I considered leaving Warrenpoint Town before I took the Newry City job, admits Barry Gray

Newry City boss Barry Gray admits he considered resigning from Warrenpoint Town earlier

New Newry City boss Barry Gray has revealed he was considering resigning from Warrenpoint Town before the vacancy arose at The Showgrounds.

The 43-year-old caused a stir in south Down when he left ‘Point to succeed Gary Boyle at The Marshes after Boyle stepped down from his role as manager.

But in a revealing interview with Sunday Life Sport, Gray admits he was ‘struggling’ with the Warrenpoint job after the Milltown club was demoted to the third-tier of domestic football in the summer of 2023.

This, and the toll it was taking on family life, forced him to consider walking away from the club he managed for 12 years over two spells.

Gray first became manager in 2010 and led Warrenpoint from obscurity to the Premiership before being tempted to join Cliftonville in 2017.

The move did not work as anticipated and Gray returned to the ‘Point to try and steer the club into the top-flight from the Championship again.

The project MKII was on course to deliver as Warrenpoint were in the shake-up for promotion in 2022/23 until disaster struck.

An administrative error saw the club demoted to the Premier Intermediate League, and that was the start of the end for Gray at Milltown.

“The impact of the level we had to play at definitely played a part,” said Gray. “I want to manage at the highest level I can and I wanted to do that with Warrenpoint Town, but that opportunity was taken away from me.

“Last season, we were ready for a Premiership Promotion Play-Off but ended up in the third-tier of the Irish League, and I didn’t like it. I thought I could do it, but I struggled. It wasn’t for me with Warrenpoint or any other club and it made my family