York City manager Gary Mills will not be swayed by supporter pressure as he decides whether to recall midweek goal hero Jamie Reed to his starting line-up against top-of-the-table Wrexham tomorrow.

Former Wrexham forward Reed scored the only goal in Tuesday’s home victory over Bath after Mills had introduced him as an 86th-minute substitute with sections of the Bootham Crescent crowd clamouring for his involvement.

It was Reed’s first goal of the campaign on his sixth outing from the bench – amounting to just over three hours of game time – and Mills, while respecting fans’ opinions, stressed that he will only pitch the 24-year-old in from the begininng of tomorrow’s Racecourse Ground clash if it is the right decision for the team.

The City boss, who plucked Reed from part-timers Bangor City in January, said: “I make the decisions who to play along with my assistant Darron (Gee).

“I’ve been with these players every day since July 1 and work with them day in, day out, so if I feel it’s right for Jamie Reed or Jamal Fyfield or Chris Smith to start a game they will do.

“I won’t pick a player because everybody else feels I should. I don’t do that and I don’t believe any manager would.

“I have to be strong and live and die by my convictions. I felt it was right to bring Reedy on for the last ten minutes against Bath and he got us the winner.

“He wants to start games but it’s all about whether he’s been the same player when he starts games. I know what his strengths are and I have to make these decisions.

“They’re never personal – I just pick what I feel is the right team for York City in every match.”

Mills added that he felt both Reed and six-goal top scorer Jason Walker could operate together in the manager’s favoured 4-3-3 formation and that selecting both in the same side would not necessarily require a change in system, saying: “Both Reedy and Ashley Chambers like to play down the middle but, when they’re asked to play down the sides, don’t mind that either.”

Tomorrow’s game is the first of four fixtures that will see City tackle the Blue Square Bet Premier’s top three teams, plus a well-fancied Darlington team, before the end of September.

Following the Wrexham match, City host Darlo on Tuesday night and entertain third-placed Luton next weekend.

Mills’ men will then travel to Gateshead, currently second in the league standings, a week on Tuesday.

The City boss is undaunted by that prospect, exclaiming: “I love this kind of challenge – it’s fantastic. We’ve got an opportunity to show what we are made of in the next 11 days.

“There will be 12 points at stake and it’s a chance to show what a team and what a club we are.

“We are going to the team that’s top of the league and they’re a good side because they wouldn’t be up there otherwise.

“But it’s all about how we do and we’ve got to try and beat them in front of 4,000 or so fans to show Wrexham and our fans how good we are.

“Wrexham will want the three points after losing their first match last week but we can go three points behind them if we beat them, which would be fantastic.

“We were under pressure against Bath but the mental side of the game changes from match to match and you cannot over-estimate how important it is.”

Right-back Lanre Oyebanjo remains sidelined for City while Daniel Parslow, who deputised in the role against Bath, has also received treatment this week for calf and hamstring problems.

Mills is still considering whether to dip into the transfer market to cover the position but added last night: “We’ve not had much joy on that front yet.”

Utility man Jamal Fyfield, meanwhile, is being challenged to prove his consistency at centre back should he retain his starting place having been preferred to skipper Chris Smith against Bath.

Mills said: “It would be unfair for Jamal to come in for one game and be judged on that but he had to perform and we kept a clean sheet. If he plays again tomorrow, he will have to perform again because I don’t pick players just to have a look at them – I pick them to help us win football games.”