DEFENDER Chris Doig faces an extended spell on the sidelines after learning he will require surgery for an ankle problem.

The 31-year-old hasn’t played this year because of the injury, and York City manager Gary Mills says he will now need to go under the knife in an operation that will keep him out for “a few weeks”.

“He’s got a problem in his ankle,” he said. “There is a little bit of a tear between his Achilles and his ankle bone. Something in there isn’t right that needs an operation – not a serious operation but something that is going to keep him out for a few weeks.

“He’s going to be missing. But we brought Jack O’Connell in and he did particularly well last week. I thought he was excellent. He trains how he plays and I think he will do well for us over the weeks that he is here.”

As well as swooping for O’Connell, Mills also completed the loan signing of Swansea full-back Curtis Obeng this week and he revealed that he wants the pair to remain at Bootham Crescent after their initial spell of a month.

He added: “What’s good about a month, when we have the initial conversation – ‘a month with a view to taking them until the end of the season’ – is that it is not just good for me but for the player as well. It’s good for them to come in and see how I work, see how the football club works, living in the city and enjoying themselves.

“It helps them want to stay on even longer. At the moment, the agreement with both of them is they are both here for a month with a view to staying longer.”

Mills wasn’t planning a late surge into the market as the transfer deadline came and went, yesterday, but he may look to strengthen his squad with more loan additions when that window reopens on Thursday.

“There are a couple of players we are talking about,” he said. “Although the deadline has ended, the loan window opens up again next Thursday and you can bring players in then. I’m not going to rushed into anything for the game tomorrow if I don’t need to. There’s always that chance that I could get another player in on loan, or two players, to see us through to the end of the season.”

While City have signed former Derry forward David McDaid, with Mills saying he could play a part in tomorrow’s League Two match against Morecambe, Jamie Reed will also remain at Bootham Crescent – as a proposed move to Conference Kidderminster fell through.

Mills added: “Nothing has happened with Kidderminster. They came in and we actually agreed. They have gone back and I hear they have signed someone else, so it looks like Reedy is still with us. Nobody else is going to be going out but players could go out on loan when the window opens next week.”

On McDaid he said: “We have got the international clearance through. He’s all ready to go. He won’t start but, certainly, it would excite me to bring him off the bench because he could bring quite a lot. I think there’s a good chance he will be involved in the 16 tomorrow.”

York Press: Benenden Healthcare Society - Proud sponsors of York City


Match facts

MORECAMBE are making their first visit to Bootham Crescent since May 2007, when the clubs met in a Nationwide Conference promotion play-off semi-final.

The match was drawn 0-0 and the Shrimps won the second leg at home 2-1, and went on to gain promotion to the Football League.

City’s line-up on May 4, 2007, in front of 6,660, was: Evans, Lloyd, Parslow, McGurk, James, Bishop, Panther, Woolford, Bowey, Farrell (Brodie), Donaldson.

Including this match, Morecambe made four Conference trips here winning 3-2 in 2006/7. City won 1-0 in 2004/5 with Andy Bishop scoring from the penalty spot and the other two encounters were drawn.

It happened on February 2

1935: City won a Third Division North game at Southport 3-0 with goals from Fred Speed, Jack Eyres and Maurice Dando.

1957: City recorded their biggest ever win when they beat Southport 9-1 at Bootham Crescent with Arthur Bottom (4), Norman Wilkinson (2), Gordon Brown, Peter Wragg and Billy Fenton on the scoresheet. The line-up was: Forgan, Phillips, Howe, Brown, Cairney, Mollatt, Hill, Bottom, Wilkinson, Wragg, Fenton. The attendance was 8,801 and the club was eighth in the Northern Section.

1985: A crowd of 10,948 swelled by the distribution of vouchers for the forthcoming fifth round FA Cup tie against Liverpool, saw City beat Wigan Athletic 2-0 thanks to goals from Gary Ford and Alan Pearce. City were in the top ten of Division Three (League One).

2003: City moved up to seventh in Division Three (League Two) following a 2-1 home success over Macclesfeld Town. Lee Bullock and Jon Parkin were on target watched by 4,009.

Compiled by David Batters