Perth Glory midfielder James Robinson will be on the sidelines for the next 10 weeks after re-injuring his groin during last weekend’s loss to the Central Coast Mariners.
Perth Glory midfielder James Robinson will be on the sidelines for the next 10 weeks after re-injuring his abdomen during last weekend’s loss to the Central Coast Mariners.
The unlucky Robinson originally injured the conjoint tendon in his abdomen just before Round 1 but returned to the side for the last three matches and was a key player in the club’s first win of the new campaign against Wellington a fortnight ago.
But scans on Wednesday revealed Robinson had damaged the tendon once again, forcing the Englishman to have surgery on Friday.
Robinson, though, is optimistic of returning to training around Christmas and being available for the final six matches of the season.
“The last three games I got through it but it’s got to the stage where it has to be dealt with,” Robinson said.
“It’s disappointing, never good to be injured, just as the seasons kicking off and I’m back into the fold.”
“It’s just one of those things that have to be resolved now so it’s best to get it done now and then be back in time for Christmas.”
“I can’t look back on it, I just have to get on with it,” Robinson said.
Glory coach Dave Mitchell was disappointed to lose Robinson from a midfield that is already missing star Brazilian import Amaral, but said Naum Seukulovski was a good chance to make his first start in Robinson’s place when the Glory take on Melbourne at the Telstra Dome this weekend.
“We can’t seem to get a trick at the minute, whether it’s injuries or suspensions,” Mitchell said.
“He ran his guts out for a couple of games and he feels it so much, so it’s best he gets in and gets it operated on and gets it fixed as soon as possible.”
Mitchell said Sekulovski was the favourite to replace Robinson as Argentine midfielder Adrian Trinidad hadn’t been given enough match time of late to fill this role.
He also said speedster Jimmy Downey (calf) was a chance to return from injury to a leaky defence which has conceded 16 goals over the first six matches, while Amaral (hamstring) and key defender Hayden Foxe (foot) would miss one more match before possibly coming back for the club’s home clash with Sydney FC on October 19.
However, defender Josip Magdic (ankle) has been ruled out for the season allowing injury replacement Jeff Bright to remain with the Glory for the duration of the campaign.
