YORK City boss Nigel Worthington has released Craig Clay and Jamal Fyfield after admitting their first-team prospects were slim.

Clay, recruited in the summer on a free transfer from Sky Bet League Two rivals Chesterfield, has recently fallen behind new signings Russell Penn and Adam Reed, as well as Lewis Montrose and Tom Platt, in the pecking order for a starting place in the Minstermen’s midfield.

Left-back Fyfield, meanwhile, has only made two League appearances all season and has drawn the curtain on a three-and-a-half year Bootham Crescent career that saw him play 96 games and score four goals.

On the pair’s departure, Worthington said: “They were part of the squad but neither of them were really getting any games and, from a footballer’s point of view, it is very important you are involved. When you are bringing players in, you sometimes have to lose some so they can get on with their careers.

“Jamal has been here three or four years and has found it hard to get in the team.

“I’m a little bit disappointed it hasn’t worked out with Craig Clay but the one thing you learn in this game, when bringing players in, is you hope to get more right than you get wrong.

“It’s not happened for him unfortunately but I wish him all the best in the future wherever he turns up.”

Fyfield’s exit leaves City without a recognised alternative to on-loan defender Ben Davies at left back, although centre-half Tom Allan has played there in the past.

On the possibility of bringing in another specialist full-back before the transfer window closes at the end of this month, Worthington added: “I will have a look at that over the next two weeks and see where we are at.”

Worthington will also take the next fortnight to decide whether carrying six centre-backs – Allan, Keith Lowe, David McGurk, John McCombe, the injured Dan Parslow and Chris Smith – on the club’s books is a workable scenario.

He said: “At the moment, with John McCombe coming in, competition for places is healthy.

“Chris Smith is coming back from injury and that gives us another man, along with Tom Allan.

“Over the course of the next couple of weeks, we will look and see how to move forward, whether that’s keeping bodies in or letting people out to get some games.”