Town boss Mick McCarthy says the Blues are missing the “blood and thunder” that midfielder Luke Hyam brings to his side. The 23-year-old has been out of action with a knee injury since the FA Cup replay defeat to Southampton in January.
McCarthy says he’s not sure how long the former academy scholar will remain on the sidelines: "I don’t know, as long as it takes. I haven’t got a definitive time.
"We said it was going to be six to eight weeks at the time. I don’t know how long it’s been but it’s just proved very difficult.”
Local boy Hyam, a former Northgate High School pupil, travelled by train and sat with his friends in the away end at Norwich on Sunday and fans gave a player who they hail as ‘one of our own’ a warm reception.
"When it’s going well it’s ‘He’s one of our own’. He’s great, isn’t he?” McCarthy said. "When he gives the ball away he’s a bollocks! 'Aren’t we great, you’re s–-', I don’t like that mentality.
"But he is one of their own and he is a fabulous asset to the club, Luke. I was just walking out to training with TC today and I said ‘We could do with Hymsy, couldn’t we?’.
"We could do with a bit of that blood and thunder that he adds. He’s a quiet lad but he belies all that quiet image when he plays because he’s a proper footballer and I really like him. He’s great to have around and for the run-in now. But we haven’t got him.”
The Town boss is not yet ruling Hyam out for the rest of the season and says the midfielder is frustrated by his lack of involvement.
"It’s one of them with his knee. If he gets an improvement, he could be coming to me next week saying ‘Gaffer, it might be two weeks’ and we might have him for the remainder. But it’s just proved really difficult.
"We have to take his laces off him and everything because he’s seriously down about it, I have to be honest.”