Andrew Hughes and Greg Cunningham can give Preston North End a welcome boost with Ryan Lowe offering positive injury news.
North End travelled to take on Blackpool last weekend but made the trip without defender Hughes being available.
Hughes had featured against Huddersfield Town just days earlier so his complete absence from the squad was a huge surprise.
Boss Lowe then admitted to the Lancashire Post that he had no idea how long Hughes would be out for after suffering a thigh injury in training.
Lowe didn’t know whether it would be days or weeks out for Hughes but there is now better news.
Lowe has told North End’s official Twitter account that Hughes could be back in training tomorrow with his injury not as bad as first feared.
Hughes isn’t training today but there seems to be hope that the Welshman will be back imminently.
Lowe also offered an update on Greg Cunningham.
The Irishman was ill before starting against Blackpool and then went off with an ankle injury in the second half.
Lowe stated that Cunningham is ‘feeling better’ and is ‘fit and ready to go’ ahead of this weekend’s game with Middlesbrough.
It looked like PNE were in the midst of a defensive crisis after the Blackpool game.
Hughes out, Cunningham picking up a new injury, Patrick Bauer out after an appendix operation and Bambo Diaby looks way short of his top form.
Yet with Bauer on his way back and both Hughes and Cunningham pushing to be included against Middlesbrough, Lowe will be relieved with his defensive options improving.
It sounds like Cunningham is further along than Bauer and Hughes at this point and we can maybe expect him to rejoin Jordan Storey and Liam Lindsay in Lowe’s back three this weekend.