GOALS or lack of goals returned to haunt us on Saturday and saw us knocked out of the FA Cup.

We are not delivering on that front and for a side that is joint top of the league we are eight to 10 goals short of where we should be.

The finishing on Saturday let us down and we had enough clear cut chances to at least earn a replay but failure to hit the target cost us.

If you look at the bigger picture, the relatively small size of the squad has impacted all over the pitch including up front.

Injuries mean that Darren Middleton, our leading scorer, has been forced to play in midfield and every injury we get seems to turn into several weeks not just one match missed.

It's not ideal having to play Darren in midfield but with five players injured sometimes, matters are out of your hands, and you have to chop and change.

On Thursday night just four of the team that started at Hucknall were able to train which offers a glimpse of just how up against it we are.

Marc Burrow's injury shows no sign of easing at the moment while I'm getting worried about Asa Charlton's knock which is dragging on.

Then there is David Foy who will see a specialist about his knee tomorrow -- it all adds up.

However, there is a willingness and understanding shared by both myself and the board of directors to bring in new players but it's not always as easy as it appears and those injured players are still on the budget and still have to be paid.

As manager you take the flak but the harsh reality is that there is no bottomless pit. Another factor is that we have improved the quality of player in the squad so the pedigree of new player we want to bring in is higher which of course means clubs are more reluctant to let their better players go.

However I've been pleased with the players that I have added to the squad and they've all made contributions to our good start to the season.

David Holmes has fitted in well, even though he is not able to train due to his ankle injury, while fellow midfielder John Snape has been immense.

He should not have played against Hucknall Town but hopefully will have recovered in time for Saturday.

Duncan Willetts and Dan Jones made their debuts and they will get further chances soon. Both are champing at the bit and I would expect nothing less.

The Hucknall match ended a tricky three-game spell and with two defeats we have a job on our hands to bounce back for Cambridge City's visit on Saturday.

They've got some experienced players in their team and having beaten sides like Tiverton will be difficult to beat, but one advantage we will have is the crowd at St George's Lane.

They've got a big part to play in driving the team on as they did in helping us come back against Havant.

Worcester's supporters are some of the hardest to play in front of and unless players have the strength to perform on one of the biggest non- league stages they can fail to reach their potential.

But if they get behind us they can certainly give us a lift and I think that is what triggered our victory against Havant.

Although it's been a difficult week we have established ourselves near the top and laid the foundations for the rest of the year and must sustain the challenge.

In my time we've had FA Trophy, FA Cup and Southern League cup runs -- now perhaps is our turn to have a serious charge at the championship.