John Coleman may dip into the loan market in an attempt to find the winning formula. The Reds boss is desperate to stop the top sides getting too far ahead of 18th-placed Stanley with leaders Morecambe already having opened up a 10-point gap.

And, with Louis Moult returning to Stoke following the conclusion of his loan spell, Coleman says he hasn’t ruled out dipping once more into the loan market to bolster his squad, who have won one league game in six.

"I have made one or two enquiries and it’s something I might have to do," said Coleman, who kept the players in the dressing room for more than 90 minutes after Saturday’s 2-0 loss to Crewe.

"Louis is a great lad and has a bright future but he didn’t have a lot of chances to play with our system and so he has decided to go back to Stoke.

"The fact of the matter is we are not scoring enough goals. We have scored seven in nine league games and that is nowhere near enough and it is a problem we need to address.

"I might have to bring in others as it will put pressure on the players who are here and also it’s a case of if they can’t do it, then hopefully someone else can.

"I do believe we have the players here who can change our fortunes – we have shown we can play well against Northampton, Gillingham, Bradford, Burton and Rotherham.

"What we need is some consistency and turning draws into wins.

"We have to put Saturday behind us now — we can’t forget it as we have to learn from it and we can’t keep letting chances of winning go begging – but we have to move on now."

Coleman admits he is also worried about the backline and is striving to tighten up at the back.

He said: "We need to clamp down on our defensive mistakes. I have watched the Crewe DVD again and we made silly mistakes.

"This time last season, we had conceded one goal in our first seven games and then conceded 19 in our next seven and it’s something we have started to do again and something I want to eradicate as soon as possible – we don’t want a repeat."

It means it’s a big game at Oxford tomorrow with Accrington desperate for an away win. They last won on their travels on February 10, at Wycombe.

"It’s something we want to end soon. I don’t know why it is," said the Reds chief. "The season before last we did okay away from home but last season we struggled and it’s the same so far this season.

"We need to get that win. It is a worry. We have had opportunities – at Macclesfield last season and Gillingham this season – and it is frustrating but all we can do is keep going."

The two games against Oxford were goalless last season but Coleman said: "I can’t see that happening this season.

"At their place we played well and I thought we were the better team.

"At home, they came with a game plan and they executed it well. Tomorrow will be different though."

The shock team of the season so far is table-topping Morecambe, who have lost just one game in this campaign.

"Morecambe have always been a team capable of putting a run together but what’s unusual this season is that they have been slow starters in the past," added Coleman.

"But it doesn’t surprise me as manager Jim Bentley has done a good job, the players respect him and they have the facilities and a healthier budget than us.

"They are already making a good stake for the play-off places and we can’t let them get too far away."

Meanwhile Coleman has laughed off a ‘war of words’ with Crewe boss Dario Gradi.

Gradi was said to be upset at Coleman’s quote ‘no disrespect but we should be beating teams like Crewe at home’ after Saturday’s match.

The Crewe boss responded with "He (John Coleman) preceded that by saying ‘no disrespect’ and when people say that, you can be sure they’ll show disrespect."

But Coleman said: "They must have not understood ‘no disrespect to Crewe,’ either that or they did not understand the word ‘no’."

The Reds are hoping Danny Coid will recover after taking a knock in a behind-closed-doors friendly at Wrexham on Monday.

Defender Kern Miller, on loan from Barnsley and out with a fratcured jaw since playing the opeing three games of the season, is back in training.

He will have to wear a protective mask and it’s thought Saturday is too early for him, while wideman Nat Taylor is still suspended.

Tom Bender is on Welsh Under 19 duty where he captained the side against Belgium in a 3-0 defeat in Slovenia on Wednesday.

Wales play Scotland today and Slovenia on Monday in the European Championship qualifiers.