NATHAN Cameron is not expected to need surgery on the knee injury he suffered last weekend and could be fit to face Blackpool on Saturday, according to Bury manager David Flitcroft.

The Shakers boss said his captain had been given an injection to correct the problem he sustained following an innocuous challenge late in the defeat at Shrewsbury.

The 23-year-old centre-back was forced to limp off and there was concern he may have damaged cartilage or ligaments.

But Flitcroft said yesterday that he would undergo a fitness test before deciding whether to risk him as Bury bid to claim their first win in six matches.

“He has been for some injections to try to speed up the healing process and we are just waiting to get the results of how that has settled down,” said Flitcroft.

“He will have a fitness test and see how that goes.

“It is how we manage the injury site. Structurally there is nothing wrong and we don’t need any surgical intervention, so that is pleasing.”

The Bury boss, who has seen a raft of players ruled out through injuries this season, revealed the club had invested in a GPS system that allowed technical staff to assess the strain his players were under during training.

Aaron McCarey was forced to return to parent club Wolves on Monday after being unable to train due to a groin strain sustained at Shrewsbury in the first match of a one-month loan.

McCarey was brought in as replacement for first-choice stopper Rob Lainton, who is out for up to eight weeks with a groin tear, joining long-term injured Kelvin Etuhu, Andrew Tutte, Ryan Lowe and Danny Nardiello on the treatment table.

“The GPS system can track a player’s movement and shows where the heat spots are and the sort of impacts they are having,” said Flitcroft.

“That is going to be vital to us assessing injuries and maybe pulling players out of training.”

Flitcroft, however, pointed to the fact the majority of the injuries that have blighted his squad this season have been suffered during games rather than in training.

And he admitted asking players like Cameron to sit out training due to concerns highlighted by the new equipment was not always that simple.

“It is difficult to ask Nathan not to train,” he said. “The guy’s a warrior and wants to be involved. He sees his role as a leader on and off the pitch, including on the training ground, so he really wants to get out there and train.

"There are some players you can say to them ‘you need to take a day off today’ and they grab it with both hands. With Nathan there is a bit more of a resistance and fight.”

If Cameron is unable to make Saturday’s visit of Blackpool, who head to Gigg Lane on the back of a six-game unbeaten run, Flitcroft could replace him with utility player Reece Brown.

While Stoke keeper Daniel Bachmann, drafted in on loan on Tuesday, will start instead of Lainton.