PAUL Huntington thanked David Sharpe for sticking to his word as he looks to impress City in a four-month audition.

The former Carlisle captain has penned a short-term contract at Valley Parade initially until the end of January.

Huntington spent the summer training with other free agents in the PFA pre-season camp as he waited for his next club.

City were among those to get in touch early on – with head of football operations Sharpe declaring their potential interest. But the defender was not sure if it would come to anything.

Huntington said: “He said they’d signed a few (centre halves) but if anything changes he’d let me know.

"I knew of David but I didn't know him well. You think it's not a fob-off but him being polite.

“You're not sure it's going to come but it has and he's stuck to his word.

"There were no promises. I think they've had quite a few from what the lads have told me in pre-season and even in the season that have come in and trained.

"There were no favours.

"I said to the manager thanks for the opportunity. I appreciate it and I'll do everything I can to help the team on the pitch and the training ground and hopefully it's a successful season.”

Injuries to all three first-choice central defenders have rapidly altered the Valley Parade landscape. Neill Byrne and Aden Baldwin are back in training but Ciaran Kelly will be out for at least a couple more months.

Huntington, who could make his debut against Newport on Monday, admitted it took “maybe 20 minutes” to agree a deal.

"It wasn't really a hard one to do, being honest,” he added.

"I knew that with my age it wasn't really money-motivated, it was a motivation to get another promotion and be involved at a great club.

"I've shown I was keen to repay that faith.

"There were one or two things that came up since I've been training and I just had to be honest and say I was here and I would like to stick to my word.

"I would love to stay longer and if that's possible I'm sure we'll talk in due course but first I just need to get myself in the team and help the team win.”

Huntington was grateful for the PFA boot camp for keeping him fit and ready – and was amazed by the number of unattached players who took part.

Harry Chapman was at the PFA training camp in the summerHarry Chapman was at the PFA training camp in the summer (Image: Thomas Gadd)

Harry Chapman took part ahead of his move to Barnet and Liam Ridehalgh also got involved towards the end.

Huntington said: “It changed week to week. It was a young group to start off with and I felt like a dad, really!

"I knew more of the staff through playing against them than the players. But in the third, fourth, fifth, sixth week, more and more senior players came into it.

"The mood kind of changed throughout the weeks.

"Some lads were frustrated that something had fallen through or they'd gone training and it hadn't worked out. The motivation or the confidence is a bit dented.

"At the stage of my career I was at, it just had to feel right.

"There were clubs down south, good clubs and good opportunities. But I just felt with the location and being at the right club and also challenging at the right end of the league and not just settling for staying up or mid-table mediocrity.”

Huntington was surprised by some of the faces who appeared at the PFA sessions – and has been keeping tabs on where they end up.

"There's quite a lot in this league. Ciaran Clark, who was at Aston Villa, I don't think he's been fixed up yet, Martyn Waghorn, there were a lot of players who've had really good careers and they're walking through the door on a Monday and you're a bit baffled.

"Maybe it's the age, I've had that myself.

"When you're younger they say you don't have enough experience and when you're older they say you're too old. You can't win!

"Hopefully I can show I've still got plenty of football left in me.

"I've played about 540 games but I still feel as if I've got more in me and more to prove.”

Paul Huntington clashes with Andy Cook during the play-offsPaul Huntington clashes with Andy Cook during the play-offs (Image: PA)

Huntington was on the bench for the Morecambe draw and feels there will be plenty of opportunities.

"It's four months at the moment so there's plenty of time. I'm not looking too far ahead.

"I'm in a hotel at the moment so it's getting an apartment and just getting in a routine.

"But it was nice being involved the other night and I'm glad we got something out of it in the end because we've got some key players missing.

"The manager said he was not after perfection. Life's like that at times in any walk of life, isn't it?

“Things don't always go to plan and it's sometimes about how you react.

"We kept going and got something out of it and we're looking to build on that on Monday night.”