SAM Allardyce conceded today that he has two weeks to put an end to Wanderers' goalkeeping nightmares once and for all.

The Reebok boss, who has been negotiating for more than a week to strike a deal that would bring former Barcelona number one Richard Dutruel to Bolton, has acknowledged that there is a jinx on the position.

"There's a bit of a witch flying round us in that department at the moment," he moaned after the latest in a bizarre sequence of events prompted him to address the problem as a matter of urgency.

Kevin Poole - the 38-year-old former Aston Villa, Leicester and Birmingham keeper signed as emergency cover nine days ago - became the SEVENTH goalkeeper Wanderers have used in nine months when he was thrown into action just seconds before Saturday's Premiershiop clash with Everton at the Reebok.

Jussi Jaaskelainen, who missed the previous week's game at Aston Villa through suspension, injured his back in the pre-match warm-up and, although he took the field with the rest of his team-mates after having an injection and a massage, Wanderers had to make a dramatic team change just before kick off.

On went Poole with Steve Banks, who had been surprisingly dropped from the squad after making his Premiership debut at Villa, being called down from the stands to take his place on the subs' bench.

"My back locked half an hour before kick off," Jaaskelainen explained as he waited for the results of a precautionary scan. "I went inside had a massage and injection then went out and tried a few exercises. But that made it worse.

"I couldn't start - there was no way I would have got through the game. I just hope it's only a muscle problem and nothing else. This has never happened to me before and I have never had any back problems. I've always been fit. Apart from the knee injury that kept me out for so long last season, this is the first time I have ever missed a game through injury."

After Jaaskelainen suffered the cruciate ligament damage in the Division One game against Tranmere on January 13 that would rule him out for the season, Wanderers used Banks, Tommy Wright, Jurgen Sommer and Matt Clarke. This season, with Banks injured, Allardyce reluctantly went into the Newcastle game without cover for Jaaskelainen, only to see the Finland international sent off, pressing midfielder Bo Hansen into service.

Although he felt the goalkeeping situation had no bearing on Saturday's 2-2 draw and actually praised Poole for his performance, the manager made it clear he is no longer prepared to run risks.

"The goalkeeping situation for us over the last two to three weeks has been a nightmare," he admitted. "We've got 20 outfield players fit and we keep getting injuries to our goddam goalies all the time.

"The importance of having three goalkeepers has arisen again."