ALEX Whittle and Yan Klukowski appear to be fighting for the final place in York City's starting XI for the FA Trophy final against Macclesfield at Wembley.

City chief Gary Mills has already confirmed that Kyle Letheren will return in goal in place of on-loan shot-stopper Scott Loach, who is ineligible for the contest having joined the club following the semi-final victory over Lincoln.

Mills will be forced into one other change from the side that finished the National League campaign with a 2-2 home draw against Forest Green three weeks ago as Sam Muggleton is ruled out for the same reasons at Loach.

Only skipper Simon Heslop started more games for the Minstermen than Whittle during 2016/17 but the 24-year-old left back, who the club have an option to retain because of an appearance clause despite his current contract expiring, did not even make the bench when Muggleton was preferred on the final day of the league programme.

Klukowski did not feature at all during the final seven weeks of the season due to calf trouble but is fit now and could slot into City's back three, allowing Sean Newton to fill the left-wing back slot in Mills' preferred 3-4-3 formation.

City are only expected to make the two changes to their first XI, meaning Whittle or Klukowski are set to contest one of five places on the bench with Adriano Moke, Aidan Connolly, Luke Simpson, Shaun Rooney and Scott Fenwick.

Injured quartet Simon Lappin, Clovis Kamdjo, Lanre Oyebanjo and Matty Fry are all ruled out.

On his selection choices, Mills admitted: "I've got decisions to make. Alex comes back in but Yan is available as well, so he gives us another option.

"It's great to have options – although we haven't got too many with only 17 players available – but myself and (football consultant) Darren (Caskey) have got a couple to make that we need to get right.

"Whitts is a natural left back but he didn't play the last game. One player will miss out completely but whether you're in the starting XI, one of the subs or the unlucky person who misses out, we will go there together as a group with the aim of bringing the trophy back to York."

Having won both the Trophy and play-off final for City during two glorious weekends in May five years ago, Mills appreciates the rewards are different in tomorrow's game but, nevertheless, relishes the opportunity to make another indelible mark on history.

"The stakes of going into the next league are always massive, so the magnitude of that is obviously different," he reasoned.

"But you always want to be in the record books and, if we win, our name is there for ever – that of the runners-up isn't."

Other than City, meanwhile, promoted pair Lincoln and Forest Green were the only teams to do the double over Macclesfield last season, although Mills believes those league results do not provide a reliable indicator of what will unfurl on the hallowed turf.

He also feels both clubs are in equal need of the boost a victory would provide after frustrating campaigns for contrasting matters.

"Just because we did the double over them, we can't think we are just going to win this game," he declared. "Wembley is a different kettle of fish and I have seen players stand in the tunnel, look out and go white.

"I do know we want to beat them though and make it three out of three. We've got to try and stop them because they like to play, so we'll have to be at our best to beat them.

"They will know what we're about as well. They will be disappointed that they didn't get themselves into the play-offs after a bad run that perhaps started with our 3-1 win there, so they'll want to put one over us. We're disappointed for other reasons, so both clubs want to end the season with a trophy."