BURNLEY boss Steve Cotterill was today coming to terms with a full-blown injury crisis that leaves him with a shell of a squad.

The injuries to goalkeeper Danny Coyne and midfielder Richard Chaplow now appear to be worse than first feared, with both players facing up to two months on the sidelines.

And with Graham Branch, Jean-Louis Valois and the stricken Ian Moore also definitely out of tonight's tough trip to Leeds United, and John McGreal struggling with a shoulder injury, Cotterill finds himself on the verge of losing SIX players and in the ridiculous position of not being able to fill the substitutes bench for a crucial Championship fixture.

Coyne and Chaplow will both discover their fates tomorrow when a doctor fully assesses the injuries picked up during the past week.

Welsh international Coyne pulled up in agony after conceding the third goal at QPR on Saturday and scans have since revealed a hamstring tendon detached from the bone - an injury that, when confirmed, will rule him out for the rest of this year.

In another huge blow, Chaplow now looks to have suffered cartilage trouble, despite bravely making up the numbers as a substitute at Loftus Road while carrying the injury and even playing the last 20 minutes!

An operation to cure the problem would put the Accrington-born teenager out of action for at least six weeks.

The injuries to Branch (knee), Valois (hamstring) and McGreal may be far less worrying for a manager already struggling to keep all his plates spinning.

But with only McGreal having any chance of featuring at Elland Road tonight, where three regular right backs (Lee Roche,

Michael Duff and Richard Duffy) will be forced to operate in different roles, boss Cotterill may be left with just four professionals on the bench in teenage trio Paul Scott, Joel Pilkington and Matt O'Neill, along with French trialist Amadou Sanokho.

For fans, that represents a nightmare throwback to Stan Ternent's final season in charge, when four substitutes were named on 11 occasions throughout the last campaign.

Cotterill said: "This is the worst it's been injury wise and you can't cope with it when it gets to this stage.

"You can only go there and do the best you have with what you have and see where that takes you.

"If we come away with a result, I will be proud. Having said that, if we go there and put on a performance I will settle for that."

Leeds welcome back Paul Butler from suspension, while former Preston North End midfielder Sean Gregan is confident of shaking off a hip injury to face the Clarets.