£1.5 million international is Town's latest signing

Winger-cum-midfielder Jon McCarthy has been snapped up after impressing in the last summer friendly at Bromsgrove Rovers last Saturday.

And delighted new boss Steve Burr branded him "a class player who is a superb addition to the squad".

Indeed Burr is amazed no other clubs have already snaffled McCarthy, who celebrates his 33rd birthday on Monday.

Less than six years ago, Birmingham City paid Port Vale 1.5 million for him.

And he went on to make 147 appearances for The Blues, as well as win 19 international caps for Northern Ireland.

McCarthy had earned a reputation as a flying winger at York City, for whom he played 218 times and scored 35 goals, between 1990 and 1995. York sold him for 450,000 to Port Vale where he made 111 appearances.

His professional career was curtailed when he broke his leg at Birmingham. A comeback was foiled by another broken leg and he has played less than 40 times in the last two seasons, in cameo spells at Sheffield Wednesday, Port Vale again, Doncaster Rovers, York again and Carlisle United, from where he was released at the end of last season.

However last Saturday's performance convinced Burr of his fitness and sharpness and this week he became Town's NINTH pre-season signing.

Number ten was 20-year-old defender Nathan Winder, who also impressed in a trial at Bromsgrove. The Barnsley-born Winder is currently studying at Loughborough University but spent two seasons as a professional at Halifax Town and then Chesterfield.

Winder is one of four new defenders brought into the club by Burr and his assistant, former Macclesfield Town manager Peter Wragg.

The others are ex-Mansfield Town man Alistair Asher (22), left wing-back Dean Barrick, from Nuneaton Borough, and Adrian Brevett, the nephew of West Ham United full-back Rufus Brevett.

McCarthy bolsters a powerful midfield that also houses fellow new names, Gary Patterson (30), former captain of the England non-league team, and Roy Hunter (29), ex-skipper of Northampton Town.

And completing the roll-call of fresh signings are goalkeeper Stuart Nelson (21) and young strikers Danny Bacon (22) and James Tevendale (20).

A second 'keeper, James Lindley, will not be joining the club after all because he wants regular football.

But Bacon and Tevendale increase the competition for places up front, which has also been hotted up by the return to fitness of Gary Ricketts and Mark Nangle.

Ricketts scored a brace at Bromsgrove and looked so good that Burr has now delayed a proposed deal to bring ex-Mansfield Town hitman Mark Sale to the club on a month's loan.

For the time being, Sale has returned to Nationwide Conference new boys Tamworth where he is nursing an injury.

Nangle is to be farmed out on loan in a bid to regain full match-fitness and played for Ilkeston Town last Saturday.

Of last season's squad, seven players have departed — Phil Starbuck, Steve Prindiville, Clint Marcelle, Ryan Young, Scott Huckerby, Michael Savage and Russell Cooke.

Centre-back Savage has not been seen since breaking an ankle, while Cooke has opted to try his luck with Conference minnows Leigh RMI, where Starbuck is now assistant player/manager.

The surprise departure of Cooke (22) ends a four-year association with Town, during which he made more than 160 appearances and scored almost 30 goals.

Meanwhile Marcelle, whose exit was confirmed last week, has also signed for a Conference club in Stevenage Borough, for whom he was an unused substitute in their opening match against Chester City last Saturday.

Neither Cooke, nor Starbuck, featured in the Leigh team that beat Dagenham and Redbridge in their first match.

And it also emerged this week that Starbuck has still not followed up the threat to fight his sacking as player/manager at Watnall Road.

It is now a month since the former Nottingham Forest man told Town: "You have not heard the last of me yet".