Newcastle United's injury list is the reason a rematch against Middlesbrough has been called off - according to Neil Warnock.
The two clubs were set to meet on Monday but it was agreed on Thursday that the fixture would be cancelled ahead of the Premier League kick-off.
Middlesbrough had beaten Newcastle 5-1 at Rockliffe earlier this week, and the two clubs were set to meet again for a final pre-season clash.
However, Warnock has told reporters that United's injury list means the game will no longer go ahead.
"We just both decided that we'd had enough," Warnock told Teesside Live.
"That game was a really competitive game.
"We were going to do the under-23s and give the players who haven't had many minutes a run-out against their first team.
"But poor old Steve has got about seven injuries I think now for the Stoke City game, so it's just not worth the risk of getting any more injuries."
With Martin Dubravka and Dwight Gayle out for the season's kick-off, and Joelinton and Yoshinori Muto only coming back to pre-season training now, Bruce is unlikely to have his strongest squad available for the first game of the season.
Club sources did not confirm specifics, but stressed Warnock was stressing the need for both clubs to avoid risk of further injuries ahead of the new season.
United face Stoke City at St James' Park on Saturday.
