SOUTHEND United defender Rob Kiernan has been ruled out of Saturday's clash with Coventry City.

The 28-year-old injured his ankle when making a challenge in training on Wednesday.

And Blues boss Kevin Bond does not expect to have him available against the Sky Blues.

"Rob Kiernan went over on his ankle yesterday and he’s done some damage to his ligaments so he definitely won’t be fit for Saturday," said Bond.

"His ankle has swollen up but I don’t know how bad it is at the moment.

"It’s really disappointing because he had a wonderful pre-season in terms of all the work he’d done.

"He got it through it all so it’s disappointing to see him get injured now."

Kiernan spent 18 months on the sidelines with knee injuries before returning to full fitness in March and featuring in the squad for the final 14 games of the season.