Ruaidhri Higgins 'frustrated' as Michael Duffy's injury overshadows Derry City win

Ruaidhri Higgins will be hoping for positive news from scans on Duffy's leg after his second debut with his hometown club was cut short less than 10 minutes after coming off the bench in the second half.

The winger received a rousing reception when introduced as a 61st minute substitute with the game in the balance at 1-0 and while Derry doubled their lead three minutes later, Duffy's night was over when Keith Cowan hit him with a robust challenge on his right knee.

After receiving treatment on the pitch, the player looked in agony and needed to be carried into the dressing room, unable to put pressure on the injured leg.

Higgins was left hugely frustrated having been careful not to rush the player back from a hamstring injury which had delayed his start to his 'comeback season'.

"He has to go and get x-rayed," confirmed Higgins. "Please God it's only bone bruising or a heavy knock. That's what we're all hoping for. If it's anything else then obviously it's a major blow to Michael and us.

"We'll see what comes back. We wanted to get him on the pitch and get him 20 or 35 minutes and get him up to speed. He's looked really sharp this last week and he's got a lot of really good work done, so he was ready.

"The challenge was a bit late. I think Keith Cowan is an honest lad but it's a bit late and we've suffered. Hopefully we get some positive news back."

Higgins refused to take any chances on Duffy prior to tonight's match and with Patrick McEleney also sustaining a knock in training this week, it hasn't been a good week for the City boss on the injury front.

"It's unbelievably frustrating," he added. "We've bided our time. We could've rushed him (Duffy) back a wee bit earlier but didn't. We felt we waited for the right moment and got him on the pitch so it's disappointing. We won't know what the outcome is until we get the results back from the x-ray," he repeated.

The sight of Duffy leaving the Lone Moor Road venue on crutches was alarming but Higgins hopes it was just a precautionary measure and expects clearer information about the player's prognosis to emerge later in the week.

"When you take a heavy knock, regardless if there's a break or not it's hard to put weight on it so he's left on crutches. Let's see how this x-ray goes and we'll take it from there.

"It's a good win. It's a clean sheet. We've created good chances. That (Duffy's injury) is the down side to the night but we can't make a statement on it until we know exactly what it is."