JAMES JENNINGS is confident Wrexham's promotion push won't be derailed by a lack of goals for a second successive season.

The Reds mustered just 49 goals in 46 league outings last term as they finished 10th having been amongst the frontrunners for large parts of the campaign.

Things have improved in-front of goal this season under Sam Ricketts, the Reds finding the back of the net 24 times in 18 league outings.

But a run of just eight goals in nine games in all competitions since a 4-1 thrashing of Ebbsfleet have started to set alarm bells ringing in some quarters.

The Reds paid the price for failing to kill the game off at Chesterfield last weekend, the hosts scoring a 90th minute leveller, while 10-man Hartlepool had Ricketts' men hanging on for a 1-0 win in midweek.

Jennings knows the goals need to start flowing for the Reds to sustain their title challenge, and he's backing his team mates to deliver the goods.

Asked about the boost a better goal return would provide, Jennings replied: "It would be great, the fans definitely want that don't they?

"You can't be playing the last 10 minutes of every game like we did against Hartlepool.

"I don't like to talk about last season, but a lot of it was like that.

"You can only get away with that so many times. You can work on shape and how to nullify the opposition, but in the last 10 minutes of the game anything can happen.

"Against Chesterfield last Saturday they were throwing the kitchen sink at it and we were getting deeper and deeper.

"You are going to concede at some point, so getting that second goal is crucial really.

"The games where we have scored more than one goal are the games where we've played really good football and we've attacked the opposition.

"You can enjoy the last 10 or 20 minutes then."

Left-back Jennings believes that last season's promotion push was ultimately derailed by a failure to find the net on a regular basis.

The 31-year-old continued: "Teams kind of work you out and you can only get away with so many clean sheets, can't you?

"You end up getting deeper as a defensive unit, you invite pressure.

"It's something we are working on.

"There is plenty of ability amongst the forwards to kill games off and there is no doubt we will be doing that soon.

"It's not like we aren't creating chances, we are getting into good positions and there could be another game where we are 4-0 up at half time, like we were against Ebbsfleet."

Who knows, Jennings might even chip in with the odd goal or two between now and the end of the season, although he has had his chances reduced.

He added, with a wry smile: "I'm working on it. I don't go up for set-pieces this season, so that's limiting my chances a bit because I scored three from set-pieces last season.

"I'm not on free-kicks now and that was my other goal, so I'm four goals short.

"It's about getting in the right place at the right time and hopefully I will get one soon."

Jennings main job, however, revolves around trying to prevent the opposition from scoring - something the Reds are well-versed in.

Having kept 22 clean sheets last term, the Reds have prevented their opponents from netting 13 times in all competitions this season.

"We set good standards last season with clean sheets and it has continued," said Jennings.

"The foundations were there and this season was about scoring more goals, putting games to bed and killing teams off.

"First and foremost for a defender the aim is to get a clean sheet and then let the attackers do their job.

"We are limiting teams we play to few chances."