SHAKERS will make a formal request to fixture planners to stop their home fixtures clashing with Premiership giants Manchester United next season.

Co-chairmen John Smith and Fred Mason claim the lure of David Beckham, Ruud Van Nistelroy, Roy Keane and company is having a detremental effect on Bury's attendances as fans flock to Old Trafford rather than Gigg Lane.

Now they will ask the Football League to take this into account when the fixtures for the 2002-03 campaign are drawn up.

After an initial surge of support, following the announcement that cash-strapped Bury were heading into administration, crowd figures have dipped alarmingly once more with only 3,700 turning out to watch last weekend's draw with Port Vale.

"It was really disappointing on Saturday," said Mason.

"I think a major reason behind it is that our fixtures clash with Manchester united's. There are a lot of Man United fans in Bury and many have season tickets for both clubs, so we are losing out.

"We have tried in the past to get them to make sure our home games don't clash with United's but with little success so far. We will be trying again this year."

Until then Bury will desperately keep fighting to raise awareness of their plight and continue their massively successful fund raising drive as they aim to raise £400,000 by April 26 to save them from liquidation.

A sportsman's dinner is being pencilled in, ironically at Old Trafford, for the end of the season while the 'Buy a seat' appeal continues to attract interest, Port Vale's players and staff snapping up around £250 worth after having a whip round before last week's game.

The on-line auction held on the club's official website, www.buryfc.co.uk, has also gone from strength to strength with top prizes up for grabs including a signed Liverpool jersey, a signed Arsenal shirt, Kevin Keegan's first England shirt, a host of Shakers memorabilia and a complete set of programmes from Manchester United's 1968 European Cup winning campaign.

"I think we will comfortably make the £400,000 but we are hoping to have around £100,000 in the pot after that to see us a bit further through the summer," said Mason.

"We've got on-going fund raising but we are also planning a sponsored walk to the town hall on the last day of the season to try and make the council and the town as a whole more aware of how that game could be the last ever played at Gigg Lane."