MARK Fish has joined the casualty list as Wanderers' pre-season injury crisis lurches from bad to worse.

The South African, back in action just 24 hours, cut short a session at the Euxton training camp yesterday when he limped out with a thigh strain.

Below strength

The latest of a series of setbacks to hamper Colin Todd's preparations for the new season takes to six the number of senior defenders who are under treatment and leaves the manager having to field a below strength line-up for the second of the team's pre-season friendlies at Blackpool tonight.

Neil Cox (ankle), Paul Warhurst (hamstring) and Greg Strong (knee) have already been ruled out of the Bloomfield Road game while Robbie Elliott (calf) and trialist Juan Cobian (bruised foot) are doubtful.

"It's not the way you want your preparations to go," explained Todd, who also has former Blackpool goalkeeper Steve Banks on the sidelines after a hernia operation. "But a lot of it is precautionary.

"You don't like your preparations being hampered by injuries but the most important thing is that they are all fit for August 7."

Icelanders Eidur Gudjohnsen and Gudni Bergsson will be joined by fellow countryman, Olaf Snorasson in tonight's squad.

The promising teenage striker, who played in the Youth team last year, has impressed Todd enough to win his first recognition at senior level.

Per Frandsen gets his first pre-season outing after missing Saturday's 2-1 defeat at Stoke.

Speculation

Meanwhile, Todd has slammed speculation claiming Gudjohnsen could be a target for Derby County.

"I've had no calls from Derby or from Spurs," the manager said, referring to previous rumours that Tottenham were tracking the Iceland striker.

"Agents are to blame. They try to generate interest when there is none."

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