Chelmsford City manager Gary Bellamy faces an injury crisis as the team prepares to play their 'landlords,' Billericay Town.

With Saturday's game at New Lodge, the last pre-season friendly, approaching fast Bellamy's already limited resources have been stretch to extremes with a posse of players currently suffering knocks.

'Thankfully none are too serious but it has disrupted the build-up," he said today (Friday). "The problem has been the particularly hard grounds we have been coping with."

Bellamy will be without the unavailable Paul Catley in goal and there are injury doubts surrounding Brett Girling, Daniel Reeve, John Girling, Ben Fuller, Kevin Dobinson and Barry Lakin but defender Shane Wardley is due back from holiday earlier in the day and should be able to play part of the game.

"We are hoping for some rain to soften the grounds up which would help," he added. "Our key target remains though to have everyone fit and ready for the first league game at Fleet."

Bellamy said he was disappointed with the team's overall performance at Heybridge on Saturday but full of praise for the side's 90 minutes of hard work against Dagenham & Redbridge on Monday.

"It was like chalk and cheese but it's all down to players having the right preparations for the game and then giving 100 per cent," he said.

"On Saturday we simply did not do this but on Monday it was totally different and the players now know what is expected."

Bellamy was also impressed by the central defensive partnership of John Girling and John Bishop and believes that City will have the strongest rearguard in the Dr Martens League East Division.

Meanwhile the search for new players continues with the emphasis on finding an additional striker, preferably someone with some experience to support the younger players.

The manager is also trying to resolve the problem of not having a second string goalkeeper with the added concern that City have no reserve side again this season.

"Billericay are in the same boat so we are talking with them to see if something can be resolved to our mutual benefits," he said.

"We are also talking about running some friendly matches during the season so that both clubs can use them to play squad players and also others coming back from injury who want to be tried out."

Hands up . . Chelmsford City's Tesfaye Bramble tries to go past Heybridge Swifts goalkeeper Kingsley Banks in Saturday's pre-season friendly at Scraley Road.

Picture by MARK LEES

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