JAMIE ELLIS has revealed that he turned down offers from elsewhere to join York City Knights on loan.

Ellis penned a fortnight’s loan to York from Betfred Super League outfit Leigh Centurions last week, with the deal then being reviewed on a week by week basis.

York had been eager to bring in a half-back given the injuries to Morgan Smith and Brendan O’Hagan and Riley Dean’s return to Warrington Wolves.

Head coach James Ford moved swiftly to bring in the vastly experienced Ellis who made his Knights debut in Sunday’s defeat to Batley Bulldogs.

“I think that Fordy has been trying to get me here for a few years now, and it’s been nothing to do with me not wanting to come here,” explained the former Castleford Tigers star.

“I got told on Wednesday that I could go out on loan and York and a couple of other clubs were mentioned.

“York was definitely the first club that I picked. Fordy is someone that I’ve known for a long time and I jumped at the chance to come here.

“I’ve really enjoyed my rugby over the past few days here, whereas at Leigh, being sat on the sidelines, I wasn’t enjoying it.

“Coming here and playing, things can only get better.”

While his loan deal is a short-term one at present, Ellis already has one eye on the Knights’ 1895 Cup final against Featherstone Rovers which takes place at Wembley Stadium on July 17.

“I’m loving it here, so hopefully I can spend as much time as I can here,” Ellis added.

“There’s a game at Wembley coming up, so if I could sneak into that, that’d be awesome.

“I’ll do everything I can to do well for the team, get us some wins and play well.”

Ellis was promising on his Knights debut, especially in difficult circumstances, having arrived just days earlier and not having played for around a month.

His sharp line break early on showed his top-flight class and his kicking got better as the game went on, having had a few loose attempts in the first half with the combinations yet to click.

“I thought I was rusty and my kicking game was patchy and could be better,” Ellis said.

“That was only my first week with the boys and I’m enjoying it from the two training sessions I’ve had with the boys and Fordy is a great coach.

“I’m looking forward to spending a little while longer here.

“It’s about getting used to the other lads. On the team sheet, there’s a lot of experience in this side and a lot of good players.

“It’s just about getting to know each other now, hope they play and I can only get better the longer I’m here.”

Ellis added: “The coaches have said that this has been a massive improvement and the best that they have played all year so I suppose that it’s something to build on.”