Published: Thursday, 14th August, 2008 10:00
Pars hit by new injury bombshell
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Graeme Holmes
JIM McINTYRE’S already paper-thin Pars squad has been dealt a major bodyblow this week with the news that new signing Graeme Holmes is likely to be out for three months with a back problem.
The 24-year-old went to see a specialist on Tuesday after injuring his hamstring during the club’s pre-season training camp in Austria.
And it was bad news after the doc diagnosed a disc problem which will require an operation, keeping the central midfielder on the sidelines until November.
McIntyre told Press Sport yesterday (Wednesday), “It’s a massive blow.
“He’s got a disc problem which is giving him the problem in the hamstring and he will need an operation.
“It’s very similar to what I had although it’s in a totally different place and I don’t think it’s as bad as what I had.
“It’s probably similar to what Greg Shields had last season and he’s likely to be out for the best part of three months.
“It’s very frustrating. I know how gutted the boy is and it’s not ideal for us. It’s really disappointing.”
Holmes has been restricted to one substitute appearance, from the bench against Peterhead in the CIS Cup, since signing in the summer from Airdrie United and joins fellow new recruit, Stevie Bell, on the sidelines in a cruel twist of fate which has seen both McIntyre’s new central midfielders injured.
Bell is thought to be around two weeks away from his Pars debut after undergoing knee surgery and McIntyre said there wasn’t much in the pot to strengthen the squad in the light of Holmes’ injury.
“There’s no fexibility in terms of signing players,” he said. “Any players brought in now will be loan players.”
McIntyre dismissed rumours that Hearts striker Calum Elliot would be joining the Pars on loan this week.
Shields returned to first team action four months after having a Wallace implant, which acts like a belt and tightens up the vertebrae, in a 90-minute operation which was carried out in November last season.
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