Bully embarks on striker mission
Stafford manager Steve Bull's search for a new striker will take him to Birmingham today ahead of the Setanta Shield clash with Southport.
Stafford manager Steve Bull's search for a new striker will take him to Birmingham today ahead of the Setanta Shield clash with Southport.
Rangers take on their Blue Square North rivals at Marston Road tonight (7:45pm), hoping for a much better show than the disappointing 1-0 defeat to visiting Redditch in the league on Saturday.
Bully will first take in Blues' reserve team match against Wolves' second string in a behind-closed-doors midday friendly at Wast Hills, with the objective painfully clear - finding a new striker.
Saturday was the third game without a goal for Stafford, even with Bully reverting to a 4-4-2 formation, with Paul McMahon given his big chance to partner David McNiven in attack.
All it highlighted was that Rangers need a new striker more than ever and the manager knows it.
He said: "Paul had his chance and did not take it. People were shouting behind me to put another striker on and it did not work, because we need a new face in.
"We are working our balls off to get a new striker in and we know how important it is. I feel that is all that we are missing. We have the base of a good side.
"I am going down to Birmingham today to see what they have got. Hopefully that could lead to something. Myself and the coaching staff are all over the place looking at the moment.
"I was even at Hednesford the other night running the rule over players. Hopefully we can unearth a little gem somewhere and the search will not stop until we have."
Stafford will then turn their attentions to the tough job at hand, progression past the third round at the expense of a side that comprehensively beat them on their own patch 3-0 in the league earlier this season.
Bully wants to dispell that defeat and bring a bit of cheer to a currently sullen Marston Road in the process.
He said: "Hopefully we will not go out there with the same attitude that we did on Saturday and hopefully the players will remember what Southport did to them in the first 20 minutes last time.
"We need to right some wrongs tonight."
