By Brian Bennett
Jordan Summerly made his comeback for Ashington in their home match against Liversedge at Woodhorn Lane on Saturday.
The former North Shields and Blyth Spartans defender has been ruled out with a knee problem since mid August but thankfully came through unscathed after playing for an hour before being substituted.
Now the 28 year old is keeping his fingers crossed for an overdue and prolonged period where he stays injury-free as he admitted that he has come to a crossroads in his footballing career.
“I’ve played collectively for three months in two years and that’s tough at my age,” he said after the 4-0 defeat against the West Yorkshire outfit, “In the last campaign, I played until November then came back for a game and a half at the start of this season before being injured again and out of action for three and a half months. Now my plan is to put a string of games together for the rest of the season.”
Summerly says he was ‘surprised’ when he was told by manager Nick Gray that he was in the starting line up at the weekend: “I was shocked to be honest because I wasn’t expecting it,” he added “I knew Archie Small’s loan period from Darlington finished today (Saturday) so I was expecting him to start. There have been a couple of players who have left the club and I thought I may have made the bench and come on but when the boss told me I was in from the start, I was surprised but delighted all the same. I was happy to play for an hour without any problems and hopefully I can build on that.”
He continued: “I’ve just qualified as a chartered management accountant – so I reckon this is my last chance to stay injury free. I didn’t think anyone deserved to get applauded off today after the defeat but the fans clapped me when I was substituted so I think they just appreciated seeing me back on the pitch – and I appreciated the support I received from them. I admit that I’m not a good spectator so it’s always good to get back out onto the pitch because I feel I can make a difference.”
Ashington assistant manager Liam McIvor said: “It’s good to have Jordan back – it’s been a long time coming.”