Hutton shown the Brandywell door

Derry City captain Peter Hutton has been told that his contract at the Brandywell will not be renewed next season.

The club are in the middle of a major crisis at the moment and have decided that there was no place for 36-year-old Hutton in next year’s plans.

‘It was like a bolt out of the blue but I don't hold any grudges,’ said Hutton on the BBC website.

‘I was informed by Stephen Kenny that my contract would not be renewed and I was disappointed, but that's football.

‘It's very disappointing that the club is on its knees again.

‘I was at the Brandywell in 2000 when the club experienced financial difficulties and, even before that, there were problems when Derry had to go into voluntary liquidation during the 1990s.’

The cash-strapped club have been making headlines recently for all the wrong reasons with players not getting paid on time, while there has also been a lot of speculation about Derry returning to the Irish League or possibly getting demoted to the League of Ireland First Division.

Hutton added: ‘My over-riding feeling is one of sadness. I've been involved as one of the players' representatives in the ongoing discussions with the Board and I've become a bit disillusioned.

‘The club has been very good to me as a player, but the state of the local game is not good at the moment and we've come to understand that we are not immune from the difficulties.

‘It's certainly been a rollercoaster ride for me but, fingers crossed, people will rally around and the club will return a much better organisation for the changes that will be made.’