Colback hails Meyler's courage

Jack Colback has hailed David Meyler's courage after seeing him work his way back from serious injury on to the international stage. Meyler made his first start for the Republic of Ireland in Tuesday night's 4-1 friendly victory over Oman at Craven Cottage to confirm his return to full fitness after two serious knee injuries robbed him of a more than a year of football. Colback told Sunderland's official website: "I was over the moon to see him start and everyone here is buzzing for him. David was very unfortunate with his injury and he came back strongly. There are not many who work harder in training and David's getting the rewards for that. "It's good to see him getting that chance. The fact that David is a strong character will have helped him through. One injury like that could be enough to really damage some people's spirits, so to have two must have been a nightmare for him. But he has worked really hard to come back strongly and he deserves all the rewards he gets." Meyler, who joined Sunderland from Cork City in June 2008, damaged his cruciate ligament during a 1-0 home defeat by Manchester United in May 2010 and did not play again until December of the same year. However, his comeback lasted only five games when he hurt the same knee again against Aston Villa in January 2011 and was sidelined once again, this time for 10 months. The 23-year-old made a handful of appearances last season but has appeared as a substitute in each of his club's games to date during the current campaign.

Source: team_talk