Preston North End's goal-shy frontmen have volunteered to attend finishing school during the international break in a bid to find their shooting boots again.
Manager Alan Irvine has revealed his strikers – and a handful of attacking midfield players – have been getting in extra target practice to get back on the scoresheet.
North End have netted only 12 times in 10 league matches so far this season despite conjuring up an average of 12.6 goal attempts a game.
But Irvine told the Evening Post: "I doubt if anyone does any more finishing than us on the training ground.
"We have a group of lads who stay behind after every session to do individual finishing.
"There are probably about 10 of them who work on drills almost on a daily basis.
"We are certainly working on that side of the game and we will continue to do so."
With six strikers on the books – and a wannabe seventh in Simon Whaley –Preston could have expected the 'goals for' column to be much healthier.
>> Irvine to report Watford to leagueOf the half-dozen recognised frontmen, only Neil Mellor has so far found the net with the season almost a quarter the way through.
His three goals in the league and two in the Carling Cup make him the most productive striker in the squad.
Chris Brown, Stephen Elliott, Jon Parkin, Karl Hawley and Brett Ormerod have yet to open their accounts this term, although Brown has only made three appearances through injury, Hawley has now been farmed out on loan to Northampton and Ormerod has yet to kick a ball in first-team anger.
Ormerod did hit a couple in the reserves' 5-0 demolition of Rochdale's second string in midweek. But of all the six, he has had the least opportunity to shine, not even in the 16 for the 10 league matches and merely an unusued sub for the two Carling Cup ties.
Read the rest of this story in Friday's Lancashire Evening Post
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