Mac wary of Hunt poachers

Hunt (pictured below) signed a short-term deal with Ipswich earlier this month and made his second appearance for the Tractor Boys in their defeat by Leicester City on Saturday.

Even though the 32-year-old has only two games under his belt, McCarthy has been impressed with the Waterford native, the Ipswich boss aware that Hunt's deal with the club expires in the New Year.

"I was surprised a player of his ability was still looking for a club when we signed him but I think he turned down a few offers in the summer that he probably regrets now," said McCarthy.

"He will get a club in January because he deserves to be playing football. Will that be us? Could be. If he plays well we might have to bang down the door to sign him. If he plays well though, there could be other clubs banging down the door to sign him."

Hunt has not played for Ireland since before Euro 2012 but last week the winger said he was keen to revive his international career.

Bruce rues Irish woes

HULL CITY boss Steve Bruce admits that his Irish duo Robbie Brady and Paul McShane could face a spell on the sidelines as the club try to deal with their injuries.

Brady started his first game in six weeks for Hull when they faced Crystal Palace on Saturday but he was replaced at half time, while McShane also failed to finish the game due to a hamstring problem.

"Robbie still doesn't look right. We've now been messing around with his injury for four weeks. He's trained well, but something wasn't right with him," said Bruce of Brady, adding that McShane could be out of action for some time.

"It's a worry because I thought Paul was easily our best player by a million miles. I would have thought it will rule him out for the next couple of weeks."