Livi boss faces injury misery as team prepare to visit Tail Of The Bank

Jan 22 2009 by Eric MacKinnon, West Lothian Courier

PAUL Hegarty has revealed there are injury doubts over three of his regular back four ahead of the weekend’s trip down the M8 to Greenock.

Skipper James McPake, Dave Mackay and Chris Innes are all struggling with slight groin strains just a few days before Saturday’s match with Morton.

But Hegarty is confident all three will recover in time to take their places in the Lions rearguard.

He admitted: “We’ve got injury worries over three of our defenders with James, Chris and Dave all suffering from slight groin strains.

“I think they are all a result of the conditions but the physio reckons they should be ok and we hope to have them back.”

McPake missed last weekend’s draw with Clyde after pulling up in a bounce match against Falkirk and Hegarty admits he had to take the decision not to play out of his captain’s hands.

He said: “James came off after 25 minutes of our bounce game with Falkirk last week and wasn’t able to play on Saturday.

“But the professional that he is he wanted to play but we took the decision out of his hands.

“I didn’t want to lose James for three or four games as he is a vital player.

“He was desperate to play but in these conditions we didn’t want to see him come off after 25 minutes again.”

Saturday also saw the debuts of two new faces in the Livi line-up in new signings Danny Griffin and David Winters.

And Hegarty reckons there is more to come from the experienced duo once they get up to match speed.

He admitted: “I was delighted to see David get off the mark on his debut but there are a few things he could have done better.

“And Danny showed all his experience and why he has more than 30 international caps for Northern Ireland.

“To be fair they haven’t had many games and are a bit short of match fitness but they did well and they’ll get stronger as the weeks go by.

“I had both before at Dundee United so I knew what I was getting with them.

“I had Danny for a month before signing him and David for two-and-a-half weeks and they applied themselves brilliantly.

“All we need to do is get them a bit fitter as I know they can improve.”

Winters immediately endeared himself to his new fans with a goal on Saturday. The spoils were shared as Livi and Clyde battled to a 1-1 draw and Hegarty wasn’t too disappointed with the result.

He continued: “There were chances galore at both ends with both keepers making good saves and shots hitting the posts and we could have had a penalty at the death.

“But I think you’ve got to take into consideration the weather conditions.

“We drew but so did most of the other teams in the league and it's going to be like this from now till the end of the season.

“It's going to be a really tight league and any team from six or seven is still capable of winning this division.

“I’m delighted with the players’ attitude but I sometimes wish they could recognise and see a pass or a cross when it’s on. But their attitude and application is terrific and the players are a smashing bunch with a hunger and a desire to do well.

“I’m very fortunate to be at this club.”

The Livi boss also hopes the pair aren’t the last to come in the Almondvale door this month as he admits he has his eye on another transfer target.

“I would like another player in and I have one or two names in the pipeline but whether that succeeds or not depends on the other club.

“I don’t think anything will happen with Rocco Quinn now. He’s back at Celtic and we’ve tried to make a deal with his agent but nothing is going to happen unless they resurrect it. We’ve got to move on now.”

Next up for the Lions is an away day at Cappielow against an in-form Morton side and Hegarty added: “Morton are a good side but they all are in this league. It is a really tight division and Davie Irons has done really well with them.”