CWMBRAN Town have been dealt a massive blow with the loss of centre half Gareth Warton who could be out for the rest of the season.
The big stopper suffered a knee accident at work on Wednesday and is waiting for a scan to reveal the extent of the damage but Crows' boss Brain Coyne does not expect to see the defender in action until the summer.
Coyne said: "I don't know the full details as yet but I know that he has had a serious injury at work in an industrial accident and it is pretty bad.
"It looks like the season is over for him. My first concern is for the lad himself and I hope that he will be okay and have a fast recovery."
But Coyne also admitted that losing Warton is a major dent to Cwmbran's league ambitions.
He said: "It is a massive blow for us. He is a mainstay of the side and it will be a big loss for us. We will need to reshuffle the pack, but we will make do."
Cwmbran have an enviable away record, five wins on the road, and have taken some major scalps on their travels, including Newtown and Caernarfon recently.
They will put this form to the test tomorrow at Newi Cefn Druids in a vital JT Hughes Mitsubishi Welsh Premier League match.
Despite the Crows away record and some sparkling form of late, Coyne is expecting a rough ride.
He said: "It will be a tough game. I though that when they came to Cwmbran and beat us 2-0, it was the best performance I had seen from an away side.
"Steve O'Shaughnessy (Druids manager) has a tight budget there but he has a good young side with some decent players.
"But we are playing with confidence at the moment and a bit of flair as well. If we can keep the momentum going then we are more than a match for anyone."
As well as Warton missing, Kristian James is still out but his brother Adam is set to return after being cup-tied last week at Caernarfon as Cwmbran look for anything other than a loss to stay above the Druids in 12th place in the Welsh Premier League.
Cwmbran Town: Wesson (from): David, A James, Green, Perry, Fowler, Summers, Jones, Dimond, Hurlin, Edwards, Mohamed, Wallace, Welsh, Ellacott.
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