Former Carlisle United defender Mark Ellis has completed a move away from their fellow League Two club Tranmere Rovers.

The experienced centre-half has joined National League promotion-chasers Notts County in a move first revealed by the News & Star.

The loan deal until the end of the season will give 32-year-old Ellis some much-needed first-team football.

He has made just nine appearances this season for Tranmere.

Ellis returned from a cruciate knee ligament injury a year ago and has since had to be patient for games at Prenton Park.

His last outing came in November in the Papa John's Trophy against Wigan.

Boss Keith Hill has preferred the likes of Peter Clarke, Manny Monthe and George Ray at the back for the fifth-placed Wirral outfit.

Ellis, whose deal is up this summer, has headed to Meadow Lane where he will hope to add another promotion to his CV after previous successes with Shrewsbury, Forest Green and Tranmere.

Notts are currently sixth in non-league's top tier.

Ellis made 64 appearances for Carlisle from 2015-16.

Notts County boss Neal Ardley said he jumped at the chance to sign the ex-Blues man.

"We had a few younger lads who we quite liked on our list but we did a bit more digging, found out Mark was available and moved quickly," Ardley told the Notts website.

"In the centre back position, I think adding someone of Mark's experience was vital. With the run-in we've got, we needed to know what we were going to get and that's why Mark was our first choice over several of the younger boys we looked at.

"There has been interest in Mark from other clubs in our league but if he was ever going to drop into the National League it would be to play for a team challenging for promotion.

"Credit to him, he's got the ambition not to just go out and play some games, but to be part of something.

"He's a warrior."