Boss Rob Smith was today casting his net far and wide as he looks for a new striker to cure AFC Telford United’s goalscoring blues.

The Bucks suffered their third consecutive defeat last night as they went down 2-0 at Blyth Spartans – a result that Smith accepts has pretty much ruled them out of the Blue Square North championship picture.

They have failed to score in any of those three games, and were forced to play Mark Danks as a sole striker last night.

He was the only front man available due to injuries to Andy Brown (Achilles) and Danny Carey-Bertram (hamstring), as well as Terry Fearns’ well-publicised suspension.

Any new recruit would be ineligible for Saturday’s FA Trophy semi-final second leg at York City, but Smith hopes to have someone on board in time to feature in Monday evening’s league trip to Hinckley.

“We’ve been looking very hard for the last two or three weeks, but it is very difficult at the moment to get the right player at the right price,” he said.

“A lot of players are under contract and clubs are asking for ridiculous fees, which we won’t pay.

“Then we look at pro clubs, but it’s generally Academy players who are available there and that’s not what we’re after.

“If I can get a fresh face in though, it will give us a lift and we can start again.”

Meanwhile, Smith cut a frustrated figure as he reflected on the fruitless trek to Blyth – especially as he rated the performance as one of Telford’s best since the turn of the year.

The Bucks conceded two first half goals and they also had substitute Martyn Naylor sent off in the last minute.

“I thought the first 45 minutes it was the best we have played in the last 10 games,” said Smith.

“I thought we completely dominated it but gave away a sloppy first goal.

“Then Jimmy (Turner) gave away a ridiculous penalty, and it was so frustrating for us on the bench because we had played so well.

“There were a lot of good performances out there, but for no points again.

“This has been a horrendous three weeks for me personally – and it’s probably the lowest I’ve felt in all my time at the club.”

By CHRIS HUDSON