INJURY UPDATE 9/06/08
While the start of the Dons' new season in League 1 may still be nine weeks away, there is still plenty of work to be done for the boys aiming to be fit for that time. Head physio Simon Crampton takes us through the latest news with five of Paul Ince's squad currently undergoing treatment . . .
All the injured boys continue to make their pilgrimage to the treatment room over the summer in between their holidays. I've caught up with all the injured lads in the last week and all are progressing well. We'll start the round-up with Mitch . . .
Paul Mitchell (leg)Mitch continues to make excellent progress and, as always, is working extremely hard towards getting back to full fitness. He's now got six months to prove himself on the pitch.
I sent Mitch to Lilleshall for this last week to undergo some intensive rehabilitation, focusing on his power and balance and spatial awareness. While he's been working very hard here, we felt a change of scenery and input from some different physios would give him a bit of a lift. The facilities there are excellent as well and I'm in no doubt that he will have been in good hands.
I've spoken to Mitch, he thoroughly enjoyed his time there and we've booked him in for another week. With the work he's been given on top of this, he will be ready to start pre-season training with the rest of the players.
Drissa Diallo (shoulder)
I saw Drissa on Friday after he returned from a trip to Paris. Since his operation he's now out of the sling and is completing a programme to improve his range of movement. I'm pleased with how things have gone over the last two weeks and we've enhanced his programme accordingly. After a further two weeks on mobility, he'll commence strengthening work.
He's got sufficient movement now to start running, swimming and cross-trainer work so he can regain his cardio-vascular fitness for the new season. By pre-season he'll be able to train with the boys but we'll still need a few more weeks before he's involved in the contact side of training.
Colin Cameron (knee)Cams was in for a session with me last week. His knee has responded very well to the dry needling procedure we discussed last time and his knee is now a lot more stable. He's currently undergoing a strengthening programme along with some football specific rehabilitation drills and I am hopeful that Cams will be in a position to fully join training at the start of pre-season.
Carl Regan (hamstring)Regs has been another that has popped in to see me over the last week and his hamstring injury he picked up towards the end of the season has made an excellent recovery. He'll continue to strengthen this area over the next month and will be able to join training fully from the start of pre-season.
Danny Swailes (Achilles)
Swaz thought he was just coming in for a check-up and was a bit shocked when I put him through his paces in the gym! In general, his Achilles has responded well to treatment but he'll need another two weeks of active rest and strengthening before he commences running. We're hopeful he will also be ready for pre-season.
