PARTICK Thistle striker Robert Dunn is training with Andy Preece's Shakers and will be snapped up if he impresses.

Dunn, 21, who has been leading scorer at the Scottish Second Division side for the past two seasons, arrived at Gigg Lane this week and trained for the first time yesterday.

He won't figure in teh Shakers line-up at Wigan tomorrow because he is returning to Scotland for the weekend but will arrive back in Bury on Monday fit and raring to go.

Dunn has fallen out of favour with the bosses at Partick and is keen to make a new start with another club.

And Preece is hoping the Scot could be the man to answer the Shakers SOS call and arrest his side's alarming slump in form.

"I've not really had a proper chance to see him so I can't make a judgement on him yet," said the boss. "He did some finishing with us yesterday and looked good but we'll be able to have a proper look at him next week.

"We need someone who can put the ball in the net so hopefully if he impresses he could be the one."

Dunn, who joined Partick from a local amateur team, scored 14 goals in 37 games as a teenager in the 1998/99 season when he was also voted player of the season.

He finished top scorer for the second consecutive season last year - the first player to achieve the feat since Scottish international Maurice Johnston in 1982.

But a persistent hamstring injury and poor form at the end of the last season saw the fans and management turn on him and the player has decided to head South to make a new start.

Preece has his fingers crossed that Dunn comes good because he is having no luck in the loan market and has yet to sign a striker, missing out this week on another player - proven goalscorer Dougie Freedman at Nottingham Forest.

It means he's unlikely to have extra firepower in the squad in time for the crunch clash at Wigan's JJB Stadium, with the Shakers desperate for at least a draw to prevent a fifth defeat on the trot.

"It will be a tough, local derby but we are up for it," said assistant boss Steve Redmond. "We have been practising certain things against our reserve team on the training pitch and it has been going well and we're looking solid again.

"We will go to Wigan full of confidence and looking to bring back three points."