YORK City boss Chris Brass is counting on the club's six strikers to boost the Minstermen's poor goalscoring record away from Bootham Crescent ahead of Saturday's trip to Leyton Orient.

Brass's' side have scored in all 10 of the club's league and cup home games this campaign but on their travels have fired blanks in six out of nine Division Three encounters.

City avoided setting a new club record of seven successive away games without a goal on their last outing at Cheltenham thanks to Jon Parkin's spectacular goal and Brass has since bolstered his strikeforce with the twin signings of Jon Shaw and Gary Browne.

With Lee Nogan, Liam George, and Aron Wilford also competing for forward places, Brass now has more attacking options than at any other point this season and that situation will be further enhanced after Parkin has sat out the final two matches of a four-game ban.

The City boss said: "I think the fact that we have been fortunate enough to bring in an extra two strikers will keep everybody on their toes. The other players know they have to raise their game because nobody's entitled to a starting place now."

Browne, released by Manchester City in the summer, made his Football League debut against Doncaster on Saturday after signing a one-month contract at Bootham Crescent.

But on-loan Sheffield Wednesday forward Shaw is also in strong contention for a starting place at Brisbane Road, having impressed as a second-half substitute against Doncaster and scored both goals in a 2-0 behind-closed-doors reserve victory over Mansfield this week.

"The two lads have come in and done well," Brass said. "But that will have to continue because they know they have not come in with guaranteed places although if they perform like they did on Saturday they will be pushing for first team places of their own this monh.

"We knew a little bit about Jon Shaw - enough for us to take a look at him in training and he impressed us, as he still is doing, so when his chance comes I am sure he will take it."

Brass' transfer market acumen has also meant that the recruitment of two new forwards has been made without upsetting the important need to balance the books at Bootham Crescent.

The player-boss said: "Sheffield Wednesday have helped us out with Jon and we needed that while Gary has just come in on a month and, if he does well, we will sit down and he will be offered a more lucrative and long-term deal. At this moment, he's basically taking the opportunity as much as anything, but he will still have to produce to earn something else."

Brass recently considered a loan move for 21-year-old front man Wilford but said he is not looking to offload any of his strikers, preferring the healthy competition of six players fighting for two starting spots.

"It's a possibility to loan one out but, at this moment in time, it's a case of the more the merrier. I think you look at other teams and they have an abundance of strikers. Paul Barnes was not even in Doncaster's squad on Saturday.

"For the first time we have got three strikers as substitutes and that's better because your bench needs people who can come on and change the game. Yes, you need a goalkeeper and a midfielder or a defender to cover for injuries but your forwards are the ones that keep the ones on the pitch on their toes.

"The forwards also work extremely hard and they need to be changed every now and again when you can only get 70 minutes out of them."

The experienced Mitch Ward has missed training this week as he struggles to overcome the thigh injury that saw him miss Doncaster's visit on Saturday.

Fellow midfielder Christian Fox is now approaching full fitness but is unlikely to make the trip to Leyton Orient.

Updated: 11:15 Thursday, November 20, 2003