Sam Bone is facing a month on the sidelines after suffering a hamstring injury in Shamrock Rovers’ EA Sports Cup defeat to Bray Wanderers.
Comfortable in defence and midfield, Bone has had to be patient this season with others ahead of him in the starting team.
But the Englishman has been used off the bench in league games but has now been rocked with this setback ahead of tonight’s trip to Cork.
Bone was forced off early in the second-half of Monday’s clash with the Seagulls at the Carlisle Grounds which the Hoops lost on penalties.
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Sizing up his options for Turner’s Cross, Rovers boss Stephen Bradley said: “Sam is definitely out. He’ll be four weeks out with a hamstring.”
Bradley has other headaches, adding: "Roberto Lopes could have played on in Bray but felt a little sore and came off.
“He made the right decision. There was nothing major on the night. We’ll also have a look at Trevor Clarke (this) morning but he should be fine.”
Ethan Boyle and Dan Carr will also be assessed ahead of the game.
Bradley said: “We wanted to go through the other night but didn’t, although we took some positives from game.
“Leon Pohls was very good on his debut in goal and Thomas [Oluwa] also made his debut. We got minutes into the legs for players that were a bit behind.”
Tonight’s televised league clash is a different proposition but Bradley is urging his league leaders to get back on the winning trail.
The Hoops have a seven-point lead at the top but have played two games more than their rivals.
Recent wins have come against the bottom three but Cork City will pose more questions despite their flat defeat to arch rivals Dundalk last week.
Bradley said: “It’s a game that we’re really looking forward to and it’s a game that we’re ready for.
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“We know it’ll be a really tough game against a side full of top players but I believe we’re ready to go and get three more points on the board.”
Rebels boss John Caulfield admits consistency has been a problem for his side following the defeat to Dundalk.
Caulfield said: “If you can have consistency and get a couple of wins, you can build. At the moment we’re rebuilding.
“We’ve a lot of young guys coming through but we lack a bit of cuteness and experience.
"But will we be back fighting in front of a big crowd tonight? Of course. We don’t feel sorry for ourselves.”
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