ACCRINGTON Stanley centre back Jonathan Smith is praying that an untimely injury causes no more damage than a handful of missed games.

The 26-year-old slipped on ice and has broken a bone in his hand, meaning he faces a possible three weeks on the sidelines. But he is more concerned that he could have damaged his chance of regaining and retaining a regular first team place.

A knee injury saw him sit out a clutch of games before Christmas and now, with full-time contracts up for grabs in the summer, Smith is anxious that he can be back as soon as possible to stake a claim for a professional role with the Interlink Express Stadium club.

"I am getting a bit of ribbing at the club about the injury - I slipped taking the dog for a walk," said Smith.

"I have broken my hand, but it is also twisted so it may need pinning and until I have further tests I don't know just how long I will be out.

"Hopefully we are only looking at two or three weeks because I don't want to be out of the side too long.

"The Burton game was my first for a few weeks after I damaged my knee ligaments in the FA Cup win over Bournemouth and I had been wanting to get a run in the team again."

That could well have meant a game against Bamber Bridge in the quarter-finals of the Lancashire Marsden Trophy tonight at Irongate (7.45), but instead Smith joins a list of Stanley casualties who will miss the cup-tie.

Midfielders Paul Cook, Andy Gouck, Ged Brannan and Gordon Armstrong are all carrying knocks ahead of the tie.

But Smith is just determined to be back in contention as soon as possible.

"The injury really is a big setback," he said.

"I had been looking at the Bamber Bridge game tonight as a chance to get my place back in the first team.

"Being in the side is important because there will be first team contracts in the offing and I had been hopeful of a few games while Steve Halford was out.

"Instead the injury means I am going to have to fight for my place again - and the club might even go out and bring in another defender which will increase the competition even more."

But the battle for contracts and places will fire up Stanley's push for the play-offs.

"We are just over half way through the season and we have seen all the sides in the division now," said Smith.

"At the start of the season we would have accepted a mid-table position, but we now know that there is nothing out there to scare us and that we have a side strong enough to earn one of those play-off places.

"All we have to do is keep pushing and pick up as many points as we can in the run-in to the end of the season."