SECOND division rivals Northampton have beaten Wycombe boss Neil Smillie in the race to sign Canadian international striker Carlo Corazzin.

The former Plymouth hitman opted for the Cobblers despite repeated talks with Smillie this summer.

Corazzin was available on a free transfer but it appears Northampton were prepared to match the 27-year-old's wage demands.

The snub ends Smillie's five month chase for Corazzin which began before last season's transfer deadline day and continued with Smillie contacting him while he was holidaying in Canada.

Smillie said: "We kept in contact throughout the summer and I thought we had a decent chance of signing him but when push came to shove he was asking too much money. It's disappointing."

But while Smillie's bid failed, the news that he has been chasing a proven goalscorer will not be lost on his own striking trio of Mark Stallard, Keith Scott and Paul Read. They now go into the second week of pre-season training knowing Smillie is trying to replace at least one of them.

Smillie's bid to find cover for goalkeeper Martin Taylor has also ended in failure with Slough Town's Paul Wilkerson preferring to play first team Ryman League football rather than being Taylor's understudy, despite the two clubs having agreed a £15,000 fee for him.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.