Gardner loss “a huge blow”

Anthony Gardner has been sidelined for the remainder of the season after injuring has back against Arsenal.

The centre-back has sustained four fractured vertebrae to the base of his spine, an injury he picked up during Hull`s FA Cup Quarter Final defeat to Arsenal.

The former record signing, who joined from Spurs in the summer, has been troubled with injuries since arriving at the KC Stadium. This latest set-back means Phil Brown only has Michael Turner and Kamil Zayatte as recognised centre-backs with Sam Ricketts providing some additional cover, as was shown at Wigan on Sunday.

The loss of Gardner will be a huge blow and his absence was emphasised on Sunday as Hull had to field a slightly injured Michael Turner before losing Kamil Zayatte to injury, meaning Sam Ricketts filled in three defensive positions during the ninety minutes.

Phil Brown, who spoke on the Official Website said;

‘It’s a big blow. Anthony has been very unlucky and we sympathise with how unlucky he has been. It’s been a stop-start season for him to say the least.
‘People have questioned whether he can physically handle it at this level. We certainly think he can.
‘We brought him in to do a job and he has Premier League experience. He had formed a reasonable partnership with Michael Turner in a short space of time.
‘It’s an unusual injury for a footballer. With rest and recuperation, he’ll be back for pre-season training.’