When Ian Holloway announced his 25-man Premier League squad last week it brought much discussion amongst supporter’s and local press. Within a matter of days the thinking behind the decision has been tested with injuries to Jonny Williams and Jack Hunt.
Although nothing has been confirmed yet, speculation across sections of the local press suggested that this could be a serious injury to Williams, who has already been unfortunate in this department during his short career.
There is no doubt that he will come back from this but with the length of time on the side-line not yet known, you have to feel sorry for him as a young professional with a wealth of talent. He has been denied the opportunity to showcase his skill on a global scale and will be a loss to both the team and the supporter’s.
Hunt’s injury also sees him denied an opportunity to reveal himself to the Palace faithful, with the injury happening before he could make his debut. His time will come but for now he must also sit out the foreseeable future, although if it is a clean fracture he is unlikely to miss as much of the campaign as Jonny.
These injuries have created two gaps in the squad Holloway wanted to use, with Williams’ now vacant position arguably the more interesting. Stephen Dobbie and Owen Garvan played their part in last season’s promotion and both will feel they could have been in the squad ahead of others but were both left out of the Premier League 25.
Both could have filled in Jonny’s position in the squad but now it has been announced they cannot replace him, meaning the squad is already not full strength.
The timing of the injuries could not have been much worse for Holloway as he tries to prepare his squad for the challenge ahead, but more importantly they could not have come at a worse time for the players, who would have both been raring to get back into Premier League action.
The hope is that they are not out for too long and that these injuries have no negative effects on their careers, which promise to be successful. A speedy recovery would be good for both them and the squad.
Daniel Smith - @dmsmith1987