Injury Woes for Vital Run In

Barnsley were completely outclassed by an excellent Leicester side who showed their quality as they march towards the promised land of the Premier League.

Losing to the league leaders was to be expected and the reds failed to compete with Leicester in every department. The two teams certainly look to be leagues apart.

A defeat in this match was never going to change what Barnsley needed to do in their bid for survival. However the outcome of the events that unfolded during the game could be devastating for the reds.

We have already discovered that Jim O`Brien will miss the rest of the season as he needs surgery on a knee injury. The loss of O`Brien is massive blow in the reds survival bid. We do however have various options to fill the void left by O`Brien although I do think we look a lot better team with O`Brien in it.

We will certainly miss his energy and effort, he brings that in abundance whether he is having a good game on the ball or not.

As if that news wasn`t bad enough, every reds fans worst fear surfaced when we lost both Cranie and Ramage due to injuries.

Both have hamstring injuries. Cranie`s was suffered in a goal saving challenge and he and Ramage had started to forge a solid partnership with the exception of the blip at Huddersfield.

There`s no official statement from the club at this moment in time regarding the extent of the injuries but both could struggle to return before the end of the season.

Even if they only miss a few games, this is an absolute disaster for Barnsley.

Unless we can sign at least one, possibly two quality centre backs on loan then I think we can kiss goodbye to our Championship status.

Our back up options of Mvoto and Nyatanga simply don`t look good enough at this moment in time. Maybe they need a run of games to get up to speed but by then it will be too late.

I dread to think how many goals we could possibly concede if those two are thrown together for a run of games.

I have nothing against the pair and I think either at the side of Cranie and we would be able to cope but as a pair I can see only calamity.

Ramage will be a big miss on recent form but Cranie even more so. The defence looks a lot more organised with Cranie at the heart and whoever partners him at centre half plays a lot better than they do when he is not in the team.

I`m sure Danny Wilson is as worried as we are as fans and will be doing everything he can to find a centre half as the loan deadline looms.