Pic: Media Image
JJ O'DONNELL has got the perfect motivation to get back on the pitch again – having to pick up Gateshead's dirty kit.
The 24-year-old former Luton and Heed midfielder is undergoing gruelling rehabilitation as he aims to return from an operation that will make or break his career.
O'Donnell, who hasn't played since December 2014, suffers from a rare condition known as sesamoiditis, which affects the small bones under the big toe.
Unable to run without pain, he went under the knife to remove the bones and give him the chance of playing again even though success rate is 50/50.
A crowdfunder launched by two Gateshead fans to fund the surgery raised more than £7,000 after former Sunderland striker Danny Graham unexpectedly put in £2,690 to help out.
Duties
He had the two-hour op in June and is now working hard in the gym – but only after finishing his duties as National League Gateshead's new kit man. His first game was the long trip from the north-east to Torquay last Saturday for a 2-0 win.
“I wish I'd started Monday!” joked O'Donnell, who scored the goal to put Gateshead into the Conference play-off final in 2014.
“I always knew I would, but I didn't realise how much I would miss being in the football environment. First and foremost I miss the playing but it's also the day-to-day.
“As soon as I got on the bus the lads were trying to hammer me from minute one and there were a few moans about jumpers. But they know with me they'll get as good as they give, so they got put in their place straight away.
“I'm thankful to the manager Neil Aspin and the club for giving me the chance to be part of it again. It's important for the lads to have a good relationship with the kitman in any dressing room.
“If they don't have their kit and don't prepare right than it will affect them on the pitch. It's something I've never done and I can only do my best. I got on well on Saturday so hopefully that continues.
“It was a bit emotional for me. It's been a long time since I've been in a football changing room and in a sense it was a little bit hard to take that I wasn't able to go out there and help the lads play.
“I'm on my way towards it. It's been a very, very long road over the last 14 months but hopefully in the next couple of months I will be able to join the lads back on the pitch. That's the ultimate goal.”
O'Donnell, who is also leading the club's ‘Walking Football' sessions, is being helped back to fitness by Manchester City's team.
“I'm in the gym running on the treadmill and hopefully I can keep bumping up how long I'm running for,” O'Donnell said.
“At the minute I'm running for 12-and-a-half minutes and, touch wood, that's pain free. Obviously I'll have to keep progressing how long I run for and hopefully my feet can withstand the pressure.
“It's never been a case of playing football, it's been running. It's something I've got to overcome.”
