YORK City boss Billy McEwan is still looking to add three more players to his squad before the beginning of the Blue Square Premier season on August 11.

McEwan has made seven summer signings but hopes to take that tally into double figures ahead of the club's KitKat Crescent curtain- raiser against Cambridge.

A new defender remains top of the wanted list with David McGurk, the only fit centre-back.

Danny Parslow's ankle injury has been confirmed as soft tissue damage and nothing more serious following a second scan but, regardless of his condition, McEwan is still keen to strengthen.

He said: "I'm still looking for players and not just centre-backs. We need three more players to boost our squad. We've got other players who could play in the centre of defence like Darren Craddock and Ben Purkiss but I would ideally like a big, dominant centre-half."

McEwan has also challenged trialist defenders Brian Dutton and Carl Jones to illustrate their worth to the club with both expected to feature at Frickley Athletic tonight in a 7.30pm kick off.

He said: "They are here to prove they can earn a contract and we are having a good look at them. You can't judge a player on one game, but you can over a period of games.

"They have been getting 45 minutes, then 60 minutes and now we might see how they do over 90 minutes."

But fellow trialists Adam Bartlett, Joe Brown and Antiguan pair Gayson Gregory and Damien Farrell will not figure at Frickley.

England non-League international 'keeper Bartlett is believed to have returned to Blyth Spartans, while McEwan described ex-Bradford City winger Brown as "no better than what we have got".

Gregory and Farrell have returned to the Caribbean, but McEwan is not ruling out inviting them back for another trial, saying: "We wanted to look at Gregory for a bit longer, but he had a hamstring injury.

"Farrell is also a decent player, but they could only stay for two weeks and that's up now. I might get them back over again during the season though. At least it's given them an insight into what English football is all about."

Striker Richard Brodie will return to City's squad at the South Yorkshire-based UniBond League outfit having recovered from a head injury.