BORO manager Kevin Glendon has wasted no time in spending some of the £20,000 kitty from the sale of Jody Banim to Nationwide Conference side Shrewsbury Town.

He splashed out £2,000 on rugged forward Steve 'Fozzy' Foster from fellow Unibond Premier outfit Stalybridge Celtic, beating Saturday's conquerers Altrincham to his signature.

The 21-year-old knocked in 24 goals last season for Hyde United in the Unibond First Division, and so far this season has netted six times for Celtic, having been played in a more defensive midfield role. He had been dropped recently by Celtic and had turned down a move to Runcorn.

"I originally wanted him to play alongside Jody because he is a different type of player, he's much more aggressive and in-your-face," said Glendon.

"He's got a lot of talent and I'm excited at the prospect of working with him. He's another natural goal scorer, but Stalybridge have played him in midfield where I think he is wasted.

"With Jody going it's left us up in the air a bit, we've just got to settle down and stop feeling sorry for ourselves. We've brought Steve in and he'll play Saturday, hopefully by then I'll have brought in a couple more, so things are not as bad as people make out.

"I thought I'd got Lee Buggie from Ramsbottom, but he's decided to stay where he is."

One player thought to fit the bill is Foster's Celtic teammate, 25-year-old Blackburn-born Phil Eastwood, who, despite missing the start of the season through injury, saved his side's blushes last Saturday when he netted the equaliser in Celtic's 1-1 draw with Burscough.

Glendon is also trying to lure experienced centre-back Neil Whitworth to Stainton Park from the team just below Boro in the league, Southport, who transfer-listed him this week.

Aged 31, the former England Youth international has extensive league experience, including one game for Manchester United.

"You have to defend as a team. You can't blame the defenders for everything," he siad: " They have been under pressure because the players in front of them haven't been doing their bit defensively. It all starts with the forwards.

"We played Jody up front a lot on his own and he was our first line of defence. We've lost him and brought in Foster and I was going to pair him up front with Chris Denham, but now we've lost Chris for at least six weeks with a knee injury.

"Honestly, it's a case of one step forward, two steps back.

"We got a lot of money for Jody but most of that will go on ground improvements, so I have to be very shrewd in who I spent my bit on.

"I'm on the phone constantly trying to sort out deals but people are asking crazy money. Even at this level the game is all about money. But there's no panic, we've not become a bad team overnight.

"Yes, losing someone like Jody is a set-back, but it's only temporary. The fans I've spoken to are optimistic, let's face it, people were tipping us to go straight back down again this year.

"But I honestly believe we've got a good team and we are more than capable of finishing high enough to qualify for the new Northern Alliance."

Tomorrow Boro entertain second-placed Hucknall Town: "It's a massive test for us," said Glendon.

"They are a very good team but there is a huge difference in what Radcliffe and teams like Hucknall have to spent on players. But we'll be employing a new system and I'm really looking forward to the game."