Stafford manager Steve Bull will farm out David McNiven on loan to Fleetwood Town next week – soon after new signing Darryl Proffitt checks in at Marston Road.

The decision is likely to come as somewhat of a surprise to some, with McNiven leading the scoring charts, although his attitude has called into question on many occasions.

He found himself farmed out last season as well, to then Blue Square Premier rivals Farsley Celtic. Now he will spend a month at Blue Square North rivals Fleetwood, which could be extended depending on his impact.

Under contract until the end of the season and the highest paid player on the books, Bully has let him go to free up some much-needed resources.

He said: “He has not been getting into the side and I don’t see that changing. I want him to go and get some games somewhere. He needs to get his sharpness back. He is just not sharp enough in my eyes.

“We will assess his progess while he is at Fleetwood. There may even be the possibility that he could stay there longer.”

That said, Bully has confirmed that McNiven will lead the line in the Staffordshire Senior Cup at Leek Town tomorrow (3pm), along with the Setanta Shield tie against Northwich on Tuesday night.

Profitt should be ready to take his place after that, after signing for Rangers from Witton Albion.

So barring intervention, McNiven will join Fleetwood on Wednesday.

Bull said: “Unless he scores five or six goals in the next two games, he is off to Fleetwood as far as I am concerned. That will free a bit of money up for me to juggle the squad.
“As for Leek, the team could well be along the lines of who played against Harrogate. We will be taking this game seriously and any of my players who do not will know about it.

“The same goes for when we play Northwich in the Setanta Shield on Saturday. I want no repeat of the Coalville fiasco ever again.”

Bully is also continuing to look at striker Mark Gardner, brother of Villa midfielder Craig, who scored for the reserves in midweek.

He said: “I need to have a look at Mark a bit more, to see if he is right for us. I haven’t sat down and spoke to him yet. But I wouldn’t rule out him signing non-contract forms with us if I feel he is good enough.”