SWINDON Town head coach Jody Morris says defender Cian Harries is “not close” to being selected for a match-day squad despite the 25-year-old making his first appearance since November on Tuesday night.

Harries – who has missed around four months of action with a significant hamstring injury – featured from the start in midweek as Town beat non-league Salisbury 3-2 in the Wiltshire Premier Shield semi-final.

The former Bristol Rovers man signed a one-year deal last summer but had played just seven times in all competitions prior to his long-term issue.

With Swindon struggling for centre-back options still, hopes had been raised that Harries might be able to at least add some depth to the bench at centre-half.

But speaking ahead of the Robins’ trip to Hartlepool United in League Two on Saturday, Morris stated Harries is “way off it physically” and is not expected to feature again any time soon.

Morris said: “He’s not close to being selected. Not for me.

“At the moment, he’s way off it physically – nowhere near physically ready to train at a high level that’s needed to play games.

“And even on Tuesday night [against Salisbury], he’s way off it at the minute.

“He’s been out for ages, and you can see that in the way he’s functioning and the way he’s moving. Even watching the game the other night, that made it even clearer for me.”

Meanwhile, Morris boasted an almost fully-fit squad ahead of Town’s League Two clash with the Monkey Hangers.

Jacob Wakeling will serve his one-match ban for last Saturday’s professional foul inside the first minute, and the head coach is sweating on the fitness of his energetic midfielder.

Morris said: “Injury-wise, we’ve got a little doubt over Ronan Darcy. He just felt his calf in training on Wednesday.

“And not that it matters for this game, but Jacob Wakeling is off ill for this game. Other than, that it’s pretty much a fully-fit squad, which is nice.”

Tyrese Shade is expected to be involved once again following his two-game stint with Saint Kitts and Nevis.

The winger arrived back in England on Thursday and will work with Morris to assess his sharpness prior to the weekend’s game for his club.

Morris said: “Ty [Shade] will be back and available for selection, but I still need to have a talk with him and get a full rundown on his Caribbean experience!”