BURY loan striker Courtney Duffus has returned to parent club Everton just hours after it was confirmed that Tom Kennedy had been recalled by Rochdale.

Duffus and Kennedy were expected to stay at the JD Stadium until at least January after signing before the match at Southend on October 25.

They both started that game but Kennedy only went on to make one further appearance from the bench, while Duffus managed a total of just 160 minutes in five matches.

“I think Courtney has come and had quite a difficult experience,” said Bury boss David Flitcroft of the 19-year-old front man.

“I think it has been a fantastic experience. The pressure on Courtney to deliver with all the big strikers out at the time was quite difficult.

“He got thrown in at the deep end but I think for his development, sat on the bench and maybe not getting game time, it is right that we all do the right thing.

“We have got a fantastic relationship with Everton and they play Celtic on Tuesday in the Under-21s, so Courtney can have 90 minutes in that.”

Bury officially confirmed that Kennedy had returned to Rochdale this morning, despite initially re-joining the club with a view to a permanent move.

The 29-year-old Bury-born player, who kicked off his career at Gigg Lane, was immediately shipped back out on loan to Championship side Blackpool, starting in their 1-1 draw at home to Bolton Wanderers.

“You want to try to play at the highest level for as long as you can and Tom got that opportunity,” said Flitcroft.

“I wouldn’t want to stand in his way or stand in anyone’s way, if they had the opportunity to do that.

“He was only on loan until January, and those chances don’t come up a lot. So Tom, with our blessing and Rochdale’s blessing, has gone to Blackpool and is back in the Champ.

“I hope he does really well. I want all players to be successful and hopefully Tom will be.”

Kennedy returned those good wishes in his post-match press conference.

“I just want to thank everyone at Bury – the staff, the players and the fans, who supported me. I thoroughly enjoyed my short stay there and I have no doubt that that group of players will achieve promotion come the end of the season.”

Duffus was also full of praise for his former Shakers team-mates.

He wrote on his official Twitter page: “Great loan experience, great bunch of lads. All the best for the rest of the season.”