BEWDLEY Town FC are hoping striker Richard Burgess has recovered from a back injury for Saturday’s West Midlands League Premier Division clash at newly-promoted Stafford Town.

The return of the former Redditch United and Bromsgrove Rovers hitman will be a boost for Town, who are set to be without a host of players for the trip to Riverway.

Craig Webb, Russell Godfrey, Sam Woodhouse and back-up keeper Grant Morris are all set to miss the game.

Goal-scoring midfielder Ollie Smith, who has been absent for the last four weeks, is set to be out for longer and may need surgery on his knee problem.

So Burgess’ return to fitness comes as a welcome boost for Town, who bounced back from a 2-1 league defeat against Gornal Athletic last week with a 3-2 win over Shifnal on Saturday.

Left-back Dan Flowers provided the ammunition in the first half, with crosses allowing Chris Hough and Godfrey to fire them 2-0 ahead.

Shifnal scored early in the second half, but captain Steve Holt restored Bewdley’s two-goal advantage and despite a late consolation by their opponents, Town held onto take all three points.

Joint manager Craig Payton said: “Shifnal got a goal late on to make the game look closer than it actually was.

“It was great to bounce back from defeat to Gornal with this win.

“We don’t pay out money like the teams in the top six, so to be close to them is going well.

“The season is going even better than we thought, we’ve got some young lads here but the team is really gelling.”