St Johnstone boss Tommy Wright was last night resigned to losing Steven Anderson for up to two months after the defender suffered a painful injury in the Perth side’s 1-1 draw with Partick.
Anderson slipped and fell awkwardly as Kris Doolan raced in for Thistle’s sixth-minute opener and subsequently required late-night surgery at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee on a dislocated thumb.
That is expected to rule him out for around eight to 10 weeks, meaning Wright is having to come to terms with the absence of one of his key men for a large chunk of the season.
“It was a horrific injury for Ando,” he said. “You could tell from his reaction that he was in real pain. Ando is a tough lad so I knew it was bad.
“It was a horrendous night for him because they tried to put the thumb back in place under a local anaesthetic and then had to knock him out.
“But ultimately a surgeon had to come in to open it up and operate down at Dundee because there was some sort of problem with the ligament.”
Wright added: “We have been told it will be two months or more before he is back but we plan to consult a sports specialist for an assessment.
“On the plus side there is an international break coming up and Ando is a quick healer.
“We will ask about using a protective cast further down the line but one thing is for sure we won’t take unnecessary risks with the lad.
“Ando will be missed but Gary Miller did well coming in against Thistle and Dave Mackay is another option for us.
“Hopefully we won’t suffer any more injuries at the back otherwise we would be a bit light in that area.”
Wright looked at Saturday’s game as two points lost and was frustrated his team could not capitalise on their play in and around the box, although he was delighted to see Steven MacLean net Saints’ equaliser.
He said: “Stevie May quite rightly has been getting all the headlines, but Stevie MacLean gives a huge contribution to the team and it’s nice to see him get a goal.
“We had some very good chances second half and I was pleased with the performance we played better in the second half and controlled huge parts of the game.”
For full match coverage from McDiarmid, see Monday’s Courier or try our digital edition.