Latics wrap up Heffernan loan

STRIKER Paul Heffernan (left) has joined Athletic on loan.

ATHLETIC have boosted their front-line options by snapping up Paul Heffernan from Doncaster Rovers on an initial one-month loan deal.

The Irish striker, out of favour at the Championship club under boss Sean O’Driscoll, had made only 11 appearances for Rovers so far this season, nine as a substitute, and has yet to hit the mark.

But the 27-year-old’s abilities are well known to Athletic boss Dave Penney, who spent a club record £125,000 on the striker to bring him to Doncaster from Bristol City in 2005 – a move which came about, ironically, late in the day when Heffernan was all-but signed sealed and delivered as a Latics player.

“It was well-documented that he was on our shopping list once again,” said Athletic chief executive Alan Hardy on the former Notts County player, Doncaster’s top scorer with 10 goals in 33 games last season.

“His signing definitely gives us a boost ahead of Tuesday’s game against Leeds.”

Dublin-born Heffernan will add some much-needed physical presence to the Athletic forward line against the Coca-Cola League One leaders in the continued injury absence of Pawel Abbott.

Since Abbott went under the knife for surgery on a hernia, Athletic have managed to find the net in only one of four matches, the latest blank coming in midweek against Walsall where inexperienced front pair Nick Blackman and Ryan Brooke started the game.

The overall tally of 15 goals in 18 league matches is the joint-worst in League One along with bottom two Tranmere and Stockport.

There were no loan moves out of the club before yesterday’s 5pm deadline.

With no cover brought in at centre-back, the hope will be that Reuben Hazell manages to avoid picking up a fifth booking of the season before the end of December, when the yellow card amnesty takes effect.