HEAD coach James Ford has admitted rebuilding York City Knights on and off the field will be a "very difficult" task - but has declared it an exciting time for himself and the club.

A number of star players have left the League One club in the wake of the uncertainty over their future, including skipper Jack Aldous to Newcastle, vice-captain Mike Emmett to Keighley and top-scorer Kriss Brining to Super League club Salford.

But Ford has been cheered recently by takeover talks which appear set to save the club from probable closure and, should new owners come in as planned, he has urged all supporters, not least those at odds with outgoing chairman John Guildford, to "pull in the same direction" to help the team in their promotion goals.

Ford attended the question-and-answer fans forum held by Guildford at South Bank Working Men's Club on Sunday, but, while the latter outlined his reasons for selling up and his issues with City of York Council over the troubled community stadium scheme, the head coach spoke only of playing matters.

He told The Press: "It's an exciting time moving on in a new direction.

"Obviously we need to learn from the past, as you would in any walk of life, but it's about the future now and what we're going to do.

"We need all the supporters, sponsors, players and officials pulling in the same direction.

"If we do that we can build the club and fulfil its potential on and off the field."

Ford, two years into his head coaching career, added: "It will be very difficult. We're going to have to rebuild a team and an experienced manager of ten or 20 years would find that difficult.

"I've no doubt it will be a challenge to rebuild a team and a club, but it's something that excites me.

"With the type of person I hope to be bringing in to work with, I'm sure they will also look forward to the challenge."

The Knights were omitted from the League One fixture list for 2017 as announced on Sunday night, but the Rugby Football League have said the Minster city club can be brought back in to the schedule should the takeover go through successfully in the coming days.

Such is the confidence in the camp regarding the negotiations, Ford has already begun talks with players over new contracts.

"I can say that talks are now ongoing between myself and players I hold in really high regard," he said.

"If we can get the i's dotted and the t's crossed in time, we can hopefully pull these signings together and the future of the club will look promising.

"In terms of players, the type of person we're looking for is one that will embrace the culture of the club and take that culture beyond where it has been.

"Some of the current (2016) squad won't be staying and we will be looking for a couple of senior players to help drive things forward, along with a number of potentially outstanding young players.

"It's a really exciting time for me."