Hartlepool United captain Ryan Donaldson suffers heel injury in training

The 29-year-old hasn’t started a National League match since December 5 but has remained part of Pools’ matchday squad as the side climbed to second in the National League table following four straight wins.

Now the Hartlepool skipper has had to sit out training after suffering from an inflammation of the plantar fascia muscle in his foot.

Had Pools played this weekend, it’s likely that Donaldson would have been ruled out. But manager Dave Challinor expects him to be back in contention for next Saturday’s match at Weymouth.

“He’s got a little bit of plantar fasciitis," the United manager told The Mail.

“It’s not a major problem at all it’s just with this time of year, changing from a soft surface training at EDC sometimes, to 3G pitches to hard pitches, something has just flared up.

"We wouldn’t have risked him at Halifax on Tuesday and we just thought with us not having a game on Saturday, the benefit was that if we didn’t involve him then he would have two weeks until our next league game and he’ll be fine for that.

"He’s frustrated but it’s a sensible decision because it’s a minor thing that can be solved easily.”

Elsewhere in Pools’ squad, defender Gary Liddle took a step closer to returning to full fitness after playing 45-minutes in a 5-2 friendly win over Sunderland under-23s at The Academy of Light on Wednesday afternoon.

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