Injuries to strikers 'not as much of a disaster as it would have been a few months ago'

Dons went 11 games without a win when Healey was joined in the treatment room by Joe Mason and Sam Nombe earlier this season - a run which cost Paul Tisdale his job as manager in November.

Mason has missed the last two games, and both Healey and Morris limped out of the 2-0 win over Wycombe at the weekend, leaving Martin with Nombe, last season's top scorer Kieran Agard and the nearly-forgotten man Jordan Bowery to front up his side.

Though he remains hopeful that both Healey and Morris could be fit for Saturday's game at Shrewsbury, Martin said: "We've got options, it's not as much of a disaster as it would have been two or three months ago.

"They're both big players, but what we've added in January gives us other options. Of course you want your best players fit, Carlton has been huge for us and Rhys is getting better every week. We will miss them if they're not fit but at the same time, I'm confident in the guys around it.

"We'll continue to monitor them and see how they react. They both picked up slight injuries. I know they're being really well looked after, and it's just seeing how soon we can get them back on the training ground, if at all ahead of Saturday. Fingers crossed. At the moment, I can't say whether they're going to be fit or not. I want them to be, and they're both desperate."

On Mason's injury, Martin added: "Joe is doing really well. He won't be far away, but not ready for this weekend, maybe not the next game but soon. If we can keep him fit and right, he's another top player at this level.