Lewis Page was very pleased to make his long-awaited return from injury in Tuesday’s Professional Development League Two match against Burnley at The Valley.
Page featured for 62 minutes of Charlton’s 3-0 victory, his first taste of action since early October.
The left-back said: “It was nice to get 60 minutes. I was aiming for 45 at least, and then I thought I might as well give it another 15 as I felt fine. I probably could have done a bit more, but I had to reign it in a little bit. It was great to be back.
“The last month or so I’ve really kicked on, I’ve been out on the grass for about three weeks and done a lot of runs back in training with the boys, so hopefully I’ll get back in and around it soon.”
Page, who picked up his groin injury in the 5-3 defeat at Scunthorpe United on Octonber 2nd, also spent considerable time out last season, a hamstring injury suffered in April 2017 ruling him out for almost an entire year.
“It hasn’t been easy. I’ve seen a load of different specialists, just trying to see what I can do to speed things up so I’m back before the end of the season. I’ve had this aim to get back, and luckily I am now, so hopefully I can stay fit and help the boys to seal promotion.”
Page spent much of his recovery time alongside midfielder Jake Forster-Caskey, who also made his return in Tuesday’s U23 game, and spoke on how the pair have helped each other during a tricky period.
“It’s been good, we’ve been in the gym most days together. It’s been nice because I’ve been doing a lot of running with him, instead of being on my own like I was last time, which was even tougher, so it was nice to have him alongside me, and to return together today.”
He also spoke on how impressed he has been with the team’s recent performances, especially Saturday’s 3-1 victory over top-of-the-table Luton Town.
“The boys have been on fire, scoring a few like we did on Saturday against the league leaders," he explained.
"So there’s no reason why we can’t run through teams. It’s just about the consistency, which sometimes we lack, so if we get that right there’s no reason why we can’t push for those top two places.”
“The mood positive, if win our games we’ll give ourselves a chance [of automatic promotion], but it’s also up to other teams to drop points, so all we can do is focus on ourselves and take three points every game.
“It was probably the best atmosphere I’ve seen since I’ve been here on Saturday. It was rocking, especially after Igor [Vetokele’s] goal. The Luton fans were giving it a bit and all and we shut them down, so it was good.”
The 22-year-old is confident he’s over the worst of his injury problems and hopes to be involved in Charlton’s final promotion push.
“I’d like to think I can be involved. That’s obviously not up to me, that’s up to Lee [Bowyer]. So, we’ll have to see. I think I did OK today, showed that I’ve still got some fitness. I’ll just leave it up to him and do all I can.”
Article by: Harry Currall
Photo: Tom West
