YORK City boss Gary Mills has asked the club’s supporters to give returning striker Vadaine Oliver a “second chance”.

But he has given permission for seven-goal top scorer Richard Brodie to leave the club and has parted company with goalkeeper Scott Flinders.

Oliver, 25, is due to return to Bootham Crescent from a half-season loan spell at Notts County on Monday.

He has netted one goal in 25 appearances for the Sky Bet League Two strugglers and only managed to hit the target once in his last 19 appearances for the Minstermen.

Oliver still finished last season as the club’s ten-goal, top scorer, but was booed during the final game of the relegation campaign at Morecambe by City fans, who were unhappy with his efforts during the second half of the campaign.

But the ex-Crewe forward has been pencilled in to play for his parent club in the North Riding Senior Cup at Whitby Town next Tuesday and Mills said: “Vadaine Oliver’s last game for Notts is Saturday, so he will be back with us on Monday and he’ll be involved against Whitby the following night.

“He’s got to come back in with the right attitude though and show, in those first five minutes of Monday’s training session, that he wants to prove people at this football club wrong by showing what he's capable of. If I see a lack of effort in his first training session, he won’t be playing for me.

“I don’t know why the fans were booing him before, but it’s up to him to change that, because it’s his job and he should have pride in himself. He might knock on my door and tell me he wants to leave, or he might say I’m the man to save you– I don’t know.

“That will be a lot clearer on Monday morning. All I would say to the fans is people can change and deserve a second chance.”

Former boss Jackie McNamara regularly levelled his frustration at the standard of Oliver’s performances, but Mills also reasoned that some players can react differently following a change in manager, adding: “Whether he got on with Jackie has nothing to do with me.

“I’m a different manager and person. You only have to look at the difference in Eden Hazard at Chelsea from last season to see how players respond to different managers.

“Some managers get more from certain players because you manage and treat them differently. You might believe in them, when another manager didn’t.

“I don’t actually know the player, but he’s got something and we’ve got to get that out of him. I’ve not got a month, a week or even a day to wait and see that though.”

Brodie has returned from his seven-week loan spell at Macclesfield and has still netted four more times than any other Minstermen player this term.

The 29-year-old striker started his only game of four outings for the Moss Rose outfit on Boxing Day in a 1-0 defeat at Tranmere, but collected his tenth yellow card of the season in that match, meaning he missed the New Year’s Day return fixture against the Wirral club and will now complete his two-match suspension this weekend.

Mills has made it clear that the former Crawley and Fleetwood forward remains surplus to requirements at Bootham Crescent and has sanctioned a transfer, explaining: “Richard Brodie is back training with us, but a couple of teams are interested in taking him on loan or permanently.

“He’s no good to us anyway at Dover, because he is suspended, but he knows the situation and, with the players I have got here, he won’t play. We allowed him to go to Macclesfield and have given him the option to go to another side, who he’s already spoken to during the last couple of days.

"But, if he doesn’t go, he’s still here and, then, he has to be professional and get on with his job the right way. If he doesn’t it will be sorted, as and when.”

Flinders has departed by mutual consent, having lost his status as first-choice keeper to Kyle Letheren, with fellow net-minder Luke Simpson also waiting in the wings for a chance.

Philippines international midfielder Luke Woodland, meanwhile, has extended his short-term contract with City until the end of the season.