Dundee United’s very own miracle man Lewis Toshney has returned to full training and could even feature against Queen of the South.
Toshney had been expected to be sidelined for another fortnight at least after damaging ligaments on both sides of his ankle during the 1-1 draw with Hibs a month ago.
True to form, however, his recovery is once again ahead of schedule and the defender, who had also been playing midfield before he was injured, will be in the Tangerines’ squad for the trip to Palmerston on Saturday.
The good news doesn’t end there for United, with Blair Spittal also in full training and on the verge of a first-team return following his groin problem and Stewart Murdoch, who had cruciate ligament damage, also edging closer to a comeback.
A smiling McKinnon said: “This is a great day because the sun has been shining and Lewis Toshney is back training!
“He has done a full session and that is a big boost for us.
“I wouldn’t say he is match fit yet but it’s brilliant to have him training again.
“He isn’t going to start the game on Saturday but he will be in the squad and might be involved.
“I was astounded when I saw him knocking his pan in.
“For it to be full training is excellent for him and for the club.
“He is unbelievable, he really is.”
As for Murdoch, McKinnon added: “He has also been running and is really pushing himself too.
“He is getting closer and closer.
“I thought the pair of them might come back together but that’s Tosher now back early.”
Spittal will join Toshney on the team bus to Dumfries, with McKinnon saying: “He is back in training as well and will be going down with us on Saturday.
“He probably needs an under-20 game before he is completely ready.
“We are starting to get boys fit again and it’s great.
“What we have done is come through a spell of games when we have had a few players missing, which shows we have a decent squad.”
Meanwhile, the Tannadice boss was keen to praise the fans for both their flag display and general support during the vital 1-0 win against Falkirk last weekend.
An excellent crowd of 7,048 roared the players on and McKinnon was delighted with their contribution.
He said: “When we came out of the tunnel and saw the amount of supporters we had it was brilliant.
“The flags were waving in the display behind the goal and we had more than 7,000 fans, which was great.
“What was really encouraging was just how patient they were with the players, who really appreciated that.”
