Source: FOOTYMAD
Mellor may face a spell on the sidelines
Striker sustains injury as Owls fall to defeat Sheffield Wednesday were dumped out of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy on Tuesday evening, losing 3-1 at Carlisle and to compound the defeat in-form striker Neil Mellor picked up what looked like a serious injury. With the Owls 1-0 down as half-time approached Mellor went into a challenge with Carlisle centre-back Michalik and stayed down on the frozen turf, clearly in agony. The match was held up for a period of around 5 minutes as the on-loan front man received extensive attention to his injury but it was clear he wasn’t going to be able to continue. Mellor left the field on a stretcher to be replaced by Giles Coke. The former Liverpool forward has been on fine form of late, scoring two hat-tricks in three games recently and his partnership with Clinton Morrison has been a major factor in helping the Owls win six games on the bounce prior to this defeat. Having been stretchered off the fear was that the striker may have broken a bone or suffered ligament damage though Alan Irvine’s post match comments seem to suggest the injury may not be as bad as it initially appeared. The manager stated that Mellor was unable to feel his ankle at first but he has now been able to put weight on the foot and the injury will be assessed in more detail on Wednesday. The Owls are short of numbers in attack having recently let Marcus Tudgay go out on loan to Nottingham Forest. Paul Heffernan’s Hillsborough career is yet to take off and his opportunities have been few and far between. Jermaine Johnson has been utilised in attack before by Irvine but there certainly seems to be a lack of physical presence in that area if Mellor is to face a spell on the sidelines.
