Bitter blow for Brighton

Posted Tuesday, October 27, 2009 by PA

St Mirren midfielder Tom Brighton faces another lengthy spell on the sidelines after sustaining a serious knee injury in the 3-3 Clydesdale Bank Premier League draw with Motherwell.

Making his first SPL start since the opening day of last season, Brighton was carried off on a stretcher after catching his studs in the turf shortly before half-time, suffering a complete disruption of the anterior cruciate and medial ligaments.

St Mirren were already without Craig Dargo (shoulder), Mo Camara (knee) and Steven Robb (groin) for the Co-operative Insurance Cup quarter-final against the same opponents.

This latest blow prompted team-mate Jack Ross to declare Saints were determined to beat Motherwell as a tribute to Brighton.

"It's very difficult for me to appreciate how he's feeling," the full-back told Press Association Sport.

"You have to get on with the game tomorrow night and get on with the rest of the season.

"But certainly as a squad of players, we really, really feel for him.

"It'll be a massive part of us trying to win the game; it'll be as much for him as for anybody else."

Motherwell hope to have Stevie Hammell and Steven Saunders fit.

Left-back Hammell missed Saturday's 3-3 Clydesdale Bank Premier League draw against the same opponents with a hamstring problem.

Steven Saunders will undergo a precautionary stress test to check whether he has recovered from the head knock that forced him off at St Mirren Park, but Paul Slane (calf) will again miss out.

Motherwell manager Jim Gannon hopes a "stronger mentality" will help his players go one better on their swift return to St Mirren Park.

Gannon kept his players in the dressing room for close to an hour after the 3-3 draw for a measured discussion on how they can improve for the quarter-final.

And he expects them to retain that focus until the end of the game.

"We`re constantly trying to change the culture of the club for self-improvement," Gannon told Press Association Sport.

"I think the way we approached the whole week wasn`t great.

"There have been players who have been distracting other players and what we wanted to do was talk about what lessons we can learn from last week and the game.

"I wanted to do that straight after the game so the players were reflecting on it over the weekend.

"Hopefully we will see a stronger mentality and a stronger spirit in preparation for this game."