CITY boss Glenn Roeder spoke of his double disappointment after the Canaries' 5-1 reverse at the hands of Premiership Spurs.

Not only did the nature of the defeat in front of a bumper 25,000 Carrow Road crowd rankle - but confirmation that central defender Gary Doherty faces up to three months on the sidelines was further unwelcome news for the Canaries' manager.

Speaking after former Ipswich star Darren Bent's four-goal blast had condemned City to a 5-1 home defeat, Roeder commented: "You learn a lot in any game, whether you win, draw or lose. Sometimes they do say you learn more in defeat and it's a worthwhile saying. Our starting line-up is short of around five that will be regulars this year, that is fact.

"In the first half we conceded two horrendous goals. I thought we scored a decent goal although I think Ledley King will be disappointed he slipped over, as he's a great player. Although they had more possession in the first half, it was much more of a game. Second half, they took us apart and they showed the vast majority of our players what the Premiership is all about. Some of their top players are not just Premiership players, they're top international players."

Roeder praised fans for showing up in such impressive numbers, saying: "Tremendous. We were told it was going to be a sell-out and everyone turned up. Our supporters will be disappointed that we were beaten 5-1. It isn't nice in any pre-season friendly to lose 5-1 at home in front of your own supporters, but there are lessons for us to learn."

The Canary management team's on-going preparations for the fast-approaching Championship curtain-raiser at Coventry will continue - but they will continue without the services of central defender Gary Doherty after an exploratory operation on his ankle this morning revealed his injury was worse than had been hoped.

Said Roeder: "Doc is going to be doubtful for potentially the next three months. We had bad news from the surgeon who looked at his ankle, and if Doc is playing within three months, he'll have done well. So it's really bad luck for Doc and bad luck for us, as he's just signed a new contract and we wanted him for the start of the season."

There was more encouraging news regarding Adam Drury, who despite not figuring against Spurs remains firmly in the manager's plans for the season ahead: "Adam Drury is recovering from a slight hamstring strain and we have to be careful with him to make sure come the start of the season at Coventry he's fully fit.. Adam's done enough in pre-season training to show me that he will play an important part of the squad this season. I like him as a person, I like his mental toughness and he's got some quality in his left foot."