JAMIE Devitt and Clayton Donaldson are close to handing City a double boost for the new year.

Gary Bowyer confirmed that the injured duo are both well on the way to featuring again in the next few weeks.

Devitt, who played just three times before tearing his hamstring tendon, was at Valley Parade on Sunday doing fitness runs before the Mansfield game.

And Donaldson, sidelined since October with a serious toe injury, is also building up his recovery in training.

Bowyer said: “From an attacking point of view, the fact that Clayton and Jamie are coming back into the squad is really pleasing.

“To lose two players of that quality, character and experience for the length of time we’ve had and still be in and around where we are is a credit to everybody else and how they’ve all contributed.

“It gives everybody a boost to see them coming back. They will be like two brand new signings for how long they’ve been out.

“It adds competition for places and people have got to step up to the mark.”

Devitt was just a couple of weeks into his season-long loan from Blackpool when he was injured in the Leasing.com Trophy at Bolton at the beginning of September.

But he is finally making good progress and Bowyer cannot wait to welcome back the League Two specialist, who registered 12 goals and seven assists at Carlisle last season.

Bowyer added: “That’s what we brought him in for. The number of goals he contributed over the years was something that attracted us to him.

“Obviously he’s got past experience with the club and he wants to do well for us.

“Unfortunately, that got taken away from him very early. Now he’s back at it.

“He’s been involved with us and trained with us for three full sessions.

“He’s got to build that up now for probably another week to 10 days and then we’ll try and get him a game after that. Then he should be back in with us.

“You look at what we’ve had missing. Clayton has gone really well again in training so a couple of weeks and he will be the same.

“If Jamie was stood here now, he’d tell you he was disappointed that I was making him do running (on Sunday) and that he wasn’t on the bench.

“But we’ve got to keep the reins on him and be sensible.”

Meanwhile, Bowyer is hoping his squad are over the worst of the sickness bug that has hit hard as City prepare to host Morecambe tomorrow.

“We’ve told them to make sure they look after themselves, eat the right foods and get plenty of the right fluids on board.”