Craig Sibbald feared he had suffered a devastating broken ankle following a collision during Dundee United training.
Sibbald, 28, was sidelined in mid-August and rumours swiftly swirled that he had sustained a fracture or, at best, serious ligament damage. It was suggested that he could be facing months on the treatment table.
All the while, the combative midfielder was forced to be patient; waiting for the swelling to subside before he could even undergo a scan to diagnose the severity of the injury.
The results were positive — certainly in comparison to initial expectations.
And Sibbald returned to action in Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Morton after making a remarkable recovery in HALF the time that was originally predicted.
“It was meant to be eight weeks (out), but I was back after four weeks,” Sibbald told Courier Sport. “I can still feel it a wee bit, but that’s something I can manage and get through.
“It healed well and I need to give a lot of credit to the physios and medical team. They’ve pushed me every day and given me the best treatment.
“I did see a few rumours on Twitter (about the severity of the injury) but I just ignored those, got my head down and focused on my rehab.
“We had to wait a few days before I could go for the scan in Glasgow and I was just glad it wasn’t as bad as I first thought — because I did think that I’d broken my ankle at first.”
Test of strength
The returning Sibbald could hardly have been pitched into a more challenging situation, entering the fray on Saturday with United down to 10 men.
There was plenty of hard running to be done in the engine room against a physical Morton side.
And he played his part in a strong finale to the encounter, with the Tangerines going close to nicking all three points; Louis Moult hitting the post and forcing a fine stop from Ryan Mullen.
“I had been training since the previous Tuesday so I was fit and itching to get back on the pitch,” he added.
“I’m not sure if the gaffer was expecting to put me on — especially with 10 men — but you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do; that’s one way to test your fitness!”
He added: “The boys have been playing really well, so I know how hard it will be to get my place back. But I’ll keep working hard, pushing and hopefully my opportunity comes.”
Looking north
While Sibbald emerged unscathed from his comeback, United’s unbeaten run also remained in tact ahead of this weekend’s trip north to face manager-less Inverness.
“It was two points dropped (against Morton) after starting quite well in the first half,” added Sibbald, who ended the game as Terrors captain, given the absence of Ross Docherty and withdrawal of Tony Watt.
“We were on top but just didn’t manage to get the second goal, and gave them a way back into the game with a sloppy goal. Of course, that’s disappointing. The boys were annoyed.
“But it was a draw, not a loss, and you take the positives you can and move on. The gaffer emphasised that we should still be proud of the unbeaten record, and we go again for the match at Inverness.”
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