Tudors will battle through injury woes

Hemel Towns Ben Greenhalgh, who came on as a substitute to replace yet another injured player, Justin Amaluzor, against Braintree, had a legitimate penalty claim waved away against Wingate & Finchley on Saturday

An additional fixture in an already brutal stretch of games was probably the last thing that Tudors' boss Dean Brennan will have wanted.

Saturday’s 0-0 draw against lower-league Wingate & Finchley in the second qualifying round of the FA Cup meant yet another game for Hemel’s injury-plagued squad in what is a fixture-packed period.

But in typical stoic fashion, the Tudors manager isn’t complaining and knows it’s just a case of continuing to work hard and relying on the depth in his ranks.

And the lads rebounded to take a brilliantly resilient win in last night’s (Tuesday) cup replay with substitute Alex Osborn hitting the winner in the second-half of extra-time. They fought back to take the victory after going a goal behind to Wingate in the opening minutes.

After last night, they have now played seven games in the space of 25 days and three of the past four weeks have seen a Saturday match followed by a midweek encounter.

“That’s just the way it goes at this level,” said Brennan. “It’s a heavy load but you can’t moan, you just have to get on with it.”

The latest injury blow to hit the team was losing Barnet loanee forward Justin Amaluzor the previous Saturday against Braintree.

In his second loan spell with the Tudors, the speedy striker is struggling with a hip-flexor problem which forced him from the field in that 4-3 win.

He joins fellow forward David Moyo, defenders Tom Hamblin and Ismail Yakubu and midfielder Matt Saunders on the injury list.

Hamblin picked up a nasty-looking ankle injury in the Braintree victory on September 9 and could be out for up to another three weeks.

Hamblin and Moyo, who has been out since August 1 with a broken toe, were both due to see a specialist yesterday (Tuesday) to get the latest information on the extent of their injuries.

If the side can get through this period relatively unscathed, the schedule relents moving into October with the return of just Saturday games with a full week of recuperation in between.

Next up for Hemel is a trip to National League South newcomers Chippenham Town, who are in 16th place in the table.