Croft's crocked for Carling Cup

DAVID CUFFLEY

Winger Lee Croft has joined Norwich City's casualty list after he was ruled out of the Carling Cup trip to Rotherham with a thigh strain.

The Canaries go into the second round tie at Millmoor with their list of absentees growing at an alarming rate.

Skipper Adam Drury is definitely ruled out with the ankle injury that forced him to miss Saturday's home defeat by Crystal Palace, and is rated “extremely doubtful” for Saturday's Championship trip to Plymouth.

Left back Patrick Boyle, on loan from Everton, who made his debut in Drury's place against Palace, is not eligible for Carling Cup duty.

Rossi Jarvis is a definite starter at left back, his first senior appearance of the season, throwing up the tantalising possibility of a historic night with brother Ryan also in the squad.

They could become the first brothers to appear in the same City side since well before the war, when Reg and Arthur Cropper played together.

On-loan goalkeeper Lee Camp, who has already appeared for Derby in the competition, is also unavailable. It means there will be a definite place on the bench for 17-year-old goalkeeper Steven Arnold.

With Croft out and forward Darren Huckerby ruled out for at least another two or three weeks with a groin injury, there is a lot of juggling to be done by manager Nigel Worthington with the players at his disposal. As well as the injury absentees, he admitted: “There will be a couple more players rested because numbers don't allow us to rest too many.”

Worthington said of Croft: “If there was a cup final tomorrow it would be a risk but we might try to push him through it.”

Worthington said striker Peter Thorne, who appeared as a late substitute against Palace, would be involved in part of the game but would be unlikely to play the full 90 minutes.

There was a “good possibility” that the Jarvis brothers would be appearing together in the side, admitted the City boss.