Harrogate Town have confirmed that goalkeeper Mark Oxley has ruptured a calf tendon.
The goalkeeper went down in the 50th minute of last weekend’s League Two clash with high-flyers Crewe Alexandra. Harrogate will no doubt be disappointed with the 1-0 scoreline, but the more worrying matter is the extent of Oxley’s injury.
It is expected that the 33-year-old will be on the sidelines for up to three months, with that stint potentially proving pivotal for the Sulphurites season. The Yorkshire side currently sit 18th in what is an ultra-competitive mid-pack in League Two. Fans will certainly have one eye on the relegation spots behind them, but will also be hoping to progress on their 19th place finish last season. Oxley’s injury certainly complicates matters, especially due to the fact that the keeper has been performing well this season.
The ex-Southend United keeper has appeared in all 16 League Two fixtures this season, keeping three clean sheets in the process. He truly established himself as the club’s number one last February, and had appeared in 35 League games in a row, that run will now be ended with the confirmation of the severity of the injury.
Who will step-up?
The most logical replacement seems to be youngster Lewis Thomas, who was the man to replace Oxley last Saturday. That game was in fact Thomas’ senior debut, having joined from the Burnley under-21s in the summer. He will be happy with his performance that day, keeping a clean sheet for the 40 minutes that he was on the pitch, as well as a big save late on to keep the scoreline to 1-0.
With the news of Oxley’s injury, now is the perfect time for Thomas to step-up and make a name for himself in the senior ranks. Who will be the likely back up is yet to be confirmed, with third-choice goalkeeper Peter Jameson currently out on loan with National League side Hartlepool United. The most logical option would be to recall the shot-stopper from his loan spell, but we may also see Harrogate dip into the free-agent market.
Either way, the loss of Oxley is a big one and although maybe not season-defining, whoever is set to become the starter over the next couple of months, will be expected to step-up significantly in his place.
Writer’s View
Mark Oxley has proved why he should be a number one in League Two and hopefully he can fully recover for the second half of the season. This would be the ideal time for Lewis Thomas to prove his worth and we’ll get a better indication in the coming weeks of just how good he could be. It’s very much a ‘next man up’ situation and Thomas needs to take this opportunity to progress his young career.
