Injury scare for Bermuda’s skipper Dante Leverock ahead of Gold Cup

DUBLIN, Ireland, CMC – Bermuda captain Danté Leverock is suffering from concussion after colliding with a Sligo Rovers team-mate, but remains optimistic he will make a full recovery ahead of Bermuda’s opening CONCACAF Gold Cup game against Haiti next month.

The 27-year-old defender suffered the injury in a collision with his goalkeeper Ed McGinty during Sligo’s 2-1 win away to Irish top-flight rivals Bohemians last Friday.

Bermuda will face Haiti at the Estadio Nacional in San Jose, Costa Rica, on June 16, with Leverock looking forward to being part of Bermuda’s historic first Gold Cup match.

“I’ll be ready for the Gold Cup and I’m linking up with the squad in next few weeks,” he said.

“It’s a concussion, but I’m hoping to be cleared to play again in next seven to 10 days.”

Bermuda national coach Kyle Lightbourne is also optimistic his captain will be available for Haiti.

“We got the news from Craig Brown (Bermuda’s physio) and the first thing he said was he spoke to Danté and everything was all fine, so there was never any worry from me,” he said.

“Our medical team has advised him of different things to do for a concussion and we are hoping that he will make a full recovery and be ready and prepared to start training.”

The collision occurred in the 14th minute of the match, with Leverock receiving treatment on the pitch before being taken off on a stretcher.

“I don’t remember much from incident, but it was a collision with the goalie,” he added.

Bermuda qualified for the Gold Cup for the first time after finishing fifth in the CONCACAF Nations League qualifiers with three wins and one defeat from their four matches.

After facing Haiti in their opener, Bermuda will play Costa Rica at the Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas, on June 20 before facing Nicaragua at the Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, on June 24.