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Ian McParland today began clearing the decks at Meadow Lane in preparation for next season.

The County boss has handed free transfers to five players whose contracts expire this summer - and there could even be more to follow.

Richard Butcher, Gavin Strachan, Jamie Forrester, Adam Tann and Adam Nowland were all told today that they will not be offered fresh deals, and decisions have been deferred on Stephen Hunt and Ben Fairclough.

Both players are likely to figure at Wycombe on Saturday in the final game of the season and McParland plans to discuss their futures with them next week.

The only player among those whose contracts are set to expire who has been offered a new deal is talented young winger Myles Weston. In fact, an attractive new contract has been on the table for the past few months but Weston has insisted that he will not decide whether to sign it until the end of the season.

Said McParland: "It's not always a good thing to make wholesale changes because stability within a football club is something you always strive for.

"But there's no hiding from the fact that we have done no-where near as well this season as we would have liked and we need to re-organise the playing staff.

"For one reason or another, none of the players being released have been regulars in the team this season and that has certainly influenced my thinking."

McParland added that there is now a huge job to be done to identify the players who can strengthen the squad - and persuade them to move to Meadow Lane.

He said: "Dave Kevan and I have been working for months on drawing up a list of targets. We have a very good idea of the people we would like to bring in, and the challenge now is to get them to join us."

Phil Picken and Matt Richards will return next week to Chesterfield and Wycombe Wanderers after loan spells at Meadow Lane, and that will leave just eight players under contract for next season.

They are Russell Hoult, Kevin Pilkington, Jamie Clapham, John Thompson, Mike Edwards, Matt Hamshaw, Sean Canham and Delroy Facey.