Sunderland boss Mel Reay reveals player back training after being spiked and hopes to be fit for Aston Villa Women clash

Reay said that thankfully, Scarr was recovering well and may yet play a part in the Continental Cup group game against Aston Villa Women on Sunday.

"We’re hoping that Emily Scarr will be able to make the squad, she had an incident where she has been spiked when she has been out," Reay told The Echo.

"We’ve monitored her all week and she’s not trained this week, though we’re hopeful that she might still be involved on Sunday.

"It’s something that’s been in the news a lot recently and it’s important to highlight these dangers.

"She is well, she’s been in the gym and so we’re hopeful she will be OK to be in the squad.

"It’s been a tough week for us."

The incident comes as Northumbria Police confirmed a rise in spiking across the region last month.

Sunderland will also be without captain Keira Ramshaw for the game, who was involved in a car accident this week.

The midfielder is also making good progress in his recovery, but concussion means that she will not be available to face Aston Villa.

"Keira Ramshaw has been involved in a car accident and will be unavailable on Sunday due to concussion," Reay said.

"Keira is a little bit shaken up and has a few cuts and bruises, but she is well.

"She’s just not quite ready for Sunday."

Reay has a number of injury concerns for the game, which will hand opportunities to a number of younger players.

“Emily Hutchinson needs an operation on her knee, which will be a long-term injury and means she will be out for the season," Reay said.

"Iris Achterhof is still absent as she is taking some time away from football.

"Faye Mullen needs a scan on her hip issue and Grace McCatty is working in Africa with the Prince’s Trust.

"Jessica Brown has a tendon problem in her foot, she's not far away but we don't want to push her as we had to pull her out of the England camp, so we have quite a significant injury list.”

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