Ross County winger Michael Gardyne has been ruled out for at least six weeks after suffering a broken foot in Saturday’s 5-1 victory over Dundee United.
Gardyne picked up the injury in the early stages of the game, being forced off after just seven minutes after landing awkwardly as he tried to kick the ball.
Scans have confirmed the 32-year-old has broken a bone in his left foot, with Gardyne to undergo surgery this week before facing a lengthy absence from the Staggies’ side.
County co-manager Steven Ferguson says the news is the only blight on an otherwise outstanding day for the Dingwall side, and he said: “The performance and result was great, but the one huge disappointment for us is that Michael has broken his foot.
“He is going to need to get an operation on that, and that will happen this week.
“Michael has been fantastic for us this season. He has been a real example, on the pitch and off it, of what Stuart and I are looking to create. He’s a massive part of it.
“It’s a big blow for us, and for Michael. I don’t think he has had many injuries like this in his career so it will be something new for him to deal with.
“It’s a broken bone so it tends to be six weeks as a best scenario. Knowing Michael he will be back to lighten it up sooner rather than later.”
Ferguson also confirmed the Staggies hope to feature skipper Marcus Fraser in next Saturday’s IRN-BRU Cup tie at home to Montrose following a small fracture in his shin, with Saturday’s trip to Partick Thistle coming too soon for the defender.
County will travel to Firhill full of confidence following their heavy victory, which proved to be United manager Csaba Laszlo’s final match in charge before he was sacked on Sunday.
Ferguson says he and fellow co-manager Stuart Kettlewell will aim to keep the Staggies players grounded, adding: “Stuart and I have spoken for a while that when it does all happen, and click, it was going to be difficult for a team to stop us if we got into full flight. Thankfully that happened on
Saturday.
“Dundee United have a good group of players, a big squad of players and had an experienced manager. They were at home, a club with big tradition.
“With the goings-on at Dundee United, our performance has probably flown under the radar a little bit. That’s absolutely fine by us because it’s one game early on in a season.
“We are happy, but we are not getting carried away.”
