Relief For Fadz

THE Argyle treatment room received a welcome Christmas present with the news that wing-back Callum McFadzean will be back in action by the end of January.

Manager Ryan Lowe admitted there were genuine fears he could be out with a knee problem for at least three months but, on the insistence of new physio Dave Galley, Fadz was sent to see a top specialist.

It was a decision that has proven wise, as the enthusiastic Fadz felt he could have played in the Cambridge game in early December, but that could have caused a far more serious problem.

“Callum McFadzean has had some good news, we’ll have him back by the end of January and we thought we were going to lose him for at least three months,” said Ryan.

“We’ve had some good news from the specialist and Fadz is ready to go. He will be grass-based within the next week and we should hopefully have him back for the last week in January.

“We thought he’d had a tear in his knee and we thought it was going to be a long one. We discussed it and [at Cambridge], he felt he could’ve played but Dave [Galley] said no and it’s good that he did, so we could get a specialist opinion.

“Even Fadz said he would have played but that would have made it even worse. We made sure that he wasn’t training until we saw the specialist. It’s a big plus for us that he’s not going to be out for three months.”

Ryan Taylor is another Pilgrim missing from the Christmas schedule but his current use of crutches and a protective slipper is just a precaution for his foot injury. Defender Will Aimson, meanwhile, is expected to be back toward the end of January, as he battles a pelvic problem.

“He [Taylor] is on them [crutches] as a precaution,” said Ryan. “He’s got a slipper on as well. It was underneath his foot and he’s got some inflammation around his metatarsal.

“We’ve made him wear that slipper and he’ll be back with us in around ten days. If you don’t wear the slipper and get on crutches, it aggravates [the injury].

“For three days, he was ill and didn’t travel with us to Macclesfield. He was laid up in bed and then it [his foot] kept being aggravated, Tayls will just battle through it but he felt something in training, so we got it scanned and it’s a tiny problem in there that we feel we’ve caught.

“Will Aimson is progressing very well. Dave Galley has got him on a good programme, he’s on the right track and looking good.”