JAMES Mason is hoping Michael Collins has not been lost to the game after his bitter City experience.

Collins was axed five weeks ago after lasting just six games into the season.

The youngest head coach in the country at the time, the 32-year-old was in charge for only 77 days.

Collins has not spoken since his departure. But former Valley Parade chief operating officer Mason believes he will come back into football.

Mason said: “I’d like to believe he will. He’s got lots to offer.

“The experience would have been very painful for him undeniably.

“But hopefully he can take that as one that will strengthen him, pick out the positives where possible and learn from it.

“I can only imagine how difficult it was for Michael and everyone at the club at the time.

“Watching from the outside, it was obvious he was under a huge amount of duress and stress. I could see that, so I’m pretty sure others within the industry would have as well.

“I firmly believe the LMA, the PFA and clubs themselves have to look at these opportunities that they offer young coaches.

“Michael came as one of the best young coaches in the country. He made a huge decision to give up his career as a footballer – he was 32 and could easily have played for a few more years.

“Now he’s going to have to rebuild his career and his own character to get a new job, whether that’s as a coach or a manager.

“If I or anyone in the industry can offer him some help, they need to come forward and do that.”

Mason this week took up his new post at Rochdale after nearly four years with City. But he can remember his own rocky start after succeeding David Baldwin – and the support network that helped him through.

“I had my own very difficult experiences in my first six months at Bradford City,” he added.

“I needed good people around me, both within the club such as Roger Owen, as an ambassador, Mark (Lawn) and Julian (Rhodes) as well as friends and family and supporters.

“Now people have got to come out and show that same support for Michael.

“He will probably look back on the experience and think he may have done some things differently but he’s not alone.

“At the highest level, managers like Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger say things that sometimes irk supporters, players or the board of directors. It’s an emotional industry.

“But that’s not to say he can’t come back and take another club at a good level.

“Look at Stuart McCall doing a great job at Scunthorpe. Look at Sam Collins, who’s gone on to be full-time manager at York City.

“In a way, Bradford City have lost a coach that was part of the development set-up when he came in.

“Along with Sam Collins and Martin Drury, Michael did a great job with the likes of Tyrell Robinson, Omari Patrick and Jordan Gibson.

“Now Michael’s out of the game and I hope he can rebuild and be back very quickly because he’s a very talented man who deserves a good career.”

But Mason, a lifelong City fan, is also confident that successor David Hopkin can steady the ship as the club look to pull out of the bottom four.

He said: “The appointment of David Hopkin is a solid one. He’s a manager that I really respect and I only wish him well at the club.

“Given time and the opportunities, I think he can be a success. But that’s a totally separate conversation to Michael.”