MANAGER David Hodgson has rekindled his interest in Matty Appleby after the former Darlington crowd favourite admitted he would like to end his playing days in his native North-East, writes LEE HALL.

The Middlesbrough-born utility man, who left Quakers for £200,000 when he joined Barnsley in 1996, has only recently broke back into the Oldham Athletic side following the appointment of Ronnie Moore as manager.

However, Hodgson last night revealed the 32-year-old has already set his heart on seeing out his career with Quakers.

Appleby was close to re-joining the club last month after agreeing to have the remainder of his Oldham contract paid up. However, the move failed to materialise when the Latics parted company with manager Brian Talbot.

And, while Moore sees Appleby as part of his Boundary Park plans, Hodgson remains hopeful of landing the former Newcastle United player after opening talks with Oldham's chief executive.

With skipper Craig Liddle sidelined with a stomach injury, Hodgson believes Appleby would provide experience to Quakers' back-line.

"Matty is a tremendous professional who would be a real asset to our club," said Hodgson. "He has already stated that he would love to come back and we're still confident that can happen."

Hodgson has also made an approach for Huddersfield Town for striker Akpo Sodje.

The 25-year-old is the younger brother of the Terriers' Nigerian international defender, Efe, and impressed Hodgson in a recent reserve game.