In the final of our hat-trick of articles about Premier League footballers to have also played for Macclesfield, we reveal six more professionals to have played for both a football club in our town, and England's top flight of footie.

If you've missed the previous list, please click here and [L]https://macclesfield.nub.news/n/macclesfield-football-six-more-silkmen-to-have-played-in-the-premier-league[L+]here to see our previous twelve ex-Prem Macc footballers we've discussed.

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Tommy Widdrington

Playing in the first four Premier League seasons, Tommy Widdrington was a midfielder who could also play as a full-back. The Newcastle-born outfielder played 72 times in the Prem from 1992 to 1996.

He'd drop down a division to Linconshire club Grimsby Town, who were swiftly relegated, but Widdrington would help get re-promoted to the league just below the Prem. Port Vale then called, as did Colchester, and Hartlepool.

His manager at Port Vale, Brian Horton, would resign him for Macclesfield Town in July 2003. He was regarded as an essential first team making 58 appearances until January 2005.

He'd return to Port Vale, before hanging up his boots in a player-manager role at Salisbury City. Widdrington now manages on the fringes of the Football League, but is in a relegation dogfight with King's Lynn Town having been appointed in December 2021.

Andy Welsh

One of the few players to play for a football club in Macclesfield BEFORE their Premier League debut, Andy Welsh started his playing days at nearby Stockport County. The Hatters would loan him to Macc the division below them in 2002, where the midfielder scored twice in six appearances, before returning to Edgerley Park for the rest of the 2002-03 season. He was just 19 at his time with The Silkmen. It was in 2004 where Sunderland would come knocking, and bought him for £15,000. But he would only play seven times in the 2004-05 promotion campaign from the Championship. He'd make double the appearances in the Premier League, as injury of another player bagged Welsh his chance in the top flight. Despite his 14 Premier League appearances in 2005-06, Sunderland were rock bottom and relegated back to the Championship, and Welsh's time with the Mackens were over. He spent the 2006-07 season on loan at Leicester City, a club he had previously played for on loan, and then permanently left the Stadium of Light for a brief spell in Canada. Welsh would spend another seven seasons in the Football League in England, before retiring to become a non-league football manager. He now is the gaffer for phoenix club AFC Bury. Kyle Lightbourne

This forward couldn't score in the Premier League, but would net double figures for The Silkmen.

Kyle Lightbourne signed for Coventry City in the 1997-98 Premier League season from Walsall for £500,000. However, after seven appearances without finding the back of the net, he was shipped to Fulham in the January 1998 transfer window.

The Bermudan scored twice in four appearances in his temporary deal at Craven Cottage, who were then in the league below the Prem. This attracted the attention of Stoke City, who he would remain with until 2001.

Swedish club IFK Norrköping snapped him up, but he would never turn out for them, until Macclesfield Town rescued him from his Scandinavian nightmare later in the year.

Across two seasons, the current manager of Bermuda would play 73 times and score on 15 occasions for our town's old football club. A short loan spell to Hull City, along with a permanent transfer offer from PHC Zebras in his home country would bring his time in our town at an end. Follow him on Twitter.

Martin Carruthers

A one-appearance wonder in the Premier League, but still qualifies for this list, Martin Carruthers will be best remembered by Silks fans for netting 10 goals in 45 appearances in all competitions in the 2003-04 season. But did you know the Nottingham-born midfielder played in the inaugural season of the Premier League? At the start of his professional career, Carruthers would make four appearances for Aston Villa, one of which came in the 1992-93 first-ever Premier League season. It would take a decade and another six clubs before he would come to Macc, and he would play for another seven clubs before retiring in 2019 to manage Ilkeston Town in the seventh tier of English football, two levels above where Macclesfield FC currently stand. You can follow the ex-Silkman on Twitter here. Jared Hodgkiss

Another one-hit wonder in the Prem, but perhaps more fondly remembered in our town than Carruthers, Jared Hodgkiss was part of the Macclesfield Town promotion winning squad of 2017-18.

But 12 years before he helped steer Macc Town back into the Football League, the Stafford-born defender would make his only Premier League appearance, under the coaching of England legend Bryan Robson.

The right-back appeared in a no-stakes match for an already-relegated West Bromwich Albion, on a final day of the season draw with Everton in May 2006.

Hodgkiss, now 35, would leave The Hawthorns in 2009 for Market Drayton Town. Quickly moving to Forest Green Rovers, where he made the most appearances of his career. Kidderminster Harries and Torquay United would also welcome the Staffordshire right-back, before he arrived at the Moss Rose in 2017.

Hodgkiss would 41 appearances for our town's defunct football club, and scoring once. After Macc Town won just ten times in their first season back in the Football League, he would go on trial at Hereford in July 2019, where he remains today, seeing out his career in the National League North. Macc's former number two has no social media presence.

Alan Fettis

Another former Macclesfield Town goalie, Alan Fettis is fondly remembered as being a man between the sticks for the almost-successful promotion attempt in the 2004-05 season. The Northern Irishman would turn out 61 times for Macclesfield Town until 2006, before moving to his final club Bury. (Another ex-Football League club which doesn't exist anymore) But did you know he played for two Premier League clubs? Before his freebie to our town, and being sold by Macc for £180,000, a younger Fettis made a combined 14 appearances in the PL. Starting for Nottingham Forest and a Blackburn Rovers side just a few years removed from their Premier League title victory. He would also play for a few other Football League clubs before Macc. Another one to have big post-playing career, the 50-year-old has spent over a decade as a Manchester United goalkeeping coach, having previously been assistant goalkeeping coach with then Premier League side Derby County. His current role has seen him working under Sir Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho and Louis Van Gaal, alongside working with world class goalies such Victor Valdes and David De Gea. And that is our final list of Premier League footballers to have also played for Macclesfield Town or Macclesfield FC. Please click here and [L]https://macclesfield.nub.news/n/macclesfield-football-six-more-silkmen-to-have-played-in-the-premier-league[L+]here to see previous entries in the list, and make sure to click here to be sent to a random Macclesfield Nub News sporting story. See also: Ex-Macclesfield Town Managers: Where Are They Now?. Macclesfield: Have you signed up for our FREE Friday weekly newsletter? It contains each week's top 10 Macclesfield news stories, and one EXCLUSIVE article? 1200 of you have signed up already. Simply enter your email address in the shaded box below or on this link. Free from pop-up ads, or unwanted surveys, Macclesfield Nub News is a quality online newspaper which produces 30-40 stories a week for our town. You can find us on Facebook and Twitter.