SUPER-SUB Jamie Reed is determined to rid himself of the “impact player” label bestowed on him by York City manager Gary Mills.

Reed bagged a brace in Monday’s 4-3 FA Cup first round replay defeat at AFC Wimbledon after coming on as a substitute, having also netted in the original tie when he was hailed from the bench too.

The 25-year-old forward has now only made Mills’ first XI once in the last 29 matches but is desperate to impress on his next start for the Minstermen.

He said: “On a personal note, I’m just doing what I can, really.

“I’ve just got to keep plugging away and, when I get my chance, prove what I can do.

“I would definitely love a chance to start, which is the same as any other player in the squad.

“All I can do is try my hardest and, while it just happens to be that I come on and do the business, I would like to get away from that impact-player tag and do the best I can.”One of the theories behind Mills’ reluctance to select Reed from the beginning of games is a difficulty accommodating him in the manager’s favoured 4-3-3 formation but the player gives no credence to that argument.

“That’s not a problem really,” Reed added.

“I did it at Bangor and for us last season, as well as the one before.

“People have short memories although, after Monday, having come on and scored two goals, I will be an impact player again, but there’s no reason why I can’t play from the start and in a 4-3-3. I’ve just got to wait for my chance to start and then take it.”

Reed also insisted Monday night’s double strike – the third of his two-year career with the Minstermen – gave him little satisfaction after the team exited the FA Cup.

He said: “At the end of the day, that’s my job to score goals. I tried to help the team do what we had come to do but it did not work so we were all still frustrated coming away.”

But Reed did admit the side’s display, after going down to ten men following the 35th-minute dismissal of midfielder Scott Kerr, should lift the players ahead of Saturday’s trip to League Two high-fliers Port Vale and provide a strong platform for the rest of the season.

He said: “The performance was definitely a boost and we have got to now go into League games and start picking up points. The belief has been there since day one this season.

“We have had or hiccups like Saturday (the 3-0 home defeat to Wimbledon) but the optimism is still there.

“We are only three points away from the play-offs so it’s definitely not out of our hands in that respect and we’ve got a good enough squad to go and do it.

“Anybody can beat anybody in this division and it’s about who can be consistent and, hopefully, Monday night’s display can be our turning point. It was disappointing to come away with a defeat but we showed what we are about and all fought hard.

“Taking the positives, we deserved a lot more than we came away with.”