Winger Yeates, unavailable for the FA Cup defeat at Bolton after sealing a permanent move for an undisclosed fee last week, could start as midfielder Lee Williamson has been ruled out with a recurrence of a hamstring problem.
But Blackwell has a shortage of central defenders at his disposal following last week's sale of Matt Kilgallon to Sunderland, with his replacement Marcel Seip sustaining a hamstring injury of his own in the warm-up prior to the Bolton match.
Jonathan Fortune stepped up to partner Chris Morgan in the absence of on-loan Plymouth defender Seip, who has been ruled out for six weeks.
