Peterhead will get Simon Ferry assessed to figure out the extent of his back problems, says manager Jim McInally.
Ferry has been plagued by issues over the last several weeks and came off against East Fife last weekend in agony.
The Blue Toon stalwart said last month that playing through the injury had become a “lottery”, given that it only seemed to flare up whenever he took contact in the back.
He will miss today’s game against Alloa Athletic as Peterhead seek to get to the bottom of the problem.
McInally said: “We’re going to get him scanned. Although he’s known to have problems with his back, he’s not had it as bad as this.
“He was prostrate on the pitch on Saturday. Even on Thursday his back went into spasm while he was doing something simple.
“I just feel so sorry for him because he absolutely strolls the game. When he’s playing he’s so controlled and he’s such a good player.
“He plays with his heart and soul every time he plays. He can’t help himself; he’s not a boy that can play himself through a game. He’s got to give it 100 per cent.
“We need to try help him out and get to the bottom of this. We need to get him some sort of relief as anybody who’s had back pain knows it’s no fun.”
As well as Ferry, Hamish Ritchie and Russell McLean will be missing this weekend for Peterhead. However, captain Scott Brown, Ryan Conroy and Alan Cook will be back involved, as well as new signing Jack Brown.
Peterhead have beaten Alloa twice already this season, with one of their best performances coming in a 4-2 win at Recreation Park in October.
McInally added: “It’s a strange old season as far as Alloa goes. If someone said three-quarters through the season you’d be above Alloa, you’d think you’d be first or second.
“Alloa have got a lot of good players and we have done well against them. We need to make sure we out-work them and if we can do that, we’ll always give ourselves a chance.
“We’ve got the next four weekends at Peterhead, so we need to make sure we take advantage of that.”
- Peterhead’s League One fixture at Falkirk has been rearranged for Tuesday February 22. It had been due to take place next weekend but was moved due to the Blue Toon’s Scottish Cup participation.
