Finn Harps have a fresh injury concern ahead of tonight’s derby clash with Sligo Rovers at The Showgrounds.
Winger Caolan McAleer – pictured above by Joe Boland, North West Newspix – was pencilled in to have an x-ray on a foot injury sustained in last Friday’s 3-2 win over Limerick at Finn Park.
The Omagh man, who has been having a fine campaign since signing for Harps at the start of the year, had to come off in the second half of last week’s win and is rated as extremely doubtful.
“Even when we get the results, if the foot isn’t broken or there is no serious damage, even at that he would be very doubtful,” Harps manager Ollie Horgan said.
Tonight’s game against the Bit O’Red is Harps’ last game for a couple of weeks as the League of Ireland takes its mid-season hiatus now with Harps next in action when they face Shamrock Rovers in Ballybofey on June 16.
Haitian midfielder Pascal Millien – an ex-Sligo player – will be available for the game against the Hoops in a fortnight, but is not eligible to face his former club tonight.
Danny Morrissey, who scored three goals in two games – two against St Patrick’s Athletic and one against Limerick – is suspended for tonight while Paddy McCourt and Barry Molloy are doubts.
On McCourt and Molloy, Horgan said: “They are extremely doubtful and I don’t think they’ll make it.
“They have played through a number of injuries and it has caught up with them.
“The break is going to be very welcomed for us with the number of injuries and knocks that we have.”
Eddie Dsane and BJ Banda remain sidelined as Harps head for Yeats County with Horgan’s mind also now on transfer targets.
The Harps manager is also keen to retain the services of Ciaran O’Connor. The on-loan Dundalk striker’s initial deal runs out at the end of June, but Horgan said: “That isn’t in our hands really so we will have to wait and see there.”
Sligo are now under the stewardship of Gerard Lyttle, who is without Daniel Kearns and Donegalman Liam Martin through injury.
Sligo are two points beneath eighth-placed Harps while just six points separate sixth-placed Limerick and the basement side, St Patrick’s Athletic, in a congested battle at the bottom.
Lyttle said: “It’s a game we have prepared right for. We have been saying for a while now that we need to be targeting teams around us.
“It’s our own mini league. Obviously, Finn Harps are one of the team we would try to target. If you take away the top three teams, the rest of the teams are fighting in around.”
