CITY chief executive Ryan Sparks has spoken about the club’s decision yesterday to let nine players leave when their contracts expire next month.

Long-serving defensive duo Anthony O’Connor and Connor Wood are departing, as are experienced attacking trio Lee Novak, Clayton Donaldson and Billy Clarke.

The injured Harry Pritchard, Zeli Ismail and Will Huffer are also away at the end of June, as is teenage prospect Connor Shanks.

Asked if a big overhaul had been necessary, Sparks said: “I wouldn’t say it’s a clear out, it’s just what has been deemed best going forward, making the best use of our budget and trying to maximise that.

“There’ll be a lot of recruitment work goes on in the summer and it was just deemed right that it was time for these players to move on.

“It’s not just budget-based, though I suppose everything is in that you set it for what you wish to spend the following season and you’ve got to work to that.

“Some players fit into what you’re trying to achieve and some don’t, it’s nothing personal it’s just business.

“In terms of the decisions that have been made, it’s all around which players we feel can give us the best chance next season.”

City have also let Andy Cook, Jordan Stevens and Rumarn Burrell return to their parent clubs after their loan spells at Valley Parade, but Mansfield have announced that the former will be released once his contract expires in the summer.

Cook finished the season as City’s top scorer, and asked whether bringing him back was a priority, especially given the departures of Novak and Donaldson, Sparks said: “Andy Cook is a very good player at this level, so of course he’s of interest.

“He’s very talented so we’ll see where it goes with him, but it’s too early to say really, as he’s only just finished his loan spell with us.

“They’ve only just released him and the recruitment side of things is only just getting underway.

“Andy’s done a great job and helped us avoid relegation so we’ll see where we get to.”

But Sparks will not be getting too heavily involved himself, saying: “I certainly won’t be deciding who the main targets are, as it’s my job to put the manager in the dugout and to have them work with Lee (Turnbull) and the rest of the recruitment team and scouts.

“We want to get the very best out of the funds we’re going to put into the playing budget, so it’ll be a very important period this summer.”

Recruitment director Turnbull and chief executive Sparks have only been in their respective roles for a few months, but the latter dismissed any claims that the raft of departures were because the pair wanted to ‘get their own men in’.

Sparks said: “If you’re going to bring a new manager in, then you need to give them as much opportunity as they can to shape the squad.

“If you’re carrying players that are out of contract and they’re not going to fit into the next picture, so be it.

“It’s not a case of Lee’s people, as the manager will always have the final say on recruitment at the club.

“What the manager now has at his disposal is people around him that can work with him and build a squad with him.”