in the NWC Premier Division.

Despite playing at level five in the non-league pyramid, the club can still command sizeable average crowds of more than four figures.

Their attendances dwarf that of Lancaster who ply their trade two steps higher in the NPL Premier Division.

Fell accepts that Fensome - who is the son of former Preston full-back Andy - was communicating to a Macclesfield audience when he was interviewed and the sleight on City’s supporters was perhaps not what he would have intended.

But the whole episode has left a sour taste in the mouth of Fell, who was once again disappointed to see an agent involved in the transfer.

“I certainly don’t think the interview was said in the context that it came across,” said Fell.

“I have known Lewis for a long time. He was at Preston when I was one of the coaches there. Myself and his dad Andy go back a long way.

“Undoubtedly I was very disappointed. I don’t expect to hear what was said. I thought it was very, very poor.

“That makes it all the more surprising because that is not the young man who was here. Lewis in my experience is an excellent young man, really well spoken and respectful.

“It caught me off guard more than anything else. You have to remember Lewis is somebody who has played more than 100 games for us.

“He came to us after just being released by Preston. Even when I came three-and-a-half years ago, he wasn’t playing regularly. We have done a huge amount of work with him to make him a very established Northern Premier League player.

"It was his agent who told me that he was leaving which I was annoyed about because that's not the way to operate.

"If Lewis had said to me, 'Listen Mark, the deal is too much for me to turn down. I am on three or four times the money, two-and-a-half year deal, I will be always grateful what you have done, etc; I think everybody would have said that's annoying but fair enough. There was no need to leave like that.

“It was not acceptable. It would have been remiss of me to not mention it because that is not how we recognise our fanbase. Our supporters are more important than any one individual player.

“So I was surprised by it. How it’s come about I don’t know but we can’t dwell on it – we move on as a club.”