DEPARTING hitman Darryl Knights thanked the Harriers fans' for their support and apologised for never hitting his best form.

The 22-year-old is set to end a two-and-a-half-year stay at Aggborough after manager Steve Burr decided not to offer him new a contract.

Knights, who has been linked with a move to Cambridge this summer, only managed 11 goals in 109 appearances.

The highly-rated former Ipswich youth joined Harriers on-loan from Yeovil Town in January 2008 and signed a two-year deal in the summer to make him one of the club's highest wage earners.

However, despite showing glimpses of his talent, he failed to light up Aggborough on a consistent basis and divided opinion between fans.

He said: "I'd like to thanks the fans for their support and say sorry for not producing what I'm capable of.

"My first full season here was very tough and it took me a while to get used to how physical the game was.

"But I felt I did better in the next season, but I know that I did not score enough goals.

"The fans were always very supportive of me and I'd like to thank them for that.

"I don't know why I didn't produce my best form consistently but I do feel there's more to come from me."

Ironically, Knights' performances in the final third of the season were some of his best at the club, but with Burr having to deal with a tight budget, it was decided to offload the striker from the wage bill.

The news that he wouldn't be offered a new deal was no surprise to Knights, who is assessing his options ahead of the 2010-11 season.

"I wasn't surprised that the club did not offer me a new contract," he said.

"I was one of the club's higher wage earners but I wasn't on that much money.

"To be fair to Harriers they're a well run club and they won't be getting themselves into trouble financially."

Knights' departure is part of a clear out at Harriers which has also seen strike partner Robbie Matthews transfer listed and keepers Dean Coleman and Jasbir Singh released.

Last season, Harriers scored 57 goals in the league, with midfielders Brian Smikle (12) and Chris McPhee (11) top scoring in the Blue Square Premier.

Knights only scored five goals all season as he played in the pivotal role behind a front two in the first half of the season, before being switched to a freer role on the right which got the best out of him.

However, he believes that the club did not adequately replace the strike partnership of Justin Richards and Matthews Barnes-Homer, who shared 42 goals between them in the 2008-09 season.

Knights commented: "Playing in the hole is a tough position.

"When I was moved onto the right I found it a more natural because I used to play there when I was younger.

"The whole team has struggled for goals, apart from Brian Smikle who did really well getting so many goals from the left side.

"We really missed Justin Richard and Matthews Barnes-Homer and never replaced them with a natural finisher."