Motherwell have announced 10 players who will be released in the summer, including defender Bobby Donnelly and midfielder Shaun Fagan.
Donnelly broke into the first-team as an 18-year-old under previous manager Terry Butcher.
But the 20-year-old has made just three appearances this term - his last outing under Maurice Malpas was in September.
Fagan made his first-team debut in 2002, but the 23-year-old has been on loan with Third Division Stenhousemuir.
Striker Adam Coakley has made three substitute appearances for the Scottish Premier League outfit, but the 19-year-old has also been on loan with Stenhousemuir.
Steve Maguire, a 20-year-old midfielder, has made five first-team appearances but does not figure in Malpas′s long-term plans.
Neither do goalkeeper Dougie Calder, 21, and defender Willie Soutar, 19, who have also been part of the first-team squad.
Youth team members Mark Sideserf, Craig Brownlie, David Gormley and Alex Donnelly will also leave in the summer.
However, youth squad members Kenny Connelly, David Nixon and Alan Martin have been offered new contracts.
Meanwhile, Malpas has spoken of his delight at the return to action of defender Brian McLean.
The 22-year-old played against Rangers reserves, his first action since suffering a knee injury in September.
And Malpas said: "He was very nervous before the game on Wednesday for fear that anything went wrong. He flew the 45 minutes he played, but he is a bit sore and stiff now. We are pleased for him as a person as much as we are as a club to have him back."
Malpas hopes that McLean can return to the first-team before the end of the season.
Veteran midfielder Phil O′Donnell was due to return to action in the same reserve game but was forced to sit the game out after feeling tightness in his calf.
O′Donnell has been told he must prove his fitness before being offered a new contract for next season.
09 January 2007
Hearts have signed Stenhousemuir striker David Templeton for £30,000.
The 18-year-old Scotland youth international is expected to begin his career at Tynecastle as a member of the under-19 squad.
Templeton told Hearts' website: "The move to full-time football will help me develop my game and will also allow me to build myself up physically."
Stenhousemuir manager Campbell Money said Templeton has "good pace, two good feet and he scores goals".
Templeton said: "Hearts is a big club and I'm looking forward to joining the Jambos. I learnt about the potential move on Saturday, but I was obviously familiar with the club and its training facilities."
Money, the former St Mirren goalkeeper, added: "He is a good type of boy, he will potentially grow into a very good striker."
Hearts have been the most active Scottish Premier League side in the January transfer window, bringing in two strikers and two goalkeepers.
Templeton has been joined at Tynecastle by Polish frontman Arkadiusz Klimek, who moved from FBK Kaunas.
Lithuania goalkeeper Eduardas Kurskis also arrived from Kaunas, while keeper Arnas Lekevicius signed a five-year deal after arriving from the Lithuanian side FK Atlantas.
Kaunas defender Mindaugas Baguzis has also arrived at Tynecastle for a week-long trial.
16 December 2006
Hibernian boss John Collins today admitted a few of his young Easter Road stars could be on the move next month - but only on a temporary basis.
Defender Jay Shields has already left the club, joining First Division promotion hopefuls Dundee on a three-month loan spell, and Collins is ready to give others their chance of regular first-team football.
Since taking over from Tony Mowbray almost seven weeks ago, Collins and his assistant Tommy Craig have been assessing the strength of the squad they inherited.
But while that has focused, naturally, on those challenging for a first-team jersey Collins and Craig have also taken a keen interest not only in their reserve side but the club's Under-19 outfit.
And with the January transfer window only a couple of weeks away, Collins will be open to offers for those youngsters he believes will benefit from a period on loan at another club.
The reserve team only have one match in January, the re-arranged clash at home to Aberdeen, and only seven games thereafter while the Under-19s have no game at all next month, providing the ideal opportunity, Collins believes, to arrange much-needed experience for a number of Hibs youngsters.
He said: "There are a few who could do with a bit of first-team experience and going out on loan is a good way to do that.
"It's good for them because it means they keep playing and hopefully come back to the club as better all-round players."
Placing players with other clubs has proved a more than beneficial route for Hibs in the past with Garry O'Connor having spent a spell on loan with Peterhead as a 16-year-old while Derek Riordan enjoyed a short period with Cowdenbeath and, further back, Kenny Miller caught the eye with goals for Stenhousemuir.
Shields, who has been on the fringes of Hibs first-team squad for the past year, spent part of last season on loan to Berwick Rangers while at present Northern Ireland Under-21 defender Dermott McCaffrey is with Queen of the South and midfielder Kevin McDonald has joined Airdrie United.
John Park, chief scout and youth academy director, believes such deals are a "win-win" option for Hibs as youngsters not only gain experience but an opportunity to develop their social skills as they arrive in a new dressing room.
He said: "As a club we've never said we want to go winning leagues at youth level, what we want to do is develop players, to get them doing the right things. We have managers from other clubs coming to our reserve and Under-19 games on a regular basis and then come asking if they can take this player or that on loan."
And there comes a time, Park insisted, when youngsters need the taste of first-team football and, if that isn't immediately available at Easter Road, then a short spell elsewhere is mutually beneficial to Hibs and the club enjoying the arrival of a new face.
He said: "What they get is more of a 'man's game'. They are suddenly playing alongside guys who are playing for win bonuses, for the points that mean prizes. They'll also find the game more physical and need to be a bit sharper."
With many of Hibs' youngsters going straight from school into Easter Road, Park believes it can also be of importance for them to see a different face of football, particularly if they are asked to join a club from a lower league where their new team-mates may well be part-time.
He said: "Sometimes it can be a bit of a culture shock but it is also good for them to see what else is out there on the other side of the fence. That can also spur them on and when they return they are desperate to push on for a first-team place here."
