COLCHESTER United chairman and owner Robbie Cowling says there is no truth in the rumours that defender Marc Tierney has rejected a final contract offer from the club.

The 25-year-old left-back – who is out-of-contract next summer – rejected a new deal towards the end of last season claiming that while he wanted to stay with his beloved U’s he also owed it to himself to get the best financial deal for his family.

The club and player mutually agreed to put talks on hold once the new season started and, while a national website yesterday claimed that Tierney had rejected a final take-it-or-leave-it offer, Cowling insists that is simply not the case.

“As far as we are concerned the situation is still the same,” said the U’s owner. “We haven’t finished negotiating with Marc, the offer remains on the table and he hasn’t said he doesn’t want to renew his contract. There is still plenty of time.”

Should Tierney not have signed a new deal by the start of the New Year then he would be free to negotiate with any interested clubs with view to a free transfer move next summer.

The former Oldham player has already missed much of this campaign with a shoulder injury and, having just returned to the side, is now set to miss at least another two weeks after undergoing a minor hernia operation this week.