Manager Courtney Belford is hopeful of seeing some of his injured players return to the matchday squad this weekend but sadly Ky Green has suffered a blow after a scan on his knee.
Belford lamented the injury situation that saw seven of his squad miss the game at Bourne through injury or isolation.
Mikkel Hirst, Isa Abraham and Nick Brandish (all hamstring, though Brandish is suspended too) along with the isolating Tom Weale joined Green (knee), Jeremie Agholor (arm) and Ben Newport (knock) on the sidelines.
Belford is hopeful the situation will get better ahead of Saturday’s trip to Dunkirk, but sadly Green is now likely to miss the entire season after scans revealed more damage. He said: “Steve (Wanless, the club doctor) has been working on a few of the lads and it’s massively important to have someone him around.
“If we can get two or three back for Saturday that adds competition for places and makes us better. That’s the most important thing.”
Saturday hopefuls
Belford says Weale should be back in the side this weekend after self-isolating.
He’s also hopeful on Hirst and Newport for the trip to Dunkirk. He initially feared Hirst might miss a few more weeks but now thinks there’s a chance he could return this weekend. Newport hasn’t played since pre-season after picking up a knock but the energetic midfielder could be back in the fold in Nottinghamshire on Saturday.
“A few weeks”
Brandish has one more match to serve from his suspension but a hamstring injury would have kept him out of the last pair of fixtures anyway.
Winger Agholor hasn’t played since the start of the season. He was at the match against Saffron Dynamo wearing a sling after picking up an arm injury. Belford says he remains a couple of weeks away.
Longer term
Green has sadly received news that his knee injury is worse than first feared. After being given an initial projection of eight weeks on the sidelines with a torn meniscus, further scans have revealed a tear to his anterior cruciate ligament and a small fracture in his leg. He hasn’t been given a timescale, but such injuries usually take around nine months to recover from. It means he is likely to miss the entire season and everyone at the club would like to send Ky our very best wishes for his recovery.
Abraham’s hamstring injury, picked up towards the end of the draw with Lutterworth Athletic, looks to have put him out for a sustained spell. He’s awaiting further results.
Belford has also allowed youngster Adam Barber, who featured on the bench a couple of times at the start of this season, to get more regular minutes at Nuneaton Griff. He played for them in their 4-0 win at Cradley Town on Saturday.
