CHORLEY boss Mark Patterson has swooped to sign former Sheffield United and Bury defender Andy Woodward ahead of the Magpies' trip to table-topping Matlock Town tomorrow.

Patterson knows Woodward from his days at Gigg Lane and the versatile 30-year-old goes straight into the squad for the match at Causeway Lane.

Woodward boasts a wealth of experience in the Football League having racked up over a century of appearances for Crewe, Bury, Sheffield United, Scunthorpe and Halifax.

Last season, he appeared for Northwich Victoria in the Nationwide Conference before quitting to pursue a career in the police.

However, Woodward is now ready to resume his football career after completing his training for the force and Patterson has wasted little time in bringing him to Victory Park.

"Andy's still only 30, he's got a great deal of experience, and he'll be a good lad to have around," said the Chorley boss.

"He's in need of a few games because he hasn't really played this season so it's going to take him a few weeks before he's anywhere near.

"But because we're a bit thin on numbers, he'll go straight into the squad tomorrow and he'll probably start on the bench."

Woodward's arrival was the high point in what has been an otherwise difficult week for the Chorley boss.

On Monday, leading scorer Lee Wilkinson became the latest player to leave Victory Park when he signed for Bacup Borough.

Then defender Paul Varley joined the exodus when he left for Salford City where he linked up with former Magpies chief Mark Molyneaux and a host of his ex-team-mates.

Molyneaux also made an attempt to entice David Eatock to the North West Counties League club but Patterson had a heart-to-heart with the player on Tuesday night and managed to persuade him to stay.

"I spoke to David, we had a good talk, and he told me that he wants to stay with us," said Patterson.

"He likes the club, he likes the way the first team is being looked after, and he likes the way we train."

Now Patterson hopes he has seen an end to the departures as he looks to build a squad capable of finishing in the top half of the table -- the minimum requirement if Chorley are to feature in a new UniBond Premier Division next season.

The sheer volume of players who have left since Molyneaux got the sack has made Patterson's first month in the hot seat a difficult one.

However, the former Blackburn Rovers star is convinced things will now start to settle down as he looks to the future.

"The first month or so has been a bit more difficult than I was expecting because of all the comings and goings," said Patterson.

"But it was a case of clearing the decks, then having a look at what was left, and trying to build from there.

"We've now got about 14 players and ideally I want 16 or 17.

"I've spoken to all my senior players and they've told me that they are happy to stay so now we can start building for the rest of the season."

That process will begin with the return of prolific striker Andy Mason, who is expected to re-join the club before Christmas after completing his training for the fire brigade.

Patterson said: "Andy was at Bolton when I was and I know he will score goals for us at this level.

"I want him to come in and score 15 goals for us between now and the end of the season."