Caley Thistle manager John Robertson says a lack of opportunities to play friendlies has slowed the return of midfielder David Carson to action.
Carson has been sidelined since suffering a knee injury during pre-season, with the Englishman among a number of players who had to regain fitness after the Championship campaign got underway.
Although Carson played an hour of a friendly against Strathspey Thistle a fortnight ago, Robertson says the logistical challenges of arranging bounce matches during the Covid-19 pandemic have made it difficult for the 25-year-old to build match sharpness.
Robertson says the present circumstances have provided an added obstacle for players returning from injury, with defenders Kevin McHattie and Lewis Toshney both recovering from hip injuries.
Robertson said: “We have to be realistic, David Carson has played 60 minutes of football.
“We didn’t have a friendly last week because of the weather, so he’s not going to be anywhere near our first team unfortunately until he gets a couple of games under his belt.
“Normally we would pick up a Highland League team no bother for a friendly, but where do you play? It’s very difficult to play them at their stadium at the moment because of Covid-19 restrictions, but we still have to find games for players.
“This season has been full of different things to try and solve a real conundrum of puzzles, and unfortunately for the injured players that’s the hardest one.”
Robertson says Carson will follow a similar path back to action as winger Aaron Doran, who has made two Betfred Cup starts and five substitute appearances since returning from a knee injury that kept him out earlier in the campaign.
Robertson added: “David and Aaron missed a lot of time, but Aaron came back slightly better and quicker.
“We managed to get Aaron into two friendlies where he played 75 and 80 minutes, he has also played 80 minutes for the first team and has had 20 minutes here and there.
“Unfortunately, that’s the scenario we’re going to have to follow with David Carson as well, because it would be very unfair to throw him into any first team environment – even from the bench – unless someone is injured.
“This is David’s pre-season.”
Carson will face stiff competition once he is back in contention, with Scott Allardice and Roddy MacGregor impressed in the heart of Caley Jags’ midfield.
With Sean Welsh and James Vincent also returning from injury, Robertson says Carson, who made 37 appearances in his debut season after joining from Morpeth Town last summer, will have to fight for his place.
He added: “It’s unfortunate that David has been out, but we can’t rush him back.
“David has played 60 minutes of football since March, so we’re not going to endanger him in any way.
“He now has to battle past Sean Welsh and James Vincent, who are currently on the bench, and all three have to try and battle past Roddy MacGregor and Scott Allardice.
“It’s up to David now to battle his way back in training.
“Now that most of the squad are back, we can play internal practice matches, but it’s not the same.”
