Jimmy Quinn will be forced to change the defence for Saturday's game at home to Crawley Town.
Team News
With captain Danny Brown (foot) and strikers Lee Boylan and Dan Chillingworth (ankle) already ruled out, Jimmy Quinn has to plan without summer signing Gavin Hoyte for the next two weeks as the young defender has treatment on a hamstring problem.
The former Bedford youngster has made an impressive start to the season as United have remained unbeaten in the first eight games - the only club in the Blue Square Premier still unbeaten - but he is expected to miss the next 2-3 weeks.
However Mark Peters is an experienced replacement for Hoyte and midfielder Mark Convery is pressing for a recall after recovering from his opening day hamstring strain, while Quinn confirmed that he has confidence in the younger members of the squad.
First year pro Josh Coulson will provide the defensive cover on the bench tomorrow and Quinn commented yesterday, "He hasn't played yet but I wouldn't hesitate to throw young Josh on at any stage.
"I've told him he's been a bit unlucky that we've got so many decent centre halves this year, but it's a long season and over the course of this season we'll be picking up injuries and suspensions and he will play his part. He's a talented player and I expect him to be pushing the other players all the way.
"And Mark Convery is fit and he came on and made a difference at Exeter last weekend with his passing ability, but I haven't decided on the line-up yet and I'm having a think about him."
The manager has also been watching matches at a variety of levels, with a view to a loan signing to provide cover for strikers Scott Rendell and Leo Fortune-West: "With Lee Boylan still a couple of weeks away and Dan Chillingworth out for up to 14 weeks, I'm hopeful we can do something on that front," he confirmed.
"I saw three games this week and we've got a list of players we're pursuing, but I want someone who will improve the squad. I won't bring someone in just for the sake of it.
"We have some terrific young players - as well as Josh we've got Michael Hyem and Robbie Willmott coming through, and Piers Wixon played well and scored for the youth team the other night and I wouldn't hesitate to bring him in if we need him."
The Opposition
Crawley come to the Abbey looking to repeat last season's 2-1 win here, when, ironically, the scorer of both of their goals was Scott Rendell, now a U's player and currently on a hot streak of four goals in the last four games.
"It's a big game for Scott (above, with Josh Coulson) and a big game for Alan Lewer, who was assistant manager there last season, and we have to go out there aiming to keep our run going," commented Quinn.
"I don't want our lads going out there wondering when they are going to lose their first game, I want them to do the opposite. I don't want them going out there playing with any fear but we saw a little bit of that in the first half on Saturday and we were more concerned with what Exeter were doing rather than imposing ourselves.
"What we have to do tomorrow, whether it's Crawley or anyone else, is remember that we're at home with the fans behind us and we've got to take the game to Crawley. If we're going to do well this season we've got to beat everybody, whoever they are, and bolster our home form. If we have a decent home record this season we're capable - as we've already seen - of going away from home and picking up points.
"I'd like to see us keep a clean sheet and then, with the way we play and the personnel we've got, we're always going to get chances to score and hopefully we can take them."
Of tomorrow's visitors, who are currently eighth and just two points behind United, Quinn warned, "This is another tough game. They're a better side than people think and I'll be telling our players that. Their front two are good, their midfield is as good as you'll get at our level, their goalkeeper Ashley Bayes has done very well for them and he's played in the League before that, so they've got decent players.
"But we're at home and the result at Exeter last week will look even better if we go out there tomorrow and win. We need to play at a high tempo and get the fans behind us and we're more than capable of beating anyone in this league.
"We've been competing with the best teams but you have to compete with everybody. Crawley are a dangerous team because they have some decent players and they're coming here off a 5-0 win so I don't want people thinking we just have to turn up to beat teams. We have to earn the right and we have to give them the respect they deserve.
"Our players have been up for the job since the very start of pre-season and I'm delighted about that," he concluded.
"We've got a good blend of youth and experience in the squad and they all get on really well together, which is contributing to the results we've been getting."
More Information
Read the news from the Crawley camp and details about their squad and season to date in Chris Vessey's "The Other Side" preview, and if you fancy a bet on our match or any other event this week we have all the odds at AbbeyBet, where your betting makes money for the U's.
If you can't be at the match, listen to every kick of the game courtesy of Radio Cambridgeshire and see the live stats from our game and goal flashes from around the country via the our fantastic MatchLive Console on U's World
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