It has been a difficult and frustrating time for me as of late. At the end of the week before last I was told that I’d have to undergo surgery for a hernia problem that has been bothering me from the start of the season.
No player wants to undergo any surgery if necessary but in this case the problem just wasn’t clearing up and rest was proving to have little benefit in the end. Still if it’s good enough for the likes of Paul Scholes, Roy Keane, Frank Lampard, Fernando Torres et al it’ll work out ok for me I’m sure. These days this type of procedure is fairly routine and the likes of Scott Parker and Obafemi Martins both had very similar operations when they were at our place.
While I was waiting to get in to the hospital I was obviously unable to take part in training and to be honest it’s horrible to watch the other lads going out every day and not be able to join in.
Still I’ve kept myself busy and both Jimmy Nelson (Education & Welfare Officer) and Paul Urwin (LFE Education Co-ordinator) will be pleased as I’ve been putting in some extra work in the classroom to keep myself busy.
Academy match: Newcastle United v Derby County
I watched the lads play Derby County last weekend and was delighted we got our first home win of the season (2-1). It was good performance from the boys and it’s just incredibly frustrating because you want to be part of it. It’s a hindrance really as I want to be playing in the Youth team and pushing for the Reserves and trying to impress so this sets me back a bit but it’s about how you deal with set-backs that will determine if you’ll make the grade or not.
The operation came and went last Tuesday and although I stayed in overnight the procedure went well and I was home on Wednesday morning. As part of the benefits of being attached to a professional Club as a Youth player we’re all covered under the Club’s private medical insurance which means that you can get in and out and start your recovery as soon as possible. Which in this case began on Thursday when I was back in the Club to start a rehab programme in the gym.
It’s just a case of building that up gradually and working with the medical team here so at the minute I’m doing a lot of walking on the treadmill and gradually increasing the pace as the days go by and the stiffness on my abdomen eases.
Hopefully I’ll be back sooner than the 6 weeks that has been predicted! I’ll keep you posted.
