Very nasty indeed .. i have seen this before you are not the first poor sod.. has this car ever had a clutch fitted before. if so i would suspect that someone has pulled the box in using the bolts around the bellhousing because they were unable to get the bellhousing all the way back to the block. normally caused by bad clutch alignment..AKA Mr clutch ha ha .. but to be honest i think i would sling that clutch away and start with a fresh one..Good Luck mate i hope all goes well for ya. Have a good christmas..