Boro boss Graham Westley admitted losing Mitchell Cole to an ankle injury is a body blow to the club s preparations ahead of the Blue Square Premier season. It is not yet known how long Cole will be out for but he was taken to hospital after being stre

Boro boss Graham Westley admitted losing Mitchell Cole to an ankle injury is a "body blow" to the club's preparations ahead of the Blue Square Premier season.

It is not yet known how long Cole will be out for but he was taken to hospital after being stretchered off during Boro's 2-0 defeat against Peterborough United at The Lamex Stadium on Tuesday evening.

With Andy Drury also still sidelined, Westley said his creative resources are being severely tested ahead of the big kick-off against Tamworth on August 8 although it is up to the rest of the Boro squad to find a way to cope without them.

"We've lost Mitchell tonight which is a bit of a body blow and we've got Drury out as well so our creative resources are being stretched," Westley told The Comet.

"I've wandered inside to see how he is and we are waiting on some news now from the hospital."

Even with a fit and firing Cole for the full 90 minutes, Boro would have struggled against Peterborough with Darren Ferguson's men demonstrating just why they have been promoted twice in the last two seasons.

George Boyd showed glimpses of the talent Championship sides are going to have to cope with in the upcoming season but it was Posh's all-round attacking play that caught the eye, particularly in the second half.

Westley admitted his back four struggled to cope with the pace and movement of the likes of Shaun Batt, who netted the first, and Aaron McLean but believes they will be better for the experience of playing against these kinds of talents.

"In a defensive sense we are making errors but our backline is being tested.

"We know that we have got a very good defence. If you just look at the back four that started in the Trophy final - Henry, Roberts, Bostwick and Laird - they played together for the majority of last season and we won a lot of games with them.

"We know they are a high quality backline at this level and they are really being stretched and tested at the moment by very imaginative sides with good individual technical players.

"They are making mistakes. It will be good for them in the long run because they are learning and thinking about how to work as a unit and how to defend better as individuals.