WREXHAM striker Hector Sam is hoping to start 2004 as he finished 2003 - by hitting the back of the net against Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday.

The Trinidad international joined Lee Jones at the top of the Wrexham scoring charts following his brace of goals in Sunday's 4- 2 home win against Blackpool.

And with the former Welsh international again sidelined by injury, Sam is now looking to establish himself in manager Denis Smith's first-choice lineup during the second half of the season and add to his tally of eight goals.

"It's very much a confidence thing for me," he admitted. "But I've scored three goals in the last three games and I'm happy with the way things are going.

"As a team, we've created quite a few chances in recent games.

"As long as we keep our feet on the ground and continue to play as we have, that will still be the case.

"Three wins on the trot is bound to do everyone's confidence a lot of good, and I'm no different. We all want to keep the run going when Sheffield Wednesday come here this weekend."

A maximum points haul from the holiday programme thus far has helped the Dragons climb eight places during December to occupy the final Second Division play-off place, but Sam is optimistic that the best is yet to come.

"We've had a great Christmas so far but we believe we can push on even further," he added. "The key to that is consistency of performance and there are promising signs on that front.

"Chris Llewellyn is a good player to be alongside because he works so hard. He is always looking to make chances and we've got Darren Ferguson back from suspension.

"He is the master at splitting defences with his passing. At the other end we have done as well as any team in the league.

"I'm sure the supporters who were there on Sunday enjoyed the performance and we're hoping for an even bigger audience on Saturday."

Although reluctant to look beyond the current league campaign, Sam recognises that consistency in front of goal could help his international ambitions in what will be an important year for Trinidad.

Their World Cup qualifying programme gets under way in June with a two-legged clash against either Anguilla or the Dominican Republic.

Trinidad have also pencilled in a friendly international against Zambia, which is likely to be played in March at Northampton Town's Sixfields Stadium.

Sam was involved in five of his country's games in Southern Africa last summer but has yet to establish himself firmly in a national squad which also includes Racecourse team-mates Dennis Lawrence and Carlos Edwards.

"Of course I want to win more caps for my country and it's going to be a big few months for us," he said.

"But at the moment I'm concentrating all my efforts on doing well for Wrexham and if I do that successfully, we'll see what happens when the time comes."

Sheffield Wednesday have already sold more than 1,000 tickets for Saturday's game, which has been designated all-ticket with a 1.00pm kick-off.

And Racecourse managing director David Rhodes has appealed to home supporters to buy their tickets as early as possible. The ticket office is open tomorrow from 9.30pm to 12.30pm, closed on New Year's Day, open all day Friday and from 9.30am on Saturday.

"We are expecting a gate of between 7,000 and 8,000," he said. "If fans can buy their tickets before Saturday, all well and good, but there could be queues for on-day sales.

"Fans who want to avoid queues can also use our credit card line (01978 366388), for an additional charge of £2."