Pools striker ruled out for the season

11:19am Thursday 27th November 2008

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HARTLEPOOL UNITED have confirmed that highly-rated striker James Brown will not play again this season.

It has been revealed that Brown ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during Tuesday's 1-1 draw with Bristol Rovers.

He has now been pencilled in for reconstructive surgery in the middle of next month but manager Danny Wilson has been told to plan for the rest of this campaign without him.

It is the second time Brown has been forced to deal with such a problem, having had to overcome a similar injury to his left knee after a pre-season friendly with Hibernian in 2005.

While it is clearly a major blow to Hartlepool's League One play-off hopes, it is also a dent to any clubs thinking about making a January move for his services.

Despite signing a new contract earlier this season, Brown has been attracting interest from numerous clubs, including Celtic, West Brom and Norwich.