Preston North End manager Simon Grayson led the tributes for his Irish left-back Greg Cunningham after the Galway man suffered a broken leg versus Norwich.
The 26-year-old fractured his tibula and attempted to carry on playing for Preston, before being withdrawn in obvious discomfort as Irish-heavy Preston lost 3-1 at Deepdale.
Speaking to the club website, Simon Grayson lavished Cunningham with praise, and suggested the nature of the injury wasn't anywhere near as severe as a typical leg-break:
Greg’s got a fracture to his leg which means he’ll be out for the rest of the season, but hopefully he’ll be back for pre-season.
He’s a top a lad and tried to carry on. A brave, brave player, one of the best players that I signed at this football club and it’s unfortunate that this incident has happened. Obviously it’s serious, but it’s not too serious that it’s going to rule him out for months and months. I think it’s a six-week turnaround which will have him ready for the pre-season, so we’ll get him sorted and see him in pre-season.
Preston fans joined Grayson in singing the praises of Cunningham, a fan's favourite at the Lancashire club and one of Ireland's form defenders, regardless of his exclusion from Martin O'Neill's recent international squad.
The gaffer has confirmed that Greg Cunningham has fractured his leg and will miss the rest of the season. More to follow.
— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) April 17, 2017
Greg Cunningham.....what a warrior. Goes down with a broken leg and gets up to try and run it off. Lads an absolute hero!! #pnefc
— Liam Fell (@liamfell2010) April 17, 2017
Absolutely gutted for @Cunningham_17 Never, ever lets anyone down and to lose him to injury is gut-wrenching. Speedy recovery Greg! #pnefc
— Gaz (@shabbapne) April 17, 2017
@Cunningham_17 good luck in your recovery Greg,absolutely gutted for you.
— Keith webster (@keithaw28) April 17, 2017
Gutted that was my last game working for north end. Really hope @Cunningham_17 injury has a speedy recovery! #pnefc
— Kirk Marsden (@kirk93pne) April 17, 2017
Greg Cunningham, possibly the world's greatest left back. Our best Lb since the one and only Matty Hill
— Jimbob 🏴🇬🇧 (@ProcPNE) April 17, 2017
@Cunningham_17 speedy recovery! #northend gonna miss you solid performances! @pnefc
— Mel Norris (@mel_taylor91) April 17, 2017
Very poor ref wishing @Cunningham_17 a speedy recovery happened in front of us but Greg being player he is tried play on #getwellsoonGreg
— Andy (@RJProduction3) April 17, 2017
@Cunningham_17 Best of luck for a speedy and complete recovery, Greg. You've been outstanding throughout this season. Best of health.
— Sammy the Labrador 🙂 (@SammyBlackLab1) April 17, 2017
@Cunningham_17 gutted for you Greg, easily our most consistent player. Speedy recovery mate
— 🌸Che's Cousin 💚♥️ (@darrenlynch67) April 17, 2017
With such significant plaudits from manager and players alike, one might wonder how Cunningham hasn't figured in recent Ireland squads. We spoke with North End journalist Dave Seddon, who tried to make sense of Cunningham's exclusion. You can check that out here.
