FOOTBALL

FALKIRK TARGET SIX NEW PLAYERS

May has brought Bullen out of retirement, pictured

Saturday November 7,2009

By Daily Express Reporter

EDDIE MAY wants hard cash to sign SIX new players in January and give the Bairns a fighting chance of avoiding the catastrophe of relegation.

The Falkirk gaffer has been rocked by injuries to key men and poor form and reckons the Falkirk board have to gamble in January to boost the quality at the club.

May reckons he will have to field the youngest ever side in the SPL against Celtic tomorrow because of the squad cutbacks he's faced at the SPL's rock bottom club.

On the flip side he's been forced to drag 38-year-old reserve coach Lee Bullen out of retirement to boost numbers after Jackie McNamara, Tam Scobbie and Burton O'Brien joined the crock list.

And May - who is upset that he's been branded a flop boss - reckons fresh blood is the best way to save the Bairns.

He admitted: "The league table doesn't lie Ð we definitely need more depth to the squad.

"It's no use trying to do the job with one hand behind your back at this level in the Premier League.

"People might say I'm a bad manager, but I don't think I've had the right resources to work with at this point in time.

"If I could bring in six players it would be beneficial to us.

"I want better players and that costs a bit of money.

"There's been a major cutback. A third of the playing pool has gone because of things like losing £300,000 of TV money.

"Money is tight - they overspent last year and had a big fright.

"The club was 20 minutes from being relegated and the board thought it wasn't money well spent and cut it.

"But there is a balance to be had.

"If they come out with a big swag bag now I'd say I'd rather have had it at the beginning rather than the end and we might not be in this position.

"But I'm sure chairman Martin Ritchie - who has been fantastic to me - will back me on this if he can

"I can't guarantee if they give me money it will produce results, but I hope we can and the standard of players will dictate it.

"The board have to make the investment.

"The cutbacks were for the right reason Ð if they didn't the club would be near administration again.

"But we have to find that balance."

Falkirk are hopeful of signing former West Brom star Pedro Pele and are keen on ex-Rangers striker Steven MacLean currently at Plymouth.

"We're hopeful of Pele Ð people say to me I hope it's the real one. I don't Ð he's 70 and can't run!

"Hopefully he can go and progress here," added May.

Meanwhile, defender Jackie McNamara is facing six weeks on the sidelines with a medial ligament injury.

His left leg is in a brace and he added: "IT's a blow, but I feared I'd suffered a much worse injury and I'm quite relieved it's not as bad as I first thought."