JAI Reason could come in from the cold for his first start under Eastleigh boss Ronnie Moore at fifth-placed Macclesfield Town on Saturday.

Fans’ favourite Reason came off the bench in Moore’s first two games in charge, but has been kicking his heels in the stand ever since, sparking speculation that his Silverlake days are numbered.

But, with a bad tackle leaving Andy Drury with a deep gash on his leg in Tuesday’s 1-1 draw at Forest Green, Reason’s attacking instincts may give him the nod over David Pipe for the Vanarama National League trip to Moss Rose.

Moore said: “Dukes’ (Drury’s) injury’s a nasty one. He’s got eight or nine stitches, maybe more, and they’ve got to stay in for ten days.

“It’s caused us a bit of a problem because the lad goes forward and attacks and he’s got a good understanding in there with Tayls (Jason Taylor).

“We’ve got Tayls and Pipe who sit in, but we’re short of an attack-minded midfielder.

“But Jai Reason’s still here with us and he'll travel."

Asked if Reason would be leaving the club, either permanently or on loan, Moore said: “I’ll always listen if someone wants to take a player, I don’t care who it is. It’s about the club, not individuals. I was Rotherham manager for eight years and I still got the sack!

“Football’s about opinions and players will move on if they don’t fit a certain system. Jai’s been sat in the stand watching and he wants to play.

“He can play the ‘10’ role, but I’m not a big fan of that. What does it give the team?

“But Dukes is injured and it might be an ideal opportunity for Jai if he can do the right side of midfield alongside Tayls."

Striker Scott Wilson is still out with a hamstring problem that's been troubling him for over a month.

“Cooky's (physio Andy Cook) taken him for a scan today,” said Moore. “I like having two strikers on the bench, but we’ve only got three fit ones. That’s an area I’m looking to strengthen.

"I’ve tried talking to people, but it's gone silly. We’re not going to be ripped off and I'm not going to just dive in and take someone for the sake of it."

Eastleigh, two points behind Macclesfield in ninth, impressed Moore at Forest Green.

“That’s as professional a performance as I’ve seen from the lads since I got here,” he said. “If we’d taken our chances, we’d have won.”

Macclesfield have had a free week after their scheduled Tuesday night game against Wrexham fell foul of the weather.

Silkmen's assistant manager Steve Watson is hoping that freshness will give them the edge over Eastleigh who battled through a tough 90 minutes at Forest Green.

Moore said: "We're not in the same boat as Forest Green who can swop four or five (players) every game, but I'd rather play Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday than train.

"Macclesfield have had longer to work on shape, but we'll see come five o'clock on Saturday. We can all be wise beforehand."

Macclesfield, on a run of three straight wins over Solihull, Woking and Bromley, hope to have a full squad available.