Hartlepool United winger suffers groin tear

The top-scorer had to be carried from the pitch on a stretcher midway through the second half of Saturday’s 3-2 loss to Barnet and he left The Hive on crutches.

Thomas had an MRI scan first thing on Monday and the results confirmed that Thomas suffered a tear to an adductor muscle in his groin.

The 22-year-old is now set for an extended spell on the sidelines.

But medics say they cannot put an exact timescale on when he will return until they have taken further advice from consultants.

Head physio Ian Gallagher said: "This is quite a rare injury so we need to take some specialist advice from consultants in the coming days before deciding on the next step.

"Until we’ve had those conversations it’s difficult to put a time frame on his recovery but we’ll make sure he gets the best treatment to return him to fitness as soon as possible."

Thomas had earlier netted the opening goal in Pools’ 3-2 defeat at Barnet, taking his tally for the season to seven goals and consolidate his position at the top of the club’s scoring charts.

Speaking after the game, manager Craig Hignett said: "Nathan scored but he has done his groin, in a bad way in there, so we assess him.

"We will miss Nathan a couple of weeks I’d guess."