Recently released Bristol Rovers and ex-Bristol City striker linked with non-league move

Brett Pitman has been linked with a move to Oldham Athletic after his release from Bristol Rovers, but face a difficult task to sign him.

The 34-year-old was allowed to leave the Memorial Stadium after being named as one of the 13 players that wouldn’t be having their stays extended.

Having previously represented Bristol City for three seasons, Pitman made the shock move to Joey Barton’s men last summer in what was a busy recruitment period.

He played a total of 18 times and scored four goals across all competitions but was kept out of the side by Aaron Collins, whilst the addition of Ryan Loft and the return of Leon Clarke put him lower down the pecking order.

And now a new playing opportunity has emerged, though it would be another dip into non-league football and one that could see him move north for the first time in his career.

A report from the Oldham Times says that the recently relegated Lactics, who finished 23rd in League Two last year.

There is a key sticking point however in that the player is settled in the south of England and would be reluctant to move to another part of the country at this stage of his career.

Pitman stated back in February that even being at Bristol that a key motivation in his move to Eastleigh was to be with his family who are based on the South Coast.

The 34-year-old was commuting from Bournemouth to training and to matches during his time at Rovers but found himself out-of-favour having initially started off well in the blue side of Bristol.

A move isn’t out of the reckoning completely however as should Oldham state he could be an important first-team player then a deal could be a possibility.

Manager John Sheridan, who will remain at the club despite their relegation is hoping to assemble a squad that will bounce back at the first time of asking.

Discussed in the terms of his one-year contract extension, the 57-year-old sought assurances over his role in recruiting new players.

"That’s something I made clear even before I agreed to come in," he said in an interview with the Oldham Times.

"I’d like to bring players in and make us stronger and better and push harder to get us out of the league."

A new front-man is a priority position for Oldham Athletic after they too released 13 players, including top scorer Davis Keillor-Dunn.

Keillor-Dunn struck twice in the 2-1 win over Rovers back in February and could be a player of interest to them given his 15 goals for a struggling side.