Cardiff City's injury concerns appear to be easing slightly but a battle with the elements this week has seen their recuperation plans hit the skids.
On Thursday, the Bluebirds were forced to move training to Cardiff City Stadium from their Vale hotel base due frozen pitches. And the weather has played havoc with matches intended to give returning stars minutes in recent days.
Sean Morrison and Isaak Davies were both due to play for the under-21s today but that has been postponed, while a similar fixture also lost out to the conditions last week.
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Manager Mark Hudson, speaking at his pre-Blackpool press conference this week, has now set out a new plan for the duo, who have yet to kick a ball in anger this season due to injury. Before they can be considered for first-team action they need to get minutes in their legs. As such, we won't be seeing Davies against the Tangerines this weekend, despite some optimism last week it could happen.
"Unfortunately the game got called off," Hudson said. "They were supposed to get minutes tomorrow and that’s got called off. It's difficult but that's the same boat everyone is in. It’s about being adaptable, whether they can work on the pitch here, whether they can pick up stuff in the gym.
"They need minutes and it’s of huge importance to them, because Isaak's been out a while, so has Sean, we don't want to rush or put them at risk. They need to get their minutes, the game situation is needed.
"You can try to recreate that in training - Isaak's had a fair few whacks because he's so sharp! But it’s that contact, that unconscious bit of the game where you put yourself in positions where you are at risk. They need to recreate that and we need to get minutes into their legs.
"They'll be rearranged games - I know it warms up a bit a the weekend - it goes from -6 to 12+ on Sunday, so they are rearranging the game from this week to put into next week, so that's where we'll look at minutes for those two. That's the plan, and we want to stick to that plan. Get them through that and see the other side of that."
Having Davies back in the side will be a massive boon for Hudson; the manager said last week that he had been "brilliant" in training and that he has caught the attention of those who have yet to play with him.
As for Morrsion's future, there is open dialogue between the parties concerned.
"We speak every day, I spoke to him at the beginning of this week," Hudson said. "We are in constant dialogue and we'll keep conversing. He has boxes to tick and that's where we are at. He has been out nine months. It was a bad one. He has put himself in a position to complete his 90s and train regularly so and there are open conversations between us."
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