BURY have released Ashley Grimes by mutual consent, the club has confirmed.

The 27-year-old former Rochdale forward, who has a year left on his contract, was placed on the transfer list in May following a disappointing debut season.

He failed to score a first-team goal in 18 appearances and had been lined up for a move to Cheltenham Town during the summer but a potential deal fell through.

Shakers manager David Flitcroft confirmed the interest from their League Two rivals last week but looked to have given Grimes a way back into the side after handing him a squad number for the coming season.

He said after last week’s 3-1 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday: “Grimes has come back into the squad until he is told otherwise or until another club comes in.”

Grimes scored twice to help a second-string Bury side open their pre-season with a 4-1 win at Radcliffe Borough.

It had seemed that performance, coupled with a shortage of strikers at the club, would earn Grimes a longer stay at the JD Stadium.

Flitcroft added: “He is as fit as I have ever seen him. We have got him in good nick. He has not missed a day’s training.

“Cheltenham had a sniff at him and that fell by the wayside. We actually thought that was going to get done and then it wasn’t.

“I tried to get him involved last season a bit more and I think because of his conditioning and where he was at he wasn’t able to fulfil what I thought Ash could do.

“But he has been through all the sessions this summer and he is in a good place so Ash is with us.”

It is not yet clear if Cheltenham have come back in with an improved offer, or whether Bury have agreed to waive any fee they could have commanded for the player.

It is also possible that there has been a breakthrough in the club's negotiations with Barnsley over a potential season-long loan for 20-year-old striker Danny Rose.