PHIL Parkinson is hoping to hone Gary Madine’s striker’s instincts to get more goals in the Championship.

The Wanderers front man scored twice against Barnsley on Saturday to take his tally to six for the season, bringing him level with the total he managed in the entire 2015/16 campaign.

But while Madine has earned a reputation as a target man with an aerial threat, Parkinson believes better conditioning has added a different side to his game.

“Gary is a very good finisher and you see flashes of that every day on the training ground,” he told The Bolton News. “He scored a great goal against Norwich with a run in the six yard box, and it was another instinctive finish on Saturday against Barnsley.

“Most importantly he’s a lot fitter and he’s training better. We are working with him all the time to improve that aspect. He can get more.

“His two goals against Barnsley came off the back of a really good week in training, you could tell he was up for it, and he’d believing the ball is going to go into the danger area and when you do that as a striker you are going to get your reward.

“Goals in the six yard box are so important, it’s where the majority are scored, so you need people who are willing to commit into those areas.”

Madine also claimed the ball to take a first-half penalty against the Tykes – his first since missing from the spot against Saturday’s opponents Nottingham Forest in August 2015.

“Gaz typifies the team, he’s grown in belief,” Parkinson said.

“He has got work to do and he’ll get better and score more goals if he carries on training like he has been doing.”

The Wanderers boss was also happy to get Will Buckley in his starting line-up after the midfielder missed the last 13 games with hamstring problems.

“I thought the timing was right to play him,” Parkinson said. “We’ve had to nurse him back so he had the confidence in his own body, really, after the hamstring injuries he’s had.

“His energy has been really good. He was always planned to come off after an hour and I think Adam Armstrong has done well, he gave us a nice little lift too.”