Laws dismisses Ryan bust-up talk

Last updated : 26 February 2006 By Luke Thornhill

Posters on the Iron-Bru.net messageboard have suggested Ryan has not been involved in the first team, but Laws has insisted his absence has been down to a horrific run of injuries.

Ryan joined from Premiership side Sunderland in the summer, but has only featured 12 times this season - the last coming in the LDV Vans Trophy loss to Hereford in December.

He was red carded in the 3-1 home loss to Walsall in September, and conspiracy theorists have suggested that he has been blacklisted since.

But Laws insists his lack of action - Ryan has played four times since, and only twice since October - is down to his struggle to regain fitness.

He told BBC Radio Humberside: "It baffles me because I've seen these things, he got sent off and has just got back playing again - he dipped in form a wee bit, and didn't quite hit the notes that he was previously.

"Then he got an injury, an illness, then another injury then a virus. It's been stop-start for him, he's not even playing for the reserves.

"For those who think i'm freezing him out because he was sent off - it's absolute tosh. The kid is a good player, I brought him in because he's one of the best passers we have in this football club

"He's trying to get back, he still hasn't trained with us at the moment, we're hoping that we can get a reserve game out of him next week against Darlington.

"The virus knocked him for six, all this speculation is absolute rubbish and I ask fans to please stop the stupid rumours that are going round. It's absolute rubbish."