Davies let go in Forest clear-out

(GETTY IMAGES)

Arron Davies is one of four players who have been released early from their contracts by high-flying Nottingham Forest.

The winger has failed to make an impact since joining the Championship club from Yeovil in 2007 in a joint move with Chris Cohen. He made 14 starts and 24 substitute appearances for Forest, scoring one goal.

Davies had a loan spell at Brighton this season but returned early from the League One club after failing to impress new Albion manager Gustavo Poyet. The other players to be released from their contracts by Forest manager Billy Davies are defenders Joe Heath and Aaron Mitchell and midfielder James Reid. A statement on the club's official website said: "We would like to wish all four players every success in their futures."

Huddersfield have completed the signing of defender Krystian Pearce from Birmingham on a short-term deal until the end of the season.

Pearce, 20, has joined initially on an emergency loan, which allowed him to play in Huddersfield's game against Bristol Rovers last night, before completing a permanent switch to the Galpharm Stadium today.

Pearce, who joined the Blues as a 10-year-old but did not appear for the first team at St Andrew's, recently returned from a six-month loan spell at Peterborough. The former England youth international is hoping to convince Town manager Lee Clark he is worth a longer-term deal in the summer.

The Doncaster manager Sean O'Driscoll insists the club have not received any offers for captain Brian Stock.The Wales midfielder has been strongly linked with League One side Southampton, who were reported to have had a bid rejected earlier this week.

However, O'Driscoll maintains there has been no contact between the two clubs and said: "He's a Southampton lad so the media put two and two together and come up with whatever they want to.

"To me this is just a ruse to sell newspapers with no one contacting me about it to add the Rovers side of the issue.

"I believe [Southampton manager] Alan Pardew was asked by a journalist after the game about Brian Stock and his quote was that he felt Doncaster's valuation of their skipper would not match theirs. My valuation of their skipper would be different to theirs, as would my valuation of Robinho if asked, and it annoys me that people jump to conclusions. To put the record straight, I have had no contact with anyone over Brian or had any offers."

Carlisle are hoping to finalise teenager Gary Madine's permanent switch to Coventry "within the next 72 hours". The Cumbrians have given Madine permission to appear for Coventry's reserve side in a practice game, while talks between the two clubs are on-going. Madine, who signed a two-and-a-half year deal with Carlisle soon after making his first-team debut against Nottingham Forest in March 2008, spent three months on loan at the Ricoh Arena from October.