Surgery blow for Quakers
01 Jun 2007 - 07:14:30
Darlington striker Martin Smith is set to miss the start of next season after being forced to undergo knee surgery.
The 32-year-old went under the knife in recent weeks and accepts that he will miss the first couple of months of the new campaign.
He told the Northern Echo: "I wanted to wait until the end of the season to get the operation done and if I'm being realistic, then I'm probably looking at being spot-on in September.
"I can't start running again until July. That is when I will be able to build my fitness up. I will not be able to do pre-season like the rest of the lads and it will be a case of playing catch-up.
"But if I do everything in the right way then hopefully that will speed up my recovery.
"I've had a couple of years where I've been in this situation, but you just have to be patient, work hard and be positive."