FA Cup calling

Jabo Ibehre: thigh injury

ATHLETIC’S derby-day heroes were back in training this morning after a well-deserved rest.

And though striker Jabo Ibehre wasn’t among them, manager Lee Johnson expects him to be in the reckoning for Saturday’s home FA Cup second-round clash with Doncaster Rovers.

“Jabo has a little tear (to a thigh muscle), with a 10-day recovery period,” said Johnson. “We are not sure exactly when he picked it up, so he could be back in training tomorrow or Thursday, but we fully expect him to be ready for the weekend.”

The serious task of landing a place in the third round of the financially-rewarding FA Cup got under way today.

Athletic — who beat Rovers at this stage two seasons ago before going on to defeat Notts Forest and Liverpool — will work without suspended James Wilson for the home tie.

Wilson is banned for one game and will be replaced by Timothee Dieng or George Elokobi. Genseric Kusunga will keep his place at the heart of the defence.

Injured centre-back Adam Lockwood is set to speak with a surgeon concerning his knee problem tomorrow.

The 33-year-old defender could be out for the season if he needs surgery to correct a degenerative condition. The best-case scenario has him back in contention in six weeks.



DANNY Philliskirk has been named in the Football League’s team of the week following his exploits at Rochdale. Philliskirk provided passes for both of Daniel Johnson’s goals and won the penalty converted by Jonathan Forte.