CHRIS WADDLE has no immediate plans to bolster his resources as Burnley face Wrexham tonight in the middle of a 16-game marathon, writes PETE OLIVER.

Those fixtures have been wedged inside two months with Burnley due to play every Tuesday bar one in the spell between January 24 and March 21.

Waddle will also be without the injured Damian Matthew against Wrexham.

But the manager feels that he still has enough options within his squad to cope with the twin demands of staying clear of relegation and trying to reach the final of the Auto Windscreens Shield at Wembley.

The Burnley boss said: "Lee Howey was back in full training yesterday and I am training again which is two players back.

"We have got the substitutes from Saturday and Paul Smith will hopefully be back next week after getting a cut on his foot.

"I think we have cover for a lot of positions and ideally you would want to play the same team all the time."

Waddle nipped in the bud an interest from Stockport County in midfielder Glen Little and it appears his only likely transfer activity would come should suspensions or injuries bite deeper.

"I have still got three loans available if I need them," he added.

With Matthew facing a spell on the sidelines, which will also coincide with a two-match ban, Mark Ford, Jamie Hoyland and Paul Weller face a three-way fight to take his place against 10th-placed Wrexham. Ford, who lost his own place to Mark Robertson because of suspension, replaced Matthew towards the end of Saturday's frustrating 1-1 draw with Brentford but Waddle confirmed that he is keeping his options open.

Despite their hectic schedule, Waddle, who rested a number of players in the early rounds of the Shield, believes tiredness should not become a factor if his side can get back to winning ways and stay clear of the relegation zone.

"I played nearly 60 games for Sheffield Wednesday one season and if you're winning it you enjoy it," said the Burnley boss.

"It's a mental thing. We have got to make sure players are strong in their own minds and feel strong.

"If people say you are tired then you feel it. We have got quite a young side and a fit side so I don't see a problem.

"People say we've had some games but Grimsby seem to be playing a lot and they are right up there.

"It's up to the players to kick in and start winning a few games and get us out of trouble so that we can play Grimsby in the Auto Windscreens Shield in a more relaxed way."

With most of the sides at the foot of the table playing each other tonight the battle for safety could become even more congested with a several more sides getting pulled towards the danger zone.

"Ideally we would have picked up six points from these two home games but we have got to make sure we get four.

"A draw would not be the end of the world but we would like a positive result," added Waddle, who is looking to reel in the sides above him.

"The teams on 40 points are not safe. If we get three points we will be on 37 and just one result behind them.

"A lot of teams in the top half of the table will be looking over their shoulders if they don't get a few results.

"It's full credit to the all the sides at the bottom that they are digging in and no side has been cut adrift."

Burnley from: Beresford, Brass, Winstanley, Harrison, Moore, Little, Blatherwick, Robertson, Cooke, Payton, Ford, Weller, Hoyland, Henderson.

Wrexham from: Cartwright, McGregor, Brace, Carey, Ridler, Humes, Ward, Brammer, Owen, Basham, Roberts, Skinner, Wainwright, Wilson.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.