HE might not have kicked a ball since mid-January, but Corry Evans remains an important part of Sunderland’s ongoing play-off push.

The Black Cats skipper was ruled out for the rest of the season after suffering cruciate ligament damage in the derby win over Middlesbrough, and remains at an early stage of his rehabilitation.

However, while he is unable to participate on the training pitches at the Academy of Light, he remains an influential presence at Sunderland’s training ground.

As club captain, Evans is encouraged to remain heavily involved with the rest of the first-team squad, with Tony Mowbray more than happy to have him in the dressing room on a matchday.

The 32-year-old spoke to Sunderland’s players ahead of Saturday’s 2-1 win over Birmingham City, and was back in the dressing room at half-time and after the final whistle as the Black Cats kept their play-off hopes alive with a crucial victory.

“Corry’s here in the building today, along with Ross (Stewart),” said Mowbray, during yesterday’s press conference ahead of this evening’s game with Huddersfield Town. “They’re about, and they’re present on matchdays, in and around the dressing room.

“They’re our players. Corry is our captain, and he was in the dressing room before the game at the weekend and there again at half-time. Then he was in again at the end of the game.

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“I encourage them to have an opinion. I encourage Corry to whisper in the ears of some of the players, if he doesn’t think they’re working hard enough or not doing what they should be doing during a game. Corry will pass on that advice. This is our team, and Corry Evans is part of our team.

“He’s our captain, and I want him to be involved. That’s why I give all the staff a voice, I want them to have an opinion on the football team. I’m not a dictatorial type of guy who says, ‘Everybody shut up and just listen to me’. I want the team to grow and learn from each other, and if you can help by giving someone some advice, then that’s great. We’re all here to help and try to help the team to get better.”

Evans’ injury is one of a number of blows suffered by Sunderland this season, and Mowbray has revealed the Black Cats have suffered another injury setback ahead of tonight’s game, although he was keeping his cards close to his chest yesterday and refusing to reveal the identity of the player who is set to miss out.

Dennis Cirkin will definitely be unavailable as the Black Cats look to see off Neil Warnock’s relegation-threatened Terriers side as he is suspended following his dismissal against Birmingham City.

Luke O’Nien is set to replace him at left-back – provided nothing changes with his wife, who is due to give birth at any moment - but Mowbray has conceded Cirkin will not be the only high-profile omission at the Stadium of Light.

Sunderland’s medical staff have reported another issue in the wake of the Birmingham win, although Mowbray does not want to reveal any details as he feels it might influence Warnock’s team selection.

“The ones who are fit are fit, and the ones who are not fit are not fit,” said the Sunderland boss. “We’ve picked up another injury from the weekend though.

“I don’t really want to tell you who it is because Neil sometimes likes to get his men to mark certain men. You’ll see when the team sheet goes in.

“We’re one more down from where we were at the weekend, but I don’t think it’s a bad injury. Fingers crossed, it’ll just be this game, but we’ll have to wait and see.

“They’re all in good spirits. We’ve had back-to-back wins. I always think it’s difficult to win three games on the bounce in the Championship, but we have a great opportunity. We’ve got to challenge ourselves against the next opposition, and hopefully we can find a way to win.”

Sunderland (probable, 4-2-3-1): Patterson; Gooch, Hume, Batth, O’Nien; Neil, Ekwah; Roberts, Amad, Clarke; Pritchard.