TITLE-chasing Hereford United are poised to field two new signings in tomorrow's home Nationwide Conference clash with Woking.

They have brought back West Bromwich Albion defender Tamika Mkandawire for a second loan spell and also hope to secure another defender today -- believed to be Stevenage Borough's Simon Travis -- on a permanent deal.

Director of Football Graham Turner has bolstered his squad following the return of on-loan duo Anwar Uddin and Chris Palmer to their respective clubs Bristol Rovers and Derby.

United's squad was further depleted with the news that midfielder Ben Smith could miss the rest of the season after dislocating his shoulder in the 5-2 win at Gravesend last week.

Malawi-born Mkandawire, aged 20, spent two months at Edgar Street earlier this season, scoring once in 12 appearances.

Turner said: "He did very well for us for two months before Christmas and became a popular figure here.

"He'll bring us a physical presence again and though he plays at the back in the main, he can also do a good job in midfield."

He declined to reveal his other target but it is believed to be Travis, a Birmingham-based utility player recently released by Stevenage. He has also played for Telford and Forest Green and has rejected moves to Barnet and Woking.

Turner added: "If we can wrap up the two deals then we will be getting back up to a decent sized squad again, and with a bit of luck we are looking to add one or two more new faces next week.

"I've certainly made enquiries in the hope of making that happen and now is the time we need to add to what we've got, as I don't want to be scrabbling around for players come transfer deadline day in the third week of March.

"We have a position of strength to build upon and that is always a great situation to find yourself in. We're right in there with a shot at promotion back into the Football League and last week's win at Gravesend means that we've hauled ourselves back within range of Chester and that's very important."