MJ Williams has delivered Wanderers a timely tonic with a return to training ahead of the Christmas schedule.
Williams has missed the Whites’ last three games since suffering a dislocated shoulder in a 1-0 loss at Wycombe to end his ever-present League record with the club.
The midfielder won’t be ready to return at Fleetwood Town on Tuesday night but could be in contention for the second leg of Wanderers’ Lancashire double-header at Accrington Stanley on Saturday.
“MJ joined in training today, which is great,” confirmed boss Ian Evatt.
“He’s just seeing how his shoulder feels and seeing if we can build some confidence in that.
“He came through fine, which is good news.
“He won’t be available for tomorrow but certainly could be for Saturday.”
The Wanderers’ squad will again be stretched for the mid-week trip to Highbury, where Evatt’s men will be seeking to build on a taken them into to the last 16 of the Papa John’s Trophy.
Midfielders Josh Sheehan (knee) and Lloyd Isgrove (hamstring) are both undergoing surgery this week as two of a half-a-dozen senior players currently unavailable.
But as well as Williams, there are others also making good progress as Wanderers look to keep maximising their resources and build on a weekend’s work on the training ground after no League One fixture last Saturday.
“Harry Brockbank returns to training on Thursday, which is also good,” added Evatt, whose side beat a young Fleetwood line-up in their last outing in the Papa John’s Trophy last Tuesday night.
“Baka (Amadou Bakayoko) is progressing well and Gethin (Jones) will soon be back on the grass.
“We’ve managed to give the lads a bit of a break.
“The ones carrying niggles have had the chance to let them settle or had injections to aid their cause.
“It’s been a good chance for me to look at some tactical things and find a way of tweaking the team to be able to get us through to January when we’ll have some bodies back and available.”