"CAN I afford to take a gamble?" That is the big question vexing Basingstoke Town boss Ernie Howe as he desperately tries to get his side's play-off bid back on track.

Howe admits he is fighting an inner struggle between his naturally cautious instincts on spending money and the temptation to gamble on acquiring new players.

The Camrose club's legacy of years of debts is dictating a tight ship and that means Howe is caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.

With just 14 league games to go, Howe believes fresh faces are needed to rejuvenate his team's Nationwide South play-off push.

But he is in a quandary because of a reluctance to use the limited resources available pursuing that ambition when it may ultimately prove a waste of vital cash.

The 51-year-old Blues manager confessed: "I am not a gambler. The club comes first and perhaps I am being too cautious. The ship is still very tight and no one can convince me otherwise.

"If I go out and spend an amount on a player, I know it could be better used in other areas at the club.

"Do we go for it? The chairman and president have said it's up to me to make that decision, and to go and get a couple of players in if I can.

"But I have to be honest. There aren't many available, and I don't go into it with any confidence that spending the money will be right. That's in my make-up. I'm cautious about spending, to the detriment of the playing side."

He frankly added: "Perhaps if we were in a do-or-die situation down in the bottom of the league, it would be different. We'd have to go for broke to stay up. As it is, it would be a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul. In our position, I am reluctant to do that."

Although he brought Argentine midfielder German De La Vega back into the Camrose fold last week, Howe remains the only Nationwide South manager not to have signed a player this season.

He said: "I haven't really got into the situation where I could sign someone. I've been frustrated and had knock-backs, but I cannot say they have asked for too much money.

"We've tried to get players here but perhaps they know, with all the problems we've had, we don't pay much money to players."

Howe added: "I know what I would do if I had the funds. If someone gave me £10,000, I'd know exactly where to go and who to get in.

"It's two top-quality players, though I'm not saying from where. That money would cover their wages from now until the end of the year. But I don't have the money."

The ex-Fulham, QPR and Portsmouth defender went on: "I've been pursuing irons in the fire, but I have to weigh up doing what's best for the side and club.

"If I bring someone in, he has to be better than what we have got. I do think we need to freshen up the team but it can't be like for like."

Howe is hopeful he can get his left-sided target from Swindon Town in soon, but his talks with Angolan midfielder Bernado Cariata, formerly of FC Porto and recently released by Weymouth, are dead in the water.

Howe said: "He was supposed to turn up with Weymouth on Saturday for our game, didn't and was fined. I've been trying to get something in place, but he hasn't returned my calls or got back in contact, so it looks like nothing will actually come of it."

When told of Howe's spending dilemma, Basingstoke Town chairman Dave Hunt reaffirmed the club's position.

He said: "We have told him to go out and get a couple in on loan. We know he needs cash and it's been made available. But Ernie cannot go over the top, as there is still the need to balance the books.

"When I became chairman and got involved, my aim was to never let the club get back into the debts it suffered in the past. There's no way I or the board will let that happen.

"But having done so well this season makes that harder. How far do we go? We're still in there in the play-off chase, but it's getting tougher. That's why it would have been great to have got something from the Weymouth game."

Town's dramatic 1-0 injury-time defeat last Saturday means they've taken just one point from the last 12. That poor run has seen the Camrose Blues slide down the table to seventh place, two spots adrift of the final play-off slot. Tomorrow, Town travel to take on Margate, looking to turn their form around.

Howe said: "We played well against Weymouth. If we continue to show that level of commitment, and get some breaks in front of goal, we will get the win we need to hopefully get us over our worst run of the season."