Town had hoped to bring in an experienced front man yesterday, and are understood to have lodged a six-figure bid for the player.

But the deal fell through, meaning manager Stuart Gray will now focus on loan signings, with Ipswich's Jordan Rhodes likely to be top of the wanted list after the Suffolk club signed Jonathan Stead on loan yesterday.

The lack of any new faces is likely to infuraite some fans, who have seen Mark Bunn and Gabor Gyepes leave the club in the past fortnight for large amounts.

It also leaves Gray short on numbers – Ryan Gilligan and Jason Crowe are likely to miss tonight's visit of Brighton in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy, leaving the squad down to just 14 'senior' players.

But Cardoza said: "This football club loses money every single day and I will not waste money for the sake of it – not now, not ever.

"We've sold two players for good money but we need to be responsible and we need to be realistic.

"We are looking to make the squad as strong as we possibly can and that work will continue ahead of the Peterborough game."