Workington Reds are waiting for international clearance to play experienced forward Scott Fenwick over the second half of the season.
The 31-year-old Gateshead-born striker, who started his playing career at Gretna, has more recently been with Forfar Athletic – hence the need for international clearance.
Reds boss Chris Willcock has been weighing up his options up front because of the lengthy absence of record goal-scorer Scott Allison.
He sees a specialist on Wednesday for an update on the problem shoulder which was operated on last month, but in the meantime Willcock has decided to bolster the forward ranks.
Charlie Bowman has been ill; Nico Evangelinos has just recovered from a lengthy injury and has had COVID while Ruben Jerome was also an absentee on Saturday through COVID.
“It’s left us a little thin on the ground and we want to give ourselves the best chance of going on to win the League.
“I think we are strong on numbers in midfield but it’s possible we will try and bring in defensive cover as well because we do look a little short of back four specialists,” said Willcock.
Fenwick, who will be 32 in April, had youth experience with all three of the North East’s leading clubs – Newcastle, Middlesbrough and Sunderland.
He started as a 19-year-old at Gretna, gaining his first senior experience there, but he had not played in Scotland again until linking up with Forfar Athletic last March.
Fenwick only played two games but scored twice against Partick Thistle in his second appearance for the club.
Gateshead-born Fenwick, who had a spell at Gretna as a young player, burst onto the scene for Hartlepool after joining them from Dunston UTS in 2014.
He spent the early part of his career in the Northern League with Newcastle Benfield, Durham City and Dunstan. His best spell was with City, netting 51 goals from 73 appearances.
Those scoring stats brought him to the attention of Hartlepool United and he had the chance to sample League Two football, going on to play 42 times with ten goals.
He then joined York City as they dropped into the National League and scored twice in 24 games. He was an unused substitute at Wembley when York beat Macclesfield 3-2 in the FA Trophy final.
Four games with Darlington were then followed by a short spell with the Maltese club Naxxar Lions for whom he scored four goals in 12 games.
His next move took him to Chelmsford City in National South where he became a cult hero and into the club’s history books. He scored a hat-trick of penalties, the first player ever to do that for them – and the next match he scored four, including another hat-trick of penalties.
In 47 games he scored 19 goals before returning to his native north-east and a short stay with Blyth Spartans before he briefly sampled football in Ireland with Cork City.
Forfar Athletic was the last club on his CV before being offered the chance to help in Workington’s title chase.
