BJ Banda may still be looking at a couple of months out of action, but the Finn Harps striker’s knee injury is not as bad as initially feared.
Banda sustained the injury in last Monday’s EA Sports Cup clash with Sligo Rovers.
The 18-year-old, who had scored in the 2-0 North West derby win over Derry City three days earlier, was taken to Letterkenny University Hospital after going down awkwardly midway through the first half.
Banda had a scan on the knee last week and the results appear to show no long-term damage.
“We’re quite hopeful now that BJ won’t need surgery,” the Harps manager Ollie Horgan said.
“It’ll be a month or two alright, but we’re much more hopeful and certainly the injury isn’t as bad as it looked first.”
Harps, who suffered a 2-0 defeat to Drogheda United on Friday, are still nursing a lengthy casualty list ahead of a trip to Bohemians.
Harps go to Dalymount Park on Friday without Danny Morrissey, Jonny Bonner and Ciaran O’Connor – all of whom have hamstring injuries – while Packie Mailey and Harry Doherty are out due to head injuries suffered when they clashed during the Sligo game.
O’Connor and Bonner will be side-lined for a few weeks yet while Horgan suggested that Morrissey is ‘way off’ a return.
Paddy McCourt played through the pain barrier until he eventually had to be replaced on Friday night. McCourt, at times, spellbound the Drogheda rearguard. Three incisive McCourt passed laid on chances for Sean Houston, Michael Funston and Caolan McAleer in the second half, but all three were off target.
Horgan has confirmed that McCourt – who hasn’t been able to train in the last two weeks – will again be ‘strapped up’ to face Bohs, as will Barry Molloy.
Ciaran Coll and McAleer, meanwhile, took part in training last night.
Harps are also awaiting a work permit for Haiti international Pascal Millien.
“It will happen,” said Horgan, “but we just need it to happen now. We need him now and we’d hope to have him in the next week or two.”
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