Source: FOOTYMAD
Southend United's Paul Sturrock after Barnet and Northampton
1 SOUTHEND United manager Paul Sturrock would love to bolster his depleted squad with loan signings. But the Scotsman has admitted it would be difficult for fresh faces to work their way in to the starting line-up. Blues have now lost just one of their last nine matches. However, Sturrock remains seriously short of options. "Ideally it would be great if we could bring in a couple of loan players," said Sturrock. "We're down to the bare bones and don't have many other people to call on but I don't want to disrupt the team so it's a difficult call to make. "If you bring in loan players then you have to play them really and the boys have been doing well in the last few weeks so we will have to see how the squad are feeling this week before making any decisions." Sturrock was forced to select two youth team players - Lyle Della-Verde and Alex Woodyard - on the bench for Tuesday's 2-1 triumph over Barnet, while teenage striker Kyle Asante was also among the substitutes. A run of injuries has not helped and defender Mark Phillips (groin) and midfielder Anthony Grant (concussion) are again expected to be out of this weekend's home clash with Northampton Town. But midfielder Kane Ferdinand could be fit to return from an ankle problem and strikers Barry Corr and Harry Crawford may also be available. "We're hopeful Kane and Harry will be OK and Barry should be able to start," confirmed Sturrock. "He was feeling his hamstring when he got to the ground on Tuesday so we didn't take a risk and that means he should be fine to play Saturday."
