Hours after being told he is banned from any byelection to replace himself, a contrite-sounding Mayor Rob Ford apologized to Torontonians while maintaining he is guilty only of wanting to help kids play football.

His administration in crisis, a dour Ford said at City Hall that his decision to appeal a judge’s ruling — that he breached conflict of interest laws and will be kicked out of office on Dec. 10 — is not a criticism of the court.

“This entire matter began because I love to help kids play football,” the croaky-voiced mayor said of his decision to speak and vote at council last February on whether he had to repay $3,150 in improperly solicited lobbyists’ donations to his private football charity.

“I never believed there was a conflict of interest because I had nothing to gain and the city had nothing to lose,” Ford said. In February he told council he would have had to pay the $3,150 “out of my own pocket.”

“But I respect the court’s decision,” Ford continued. “Looking back, maybe I could have expressed myself in a different way. To everyone who believes I should have done this differently, I sincerely apologize.”

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More in the Star:

Ford’s statement

Text of Justice Charles Hackland’s decision

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Ford’s lawyer will go before a Divisional Court judge Dec. 5, asking that Hackland’s be stayed, or put on hold, until the outcome of an appeal, which will be argued in court on Jan. 7. A stay would allow Ford to remain mayor until at least the appeal decision comes down, probably around the beginning of February.

The mayor’s demeanour Tuesday was a marked contrast from Monday, when he thundered that Justice Charles Hackland’s ruling “comes down to left-wing politics. The left wing wants me out of here and they’ll do anything in their power.”

The mayor had also said that, if his appeal is unsuccessful and council triggers a mayoral byelection, he will be the first to get his name on the ballot.

But Ford’s already limited options narrowed dramatically Tuesday when Anna Kinastowski, Toronto’s city solicitor, told council she interprets the ruling — which bars Ford from running until “the end of the term” — as meaning he cannot seek re-election until late 2014.

“That is our interpretation of that particular fact,” said Kinastowski, who advises city election officials and suggested Ford would have to challenge her decision in court if he wants to get on the ballot any earlier.

“If, down the road, there is a byelection and Mr. Ford does not agree with our interpretation, he can certainly take action to get a judicial interpretation at that time.”

In the meantime, Kinastowski said: “The mayor is the mayor; it is business as usual.”

If the Divisional Court refuses to stay the order that Ford be kicked out of office, city council will have 60 days to declare the mayor’s seat vacant and take action to replace him.

Councillors could either choose one of their ranks, by majority vote, to serve out the term as an appointed mayor, or trigger a $7 million city-wide mayoral byelection.

Former Ford ally Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti called on Ford to either consider not appealing the judgment, or step down and let Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday take over the reins until the appeal is concluded.

“Yesterday was about the mayor. Today it’s about the City of Toronto, and we all have to do what’s right for the City of Toronto,” said Mammoliti, who was a staunch Ford ally but quit the executive committee on Monday — in response, he said, to his constituents’ demands following the ruling against Ford.

“Toronto is in a crisis right now. We’re in limbo, and we don’t want investors to turn their back on the city of Toronto, and I think everybody should keep that in mind.”

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Other councillors said they are willing to let the process play out and let Ford remain in place during the legal manoeuvring.

Joe Mihevic, a left-leaning councillor often at odds with the conservative Ford administration, called for calm, saying council is “trying to hold it together . . . during these troubled times.

“We are not in a crisis. We are in very, very rough waters right now,” Mihevc said, adding Torontonians should be reassured that there is a process “pathway” to ensure that, should Ford be removed, council will ensure Toronto gets a new mayor.