any help with my gearbox?

[ianevans]

hi
i have recently purchased a volvo s40 1998,
im havin trouble putting it into 1st gear and reverse - i really have to push it hard accross to get it in gear -i have heard that they have trouble with selector problems, can any1 give me any advise on how to make this better - is it possible for me to improve this or is it a grage problem? if so how much would this cost? any help would be greatful
regards