Inverness defender suffers punctured lung and two broken ribs as Caley Thistle’s injury count rises ahead of SPFL Trust Trophy clash with Stirling Albion
Inverness Caledonian Thistle manager Duncan Ferguson has revealed that Flynn Duffy suffered a punctured lung and two broken ribs against Queen of the South – making the defender one of seven absentees for this weekend’s cup tie against Stirling Albion.
Summer signing Duffy was stretchered off in the 75th minute of last Saturday’s league match, being replaced by debuting loanee Connall Ewan from Ross County.
He will now join Jack Newman, Luis Longstaff, Paul Allan, Charlie Gilmour, Keith Bray and Ethan Cairns on the sidelines for this Saturday’s SPFL Trust Trophy match against Stirling.
There is some good news on the injury front for Inverness though, as Wallace Duffy has trained all week after being forced off with an issue of his own in the second half against Queen of the South.
“We’ve lost six or seven players now,” Ferguson revealed.
“Charlie took a head-knock, we think it was a mild concussion. We didn’t make a concussion substitution, but the doctors had a look at him after the game and felt that he was a wee bit concussed. Hopefully he will be back in 10 days or so.
“Flynn Duffy came off with a punctured lung and two broken ribs – that was a bad one.
“Our goalkeeper Jack doesn’t need an operation but he’s getting an injection this week, so he might be back in the next couple of weeks. Ethan Cairns has still got his health problems too, so it’s a mounting injury list.
“Wallace Duffy has trained all week, so he is fine. Paul Allan came out to do a wee bit of training this week, but we’ve had to pull him out as he has re-injured his thigh. He might be out for a couple of weeks.
“Some lads who haven’t been playing will get their chance now on Saturday, but we’re looking at about six or seven players now who won’t be available for the next couple of weeks.”
With so many players missing, Ferguson has reiterated the need for reinforcements, with Caley Thistle’s quest for a striker still ongoing.
“We’ve got a striker who has come in for a few days from down south,” he said.
“He’s a centre forward, a big lad who has a bit of pace, so we’re having a look at him.
“It’s possible he will be signed before the weekend, but there isn’t a timescale on it really. He’s a free agent, which is what we have to look at now, but we’re just having a look at him and we’ll go from there.
“We’re always looking for more players, but the budget isn’t there to do that.
“I’ve been promised a striker, and we’ve got a budget for that. It hasn’t quite happened yet, but that happens in football.
“We’ve got to try and identify another striker, or another good player at least, and get them in to strengthen our attacking line.”
On the Stirling Albion match itself, Ferguson feels Inverness will be favourites – even if the SPFL Trust Trophy is not necessarily a priority for the club this season.
After picking up their first league win of the campaign last time out, a result that stretches their unbeaten home run to five games, ICT will be looking to build up even more momentum to take back into League One action next weekend.
“It was a big result for us last week, so we want to continue on that track,” Ferguson added.
“The league is very close, but it’s nice to get off the mark and get a bit of confidence into the squad. It was a much-needed win, but I think one that was well-deserved.
“It’s a chance to get into a winning habit and create that mentality.
“We’re up against a team from a lower division, so even with our injury list and a young squad, we’ll be expected to win at home.
“Stirling are a good outfit, they are sitting third in League Two, but hopefully we can go out there and deliver.
“We need to keep the fans on board, and when you lose a game some negativity can creep in which chips away at your confidence as a team.
“We want to go on a roll and protect our home record. We know how tough it’s going to be – our priority is the league, and I’ve got a really thin squad and six or seven starters are out so we’ll have a really young team on Saturday – but I do believe they are good enough.
“We have to deliver for the fans. Winning a couple of games back-to-back would be nice, and hopefully we can do that on Saturday.”