ANOTHER BAD BREAK FOR GERARD

GERARD LAVIN has suffered a major setback in his attempt to resurrect his career after breaking his leg during Northampton's 2-1 Worthington Cup victory over QPR on Tuesday night.

The 26-year-old suffered a career-threatening knee injury whilst with Millwall in 1998 but, after an 18-month spell on the sidelines, he successfully battled his way back into first-team contention.

Subsequently he moved to Bristol City, but his fortunes were not to improve at Ashton Gate.

Having been red-carded against Reading the following year, Lavin was arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm after hammering the ball into the stands and breaking the wrist of a supporter.

Cobblers boss Kevin Wilson feels that this latest blow is symptomatic of his team's recent run of luck, saying: "We all feel for him, it is disappointing news for him.

"Gerard's challenge was one of those things. No blame is attached to the tackle and hopefully he'll be back soon.

"It's typical of the way of our luck has gone so far this season."