DAVID Wheater’s comeback from injury lasted just 38 minutes on Saturday as he limped out of the development squad’s 3-0 win at Southport.

The big defender had worked hard in rehab this summer to overcome hamstring problems and was on the verge of a return for the first team.

But while the extend of yesterday’s set-back is still unknown, it represents a big blow for Neil Lennon, who has already lost the services of Derik Osede for the next few weeks with an ankle strain.

Wheater damaged his hamstring against Reading in March, the last of 21 appearances last season.

Ian Brunskill’s Under-21s finished the summer in excellent form at the Merseyrail Community Stadium – with Kaiyne Woolery and Jamie Thomas on target again.

New addition Jon Ceberio added a third after Southport had Louis Almond sent off for dissent.