NEW Wanderers boss Neil Smillie will have to cut his managerial teeth without a chequebook as he takes Wycombe into the next millennium.

The former youth team boss was told there is no money to spend when he agreed a three-year contract with chairman Ivor Beeks.

Smillie landed the job after leading Wanderers to second division safety following a run of just two defeats in 11 matches in caretaker command. However, unlike the club's previous two managers John Gregory and Alan Smith, Smillie will have to do it on a shoestring.

Beeks said: "At the moment there isn't any money for him to go out and buy players.

"We've got to be prudent. Him getting any money will depend on us having a good run in the cups or someone buying one of our players. Every player is available and if someone came in and offered money we couldn't refuse we would look at it."

That tone could spark a summer scramble for skipper Keith Ryan who attracted interest from Premiership Leicester and Aston Villa last season or Blues' twinkle-toed young starlet Mo Harkin.

But Smillie does not want to sell either. Ryan has just signed a three year contract and Smillie has made it his priority to tie Harkin up on a similar long term deal.

That means Smillie will spend the summer trawling the free transfer market looking for the two or three players he says he needs, starting with a left wing-back.

He said: "It's an ever more difficult task to get players and to keep hold of the ones you've got. The club cannot bring in loads of new people. There's a lot of good players and most of them are still here on contract and I'm very pleased about that.

"The last two managers have spent money at the club and quite plainly we don't have it now."

And he faces the prospect of losing one of his stars this summer without receiving a penny in return. Steve Brown is interesting third division champions Notts County and the midfielder, who is stalling on signing a new two-year contract with the Blues, could move to Meadow Lane for free under the Bosman ruling.

Notts manager Sam Allardyce said: "He may be over 30 but he is as fit as a fiddle and a good footballer to boot."

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