FORMER Clarets favourite Kevin Ball has turned down a move to Accrington Stanley.

Ball admitted he was very tempted to sign, so it was with a measure of regret that he had decided to turn them down,

But despite having to disappoint the club, he had words of comfort as he said: "I really hope they go on and win the UniBond Premier Division and get into the Conference and having seen them I think they have every chance of doing it."

The battle-hardened former Burnley midfielder confessed: "I came down and had a chat with manager John Coleman, his assistant Jimmy Bell and the chairman Eric Whalley and I was very impressed.

"I watched the game the other night and I thought the team did brilliantly to come back from 2-0 down to win 4-2. That showed that the team has tremendous character.

"But when I took everything into consideration I had to say that the aspect of travelling was the key factor. I would be travelling 250 miles for every home game, even more for some away games.

"Having been away from home for three years with Fulham and Burnley that is too much. I spoke to my wife as soon as I left Accrington and we decided between us."

Ball, 37, is disappointed it has not worked out because he liked everything about the Reds.

"If the club was just 20 minutes down the road I would have been very, seriously tempted," he explained. "But I did not want to sign and then find out in about six weeks that it was not working for me. I would rather be up front and honest now."