Blues boss confident of overcoming injury problems (From Staines Guardian)

Blues boss confident of overcoming injury problems

12:17pm Monday 26th July 2010

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)

Jimmy Cooper hopes the arrival of recent signing Ty Smith will offset the news that combative midfielder Rob Smith faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

The Metropolitan Police look set to be without Smith until at least October, after the scrappy player required summer surgery on both knees.

And boss Cooper admits the loss is a bitter blow.

He said: “Losing Rob is a big loss for us as he was exceptional for the latter part of last season.

“We knew he was having problems with his knees but there have been complications with his surgery which will keep him out for a lot longer.

“We have brought in a lot of new players this summer and having players like Rob keeps that continuity from one season to the next.

“It is a blow and it is up to us to get over it.”

Helping to ease the pain will be the arrival of namesake Ty, who heads to Imber Court from Fleet Town.

And Cooper is expecting great things from the fellow midfielder.

He added: “Ty is an awesome footballer and we are really lucky to have him.

“He looked set to go to Telford, but the travelling became an issue and we stepped in.

“He is a real ball player but he is also very good in the tackle.

“He will be a real asset to us this season and I am looking forward to working with him.”

The Blues continued their pre-season with a 2-1 win at Basildon United on Saturday, with goals from Craig Watkins and Gary Drewett.

And with Carshalton Athletic having visited Imber Court last night (Tuesday), the Met boss remains satisfied with progress so far.

Cooper added: “We have had some good workouts and things look promising.

“It has been a very good training regime so far and we are starting to see the results on the pitch.”

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)