CREWE are ready to unleash new loan signing Lee Barnard on Town tomorrow.

Boss Dario Gradi completed six-month terms with the Spurs striker seven days ago.

But a slight hamstring strain and a desire to ensure the Londoner was fully acclimatised meant the 23-year-old missed out when the Alex went to Swindon last Saturday and Chester in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy on Tuesday.

Both matches finished 1-1, with Crewe going out of the knockout competition on penalties.

Plenty of chances were created in both games, but with inexperienced frontmen, Gradi’s side have struggled to put them away.

The close-season departure of Luke Varney to Charlton and the broken leg suffered by Nicky Maynard on the opening day, when Brighton were beaten 2-1 at Gresty Road, has meant early-season opportunities for Tom Pope, 22, and 19-year-olds Shaun Miller and Nicky Farquharson.

Chris Dickson came in on loan from Charlton halfway through last month, but is still seeking his first goal for the Alex.

Barnard, 23, has made only three substitute appearances for Spurs, but has had previous loan stints at Exeter, Stevenage, Leyton Orient and Northampton and has been a prolific scorer for the White Hart Lane second string.

And Gradi is hoping he can go some way towards making up for the absence of Maynard, who netted both goals when Crewe beat Town 2-0 in front of the Sky cameras at Gresty Road a year ago.

The homegrown 20-year-old grabbed 19 in all, with Varney weighing in with 25 to help Gradi’s side finish 13th in League I, a point and two places above Town.

This time around, the Alex are 11th, with the Brighton triumph their only win to date.

Since then there has been a 1-1 draw at Bristol Rovers as well as Swindon, while leaders Orient won 2-0 at Gresty Road a fortnight ago.

A 3-0 Carling Cup first-round defeat by Hull means Crewe go into tomorrow’s game aiming to avoid a third successive home setback against a Town team going for a hat trick of away victories in the league.

Gradi made changes for the JPT tie at Chester, but is set to restore former Manchester United goalkeeper Ben Williams in place of Stuart Tomlinson and midfielders Neil Cox, once of Bolton, and Gary Roberts for Eugen Bopp and Ben Rix.

Farquharson will make way for Barnard, who is likely to partner Pope, while there is a doubt over right-back Danny Woodards (hamstring), with either Ryan Lynch or Chris McCready, a summer signing from Tranmere and more usually a centre-back, set to step in.

Billy Jones – a close-season capture from Exeter and not to be confused with his namesake and fellow defender, who has left Crewe for Preston – will play left-back with ex-Liverpool man Daniel O’Donnell and Julien Baudet teaming up in the centre of the back four.

The other central midfield slot is likely to go to Steve Schumacher, and having suffered at the hands of one Bradford old boy, Marc Bridge-Wilkinson, against Carlisle a fortnight ago, Town will not want to repeat the experience.

Crewe (probable): Williams, Lynch or McCready, Jones, Cox, O’Donnell, Baudet, Lowe, Schumacher, Barnard, Pope, Roberts. Subs (from): Lynch or McCready, Miller, Carrington, Farquharson, Tomlinson, Dickson, Bailey, Moore, Rix.

Town (from): Glennon, Hardy, Skarz, T Clarke, N Clarke, Keogh, Kamara, Holdsworth, Schofield, Brandon, Collins, Worthington, Booth, Beckett, Mirfin, Young, Racchi, Akins, Eastwood, Killock.

Referee: Neil Swarbrick (Lancashire).