Midfielder Chris Bart-Williams will miss Tuesday's trip to Stoke after aggravating his back injury in the 2-0 win against Preston on Saturday (KO 7.45pm). Better news for manager Joe Royle is that striker Shefki Kuqi is available after missing the Preston game due to a one-match suspension.

Bart-Williams will have a precautionary x-ray on the injury which has been giving him problems for a few weeks now, although the club are confident he hasn't got a serious injury.

Chris Makin continues his recovery from his hip operation and will play in the reserves against Coventry at Nuneaton Borough on Wednesday (KO 7pm). How soon he might be available for first team selection will depend on how he comes through the second string game.

Town are likely to be unchanged from the line-up which beat Preston, with the exception of Kuqi replacing the out-of-form Pablo Couñago.

Boss Joe Royle says he has sympathy with the Spaniard: “I've been there myself. I went about 12 or 14 games without scoring - and the goals seemed to get smaller with every game I played.

“Things are just not going his way and it has happened to all of us at some stage of our career. At his best he is a massive plus for us, as we all know.”

Royle has been impressed with Stoke's recent form: “They've recovered well, they must be the biggest team in the country. They've only got about two players below 6'2”!

“But with Shefki, Big Georges, Johnny Mac and Fabian we're not a small team and can hold our own physically these days.”

Stoke boss Tony Pulis will have bad memories of coming up against sides managed by Joe Royle. Pulis was the unlucky Gillingham chief when Royle's Manchester City scored two very late goals in the Division Two play-off final in 2001, the two managers subsequently becoming good friends.

Stoke have injury worries regarding midfielders John Eustace and Lewis Neal, as well as defender Clive Clarke and striker Gifton Noel-Williams. Ed De Goey could return to the Potters' starting line-up, although his deputy Neil Cutler has impressed in his absence.

Former Leicester defender Gerry Taggart has moved to the Britannia Stadium for the rest of the season and will make his debut against the Blues.

Tuesday night's referee is Peter Walton from Winwick. He has shown 23 yellow cards and sent off just one player in 23 games this season. He last refereed Town in the 6-1 walloping of Leicester City at the beginning of last season.

Town squad: Davis, Price, Wilnis, Richards, Santos, McGreal, Diallo, Naylor, Magilton, Miller, Wright, Westlake, Reuser, Kuqi, Bent, Couñago.

Photo: Action Images

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