MILESTONE man Jason Walker hopes to play many more games in the white and blue of Barrow AFC.

On Monday, Walker became the first player since Paul Jones in 2009 to make his 250th Barrow appearance – marking the occasion with his 89th goal for the club in the 4-1 win over FC Halifax Town.

But his future is uncertain after he had a clause in his contract removed earlier this season which meant he would automatically be offered a new deal should he make a set number of appearances this term.

That move has left him out-of-contract come the end of the current campaign and playing to try and earn a deal under new boss Paul Cox.

Barrow-born Walker – who is now 14th in Barrow's all-time non-league appearances records – is keen to stay should the conditions be right and build on his appearance and goal-scoring records, saying he still has a lot to offer the club in the Conference.

“If it's the right choice for me, I would like to be here next season,” said the former Greenock Morton and Luton Town striker. “I'm out of contract now – I took the appearances clause out of the contract so I could play games. That's all I want to do.

“I turned 32 this month, but I'm still as fit as I have always been and when I have come on under the new manager, when it's been as a sub or when I've started, I feel like I have still done well and made a difference in the games.

“It's up to the manager, it's up to the chairman, but if it's right for me and it's right for my family, then we'll see what happens.”

Walker has made four starts and seven substitute appearances for Barrow since Cox arrived at Holker Street at the end of November, scoring four goals.

That has taken his season's tally to seven goals and, with seven games still to go, there is the potential for more to come.

The Flookburgh hotshot certainly feels he can be a valuable asset in front of goal, and added: “I still feel I can score goals.

“If I don't end up staying, it would have been nice to get to 100. I'm not sure I can do that in seven games, but when you look at that record, it isn't too bad, it works out at one goal every 2.8 or 2.9 games (it is 2.81 games per goal after his strike against Halifax).

“One goal every three games over 250 games isn't too bad. It's quite a good goalscoring record if I look at it that way.”

Walker's time at Barrow has been split into two spells.

The first came between 2007 and 2011, when then-manager Phil Wilson signed him up after a short spell at Morecambe and he went on to feature in both the promotion-winning Conference North side and the team which won the FA Trophy at Wembley.

Walker scored the winner at the national stadium on that May day in 2010, but left the following year for Luton Town.

It was three years later that new owner Paul Casson brought him back to Holker Street, allowing him to add to the vast amount of matches he had already played for his hometown team.

“I hadn't realised it was that many games,” said Walker of reaching the 250-appearance mark.

“It's only been about five years I have been at the club in total and, if you look at it like that, it's 40 or 50 games a season, which is a quite a lot.

“It has been great. The first time I was here was under Phil Wilson and it was totally different to what it is now.

“We went on that crazy run in the Conference North and we ended up being in the Conference Premier. The first time round was great, we had a really good team, we did what we did and there was Wembley as well, which was fantastic.

“Then to come back, with the club in the position it was in with the takeover, was good as well.

“We got the first year right. The second year has had its ups and downs, twists and turns and we will see what happens.”

He added: “I had a number of offers the year I re-signed for Barrow. They do say 'never go back', but I had really enjoyed my time there and I did want a little project where the club had a vision.

“When the club was relegated from the Conference Premier, I wasn't there and, with the club in the Conference North, it didn't sit well. It wasn't nice to see.

“When I came back, I wanted to help the club get promoted and that's what we did. Hopefully we can kick on now and see what happens.”

Despite having all those appearances under his belt, there is still just one game which sticks out in his mind – that 2-1 triumph over Stevenage at Wembley in the FA Trophy final.

Looking back on it, he said: “There isn't only one memory, but there is only one massively standout one, which is obviously Wembley.

“To play at Wembley is a privilege anyway, but to score the winner there for your hometown club is a little bit special.

“It is something I will never forget. It is something I've got lots of memories about and lots of memorabilia from as well. It's something I can tell the grandkids about. It's the standout memory.”

BARROW AFC TOP NON-LEAGUE APPEARANCE-MAKERS 

Colin Cowperthwaite 703 Kenny Gordon 523 Neil Doherty 446 Glenn Skivington 416 Kevin Proctor 357 Peter McDonnell 345 Neil McDonald 343 Kevin Thomas 317 Dave Large 299 Paul Jones 290 Royston Taylor 289 Simon Bishop 281 Graham Anthony 252 Jason Walker 250 Scott Maxfield 247 Steve Brooks 238 Mick Richmond 223 Alan Cook 216 Lee Warren 212 Andy Bond 206 Paul Wilson 203 Kenny Lowe 201