Christian Dailly admits he was delighted just to be kicking
a ball again after returning to first-team action in last
night's 1-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion at The
Hawthorns.
The 32-year-old defender made a long-awaited comeback after a serious hamstring tear sustained in our FA Cup quarter-final win at Manchester City back on March 20 and, having stepped in for the injured Anton Ferdinand at right-back, enjoyed a solid 74-minute appearance as Hammers kept a clean sheet against the relegated Baggies.
"It was good to get back into the swing of things and just kick a ball again," said Christian. "I had an hour playing for the reserves last week but, other than that, I haven't had much football. Because there have been so many games recently, the lads have been doing very little football training, so I've been desperate to get involved.
"The plan against West Brom was to play about an hour and I ended up playing a little longer, but I felt fine and had no problems at all with the hamstring. Obviously I've still got a bit of scar tissue and it aches a bit, but that is only natural. I had quite a bad tear and I've really pushed it to the limit in coming back this soon, but the physios have done a great job and it's fine now.
"I felt a little sluggish to start with tonight but, as the game went on, I got stronger and more used to the pace of it. It was great to be part of a good win, and I just thought it was sensible to come off while I was still feeling good and possibly needed to play again on Sunday."
Indeed, it is certainly not a case of returning from injury to enjoy a couple of light run-outs before the end of the campaign for Christian. With Alan Pardew currently facing a minor injury crisis among his squad, the Scottish international knows that he could possibly be in line for an appearance in the FA Cup final on May 13 - with one more mouth-watering Premiership encounter also to fit in before then.
"It's not only the final that is a massive game, because Sunday's game against Spurs is a big occasion, too," he says. "The fans will certainly want us to put on a show in our final home game of the season against our local rivals, so mentally there is a very big incentive for me to be sensible about my recovery this week.
"Then of course, I have to be ready for the possibility of playing in the FA Cup final, which would obviously be a dream come true. So I'll be 100% focused on getting myself right over the next few days, and so far it's working out well for me."
The 32-year-old defender made a long-awaited comeback after a serious hamstring tear sustained in our FA Cup quarter-final win at Manchester City back on March 20 and, having stepped in for the injured Anton Ferdinand at right-back, enjoyed a solid 74-minute appearance as Hammers kept a clean sheet against the relegated Baggies.
"It was good to get back into the swing of things and just kick a ball again," said Christian. "I had an hour playing for the reserves last week but, other than that, I haven't had much football. Because there have been so many games recently, the lads have been doing very little football training, so I've been desperate to get involved.
"The plan against West Brom was to play about an hour and I ended up playing a little longer, but I felt fine and had no problems at all with the hamstring. Obviously I've still got a bit of scar tissue and it aches a bit, but that is only natural. I had quite a bad tear and I've really pushed it to the limit in coming back this soon, but the physios have done a great job and it's fine now.
"I felt a little sluggish to start with tonight but, as the game went on, I got stronger and more used to the pace of it. It was great to be part of a good win, and I just thought it was sensible to come off while I was still feeling good and possibly needed to play again on Sunday."
Indeed, it is certainly not a case of returning from injury to enjoy a couple of light run-outs before the end of the campaign for Christian. With Alan Pardew currently facing a minor injury crisis among his squad, the Scottish international knows that he could possibly be in line for an appearance in the FA Cup final on May 13 - with one more mouth-watering Premiership encounter also to fit in before then.
"It's not only the final that is a massive game, because Sunday's game against Spurs is a big occasion, too," he says. "The fans will certainly want us to put on a show in our final home game of the season against our local rivals, so mentally there is a very big incentive for me to be sensible about my recovery this week.
"Then of course, I have to be ready for the possibility of playing in the FA Cup final, which would obviously be a dream come true. So I'll be 100% focused on getting myself right over the next few days, and so far it's working out well for me."