DURHAM skipper Caroline Dixon has been ruled out of the entire 2015 season after suffering extensive damage to her knee.

Dixon, club captain during our first ever WSL2 campaign, has ruptured her ACL ligament as well as tearing the MCL ligament.

Both ligaments are connected to the knee and surgery is required, meaning the 27-year-old is unlikely to kick a ball again before Christmas.

It comes as a blow to the side just over a month before the season kicks off with an away trip to Doncaster Rovers Belles.

The former Hartford Hawks player appeared 15 times during the 2014 campaign, proving a key player in the side's sixth-placed WSL2 finish.

After discovering the extent of her injury following a consultation, Dixon said: “I’m absolutely devastated but I’m just trying to take the positives from it, if there is any. I’m in the best place possible with the team we’ve got.”

Despite the blow, she refused to be too downbeat and will continue to show her support throughout the season, albeit begrudgingly from the sidelines.

“Whatever roles inside the club I can take, I will do and I’ll be at every single game and every training session.

“I still see myself as the team captain even though I’m not on the pitch. I’m here to support the girls."