Town boss Kieran McKenna admits it would take an incredible recovery for George Edmundson to make Saturday’s home game against Portsmouth having sustained an ankle injury this evening, while skipper Sam Morsy will be assessed having picked up a hamstring problem.

“A disappointing aspect of the night,” McKenna admitted when asked about the injuries. “George has got a swollen ankle, it looks like he’s picked up some ankle damage so we’ll have to assess how bad that is and Sam’s was a hamstring, so again we’ll have to assess that over the next few days.

“Disappointed for those two, but on the other hand pleasing for Cam Burgess, he’s been somebody I’ve spoken about a few times because he genuinely has been training to a really high level, has been contributing a lot to the group, has been contributing in meetings, has been driving and leading training sessions and has been waiting for his opportunity.

“Disappointed for George but for Cameron obviously he’s done everything he can to prepare himself to step into the team. He stepped in well for the last 30 minutes or whatever it was and he gives us another good option.”

Is he ruling Edmundson out of Pompey’s visit? “I can’t rule him out yet but I’ve seen him downstairs and he’s got a very swollen ankle so it would take an incredible recovery between now and Saturday.”

McKenna has named the same back three in all 14 of his matches in charge - with the same trio also lining up in interim manager John McGreal’s final game - but he says he’s not too worried about the prospect of having to make a change at the weekend.

“It doesn’t worry me, no,” the Northern Irishman insisted. “There’s not too much that worries me thankfully. We train as a squad, we don’t train as a team. Obviously it’s been a consistent selection at the back but we train positionally as a squad every day we’re at Playford Road.

“Cameron, for example, has been training right the way through the last two months in that position on the patterns of play that we work on, on the defensive moments and the pressing triggers that we work on, so I think he’s fully in tune with what we’re doing and I think he showed that when he came on, he settled straight into the team.

“It’s obviously been a boost that we’ve had that consistent selection but we knew over the course of the number of games that we had that we were going to pick up injuries and I knew at some stage that we would lose one of the defenders through injury or suspension or whatever it might be.

“That’s why people like Cameron have been working so hard behind the scenes and, as I said before, it’s very disappointing for George but I’m happy for Cameron that he now gets his opportunity.”

In addition to Morsy and Edmundson limping off, Dominic Thompson appeared to be feeling the knock he suffered at Fleetwood on Saturday, while Wes Burns and Luke Woolfenden also seemed to pick up niggles in the second half.

“I know the effort that the players have put in,” McKenna reflected. “The effort that they put into Saturday, the effort that they’re putting into training, the travel that we’ve had over the last couple of weeks and the heavy pitches that we’ve played on over the last couple of weeks.

“It’s a fact of football that that can catch up with you, you’re going to get some injuries at times and I’m proud of the effort that the players have put in.

“It’s part and parcel of the game, they’re a professional group, I know they’ll recover very well between now and Saturday and I also know that the squad is strong, I’ve got faith in the squad.

“The ones who haven’t been playing so many minutes have been working hard behind the scenes and we’ll hopefully recover as many players as we can for Saturday.""“But I trust whichever team we go out there with against Portsmouth will all know their jobs, all know what we expect from them on the pitch and will be ready to try their best to help the team.”

Photo: Matchday Images

TimmyH added 23:19 - Mar 8 Morsy hamstring injury?...never saw him clutch at it once when he went down and didn't even seem to walk awkwardly, be surprised if one makes it back in time for Saturday never mind both. Be just our luck to have a few key players out for the upcoming 6 pointers!
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Pilgrimblue added 23:24 - Mar 8 I agree that it would be very disappointing to lose key players but time for others to step up!
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Len_Brennan added 07:22 - Mar 9 Overall, we've got to be positive, with how we're playing & how the squad has bought into KMK's style and methods, but those injuries, to key players, just ahead of 3 crucial games against playoff rivals, is a cruel blow. I thought we would win both our previous 2 drawn games, but also expected us to draw or possibly lose one of the Fleetwood or Lincoln games, so after the 4 we are still on a decent run of results & have plenty of home games ahead. The Edmondson injury looks like it will be a number of games out though; can't risk an ankle now, even if the damage is minor. Burgess is a decent centre back at this level, but his game is different, so it will change the dynamic. He can be rolled with fast plays on the ground, but is a beast in the air, so hopefully we can limit opposition penetration into the box & maybe avail of his strength in the air in attack, at free kicks & corners. The niggle for Woolfenden is an even bigger concern though. He has been excellent lately & we have nobody that can replace him. Hopefully he is ok, but how often have we seen a player finish a match, only to miss the next one or break down in the early stages of the next game. Hopefully that won't be the case, because losing 2 of that back 3 would really leave us vulnerable for these keys games. I'm assuming Burgess would then go central & Thompson could slot in on the left side (although he was carrying a knock too), with Penney or KVY playing left wingback, and that's if Wes is ok to play! All of a sudden, the impenetrable defence on which our momentum has been built is looking a bit shaky. So fingers crossed that it is just Edmondson & that it is just a bit of swelling on that ankle. The Morsy hamstring looks like it will result in a couple of games out too; a massively important player for us, especially given the opposition ahead. Bakinson has gotten better & Carroll can give a good account of himself for at least 60 minutes, but neither have the impact that Morsy has. If he is out for a while, we absolutely need Evans back in there to at least mitigate his loss somewhat. The next 3 games are absolutely crucial to our chances of making the playoffs, but what happens over the next few hours, at hospital scans/tests & the Ipswich treatment room, is possibly even more important in determining our playoff fate.

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BlueRuin69 added 07:36 - Mar 9 Anyone but Morsy 🤞
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Bazza8564 added 07:45 - Mar 9 Really important we take it on the chin with these two guys, resist the temptation to throw them back in too early and get them ready for Oxford. Burgess did a good job when he came on, suits that left sided role and will be an able deputy. Sam is the bigger miss, but Bakinson is growing game by game and playing him deep with Celina creating is a decent solution. I'm not a fan of Carroll, and we dont know how far Evans is away, but we have the footballing ability to tear anyone apart, we destroyed Portsmouth at their place so there is no reason why we cant turn this injury blow to our advantage and really set up to attack them again. We saw last night, get a couple ahead and its really game over, KM will sort it COYB

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ArnieM added 10:05 - Mar 9 Not sure if people noticed just how slowly Morsy walked off the pitch and down the side of the pitch back to changing room. You don't need to be holding your hamstring to indicate it's a hamstring problem.. what you can't do is “ swing through” phase of walking…or kick a ball.
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Orraman added 11:04 - Mar 9 It would be a shame to break up an almost impregnable defence but I am confident Burgess can help to keep it together.. Morsy, Woolfie and Burns more concerning but as we have already seen KMcK is not afraid to throw in unexpected team selections in midfield and attack. He has a very wide vision of how to set up and no doubt he is already working on Plans A, B and possibly C in time for visit of Pompey

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Radlett_blue added 12:54 - Mar 9 Burgess played well after he came on last night & I would have no qualms about him coming in. Better than playing a semi fit Edmundson. I would also be wary of playing Morsy, with 3 tough games coming up. Bakinson & Carroll as the midfield 2. The bigger worry would be if Burns was injured as he's far & away our liveliest attacking player.
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Ipswichbusiness added 15:11 - Mar 9 Edmundson is a good defender, but we have Burgess to cover for him. Who would be the CB on the bench; Armin, Baggott? Morsy would be a big miss. Carroll is an experienced midfielder, but of a different type. I suppose that the obvious replacement for Burns would be KV-Y; a quality player, but doesn't offer the same goal scoring.
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