A chat with Phil Kite
It’s been a busy time for Phil Kite since the season started, given the number of players out injured and those returning from injury.
However there’s a lot more room in his treatment room now as many of them are, or have, returned to action.
There are, at the moment, five senior players undergoing treatment and working on rehabilitation plans, as Phil explains.
“Garry Kenneth hasn’t been fit to play since 14th September, when he sustained a groin strain when running after the game against Dagenham & Redbridge.”
Garry, if you recall, was on the bench that day, and he has been unfortunate in that he has picked up a number of other injuries since.
“We did get him back from the groin strain but he broke down in training on his return and has since suffered hamstring, back, and calf at various times since then.
“He’s still working on his rehab programme in the gym, though I’m unable to say at the moment when he might be fit enough to play again.”
There is better news on the other players currently in his care.
“Fabian Broghammer, who sustained an Anterior Cruciate Ligament injury (ACL) as well as cartilage damage in the pre-season game at Hereford, is progressing well."
There’s an outside chance that we may see him in action before the end of the season, though that depends on his progress. As we have said before, return from an ACL usually takes between six and nine months and it’s still less than four months into his rehabilitation programme.
“At the moment he is following a strict programme and working incredibly hard in the gym and we hope to get him back jogging within the next two weeks.”
Central defender Mark McChrystal is still a few weeks away from a return.
“We were aware that he had a problem with his patella tendon but, to be fair to him, he kept going for the team. He was playing on a Saturday and then not training, apart from working in the gym, during the week.
“You can only do that for so long without risking long term damage and when a scan confirmed our diagnosis of patella tendonitis, he came out of the side.
“He’s now had an injection and been following a rehabilitation programme. He will spend next week at St George’s Park, with Danny Woodards, undergoing an intensive rehab programme and I think we might see him back within two to three weeks.”
Speaking of Danny, he has been jogging and doing some ball work out on the training ground. Another ACL victim, he is well on schedule with his recovery programme.
“His knee isn’t a problem, as that’s recovered well. But, as with all ACL injuries, we have to be careful that players don’t pick up other minor knocks, as Matt Harrold did when he returned.
“No matter how hard the boys work in the gym, it’s not possible to fully replicate what goes on in a match; twisting, turning, shooting, for example. Consequently when they return to full training there is a risk of muscle injuries, calf and groin being prime examples.”
Moving swiftly on, we come to Jim Paterson, who fractured his fibula and badly damaged his ankle ligaments, also at Hereford in pre-season.
He suffered a setback when the fracture didn’t heal properly and instead of spending just six weeks in a protective boot, he had to keep it on for 12 weeks.
“As a result, he suffered some muscle wastage and is having to build those muscles back up.
“However he is now running and striking balls and I’m hopeful that he and Danny might only be three or four weeks away from a return.”