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Rovers mine reserves
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Injury hit Gresley Rovers could soon have to call in reserve team youngsters to shore up their depleted first team ranks.
With defender Martin Dick and midfielder Scott Elliott joining the casualty list this week, Rovers were down to 13 fit players for the midweek Derbyshire Senior Cup trip to Heanor, leaving manager Steve Dolby admitting: “They’re not the sort of injuries we wanted at this stage of the season.”Dolby was forced to draft teenager Nathan Foster into his squad on Wednesday but said: “Nathan isn’t nearly match fit. I’d much rather he was playing full games for the reserves than sitting on the bench with us.”
Rovers ended up playing the naturally left-sided Dave Swainston at right back at Heanor – and may be forced to do so again against Bedworth at the Moat Ground tomorrow – but Dolby is unhappy with the arrangement, believing it affects the efficiency of his side as an attacking unit.
Dick and Elliott, meanwhile, join a string of long-term casualties in the Gresley treatment room.
Striker Kieron Smith, out since December 19th when he was the victim of an appalling tackle from behind by Rushden & Diamonds’ skipper John Flower and was due to see a specialist today, having made little progress in recovering from a knee ligament injury.
On the positive front, Tony Marsden, another victim of Rushden & Diamonds’ rustic tackling, is almost ready to resume training while John Barry marked the latest stage in the long and painful recovery from the work accident which left him with a shattered thigh by having a gentle run out at training last week.
Encouraging though this news may be for Dolby, it does not ease his short-term headaches, and recent recruit Christian Moore is among a string of youngsters who may get their chance sooner rather than later.
Moore arrived at the Moat Ground after being shown the door at Burton Albion, having made a name for himself at Eton Park by scoring four times in two first team appearances for the Brewers.
He made an encouraging debut for Rovers’ reserves this week and was 14th man for the Heanor game.
Dolby rates Moore along with fellow former Brewer Ian Scott and local lad Matt Smith as among the leading prospects in Rovers’ second string.
