‘I’m desperate to get back to my best’ says Charlton Athletic’s Clarke

FROM
the outside looking in, footballers appear to lead a great life. They get well
paid for doing a job they love.

But
it isn't always as simple as that. Among other things, there is the battle to win
a place in the team, an often nomadic lifestyle, abuse on social media – and
the ever-present danger of injury.

It
was a year ago today that Charlton striker Billy Clarke's world turned upside
down. He'd joined the in the summer and was settling into life at The
Valley when he ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee against
Blackburn.

It
was the second time in the 30-year-old Irishman's career that he had suffered
an ACL injury.

It
also happened at just after they'd won promotion to the Premier
League in 2010.

By
the time he returned, the Seasiders were back in the .

Second
time around, Clarke knew his season was over before the Christmas party season
had got into full swing. A good talker, he's candid about how difficult it is
to recover from a long-term injury.

“I'd
played the first four months of the season and I was really enjoying it,” he
said. “To have a season-ending injury, which has gone on into this season, is
unbelievably hard.

“It'shard times in the gym physically and mentally. I tried to remember the stuff Idid the first time it happened to me, but I was probably on auto-pilot.”

Photo: PA Images

Clarke
admits that his method of recovery was largely to take himself away from the
team environment. He felt it was the best way for him to get through such a
major challenge.

“It's
a weird place to be – the gym becomes an obsession,” he said. “You take
yourself out of the mentality and you just detach yourself from the
lads.

“You
focus on your own battle because you know that no matter what you do, it isn't
going to affect anything in a game.

“On
weekends, I didn't know who we were playing or if it was home or away, because
I wasn't interested, though I wanted the club and the lads to do well.

“There
were some lonely times, but that was my own choice. I was obsessed with the gym
and it got to the stage where if I didn't do something in the gym or had a
couple of days off I felt guilty. But you have to rest to let your body
recover.

“The
time I did have off I wanted to spend with my family. It was tough, but that
how I managed to deal with it. Other people are different – they can stay and
have a laugh with the lads.

“The
lads would be in the café having a coffee in the afternoon, but I would be
leaving the gym at 5.30. For footballers, that's overtime!”

Clarke
admits he was confused when the injury occurred.

“I
was running side by side with an opponent and he's checked back. I turned and
planted my left foot and I felt something,” he recalled.

“I
said ‘did you clip me?' and he said no. It felt like a kick, but it was the
ligaments snapping.

“I
tried to jog it off and thought ‘hopefully the pain will wear off'. I did a
couple more turns and it felt wobbly. Within 15 minutes, it was achy.”

He's
done his right knee and now his left, so hopefully Clarke is due a clear run on
the injury front for some time to come.

Theformer , and Bradford striker made his comeback in Cup atMansfield last month – 11 months on from his injury – and has notched up threemore cup appearances since.

Photo: PA Images

Now
the aim is to try to help Lee Bowyer's Addicks press for promotion from League
One and show the fans what he can really do.

“I'm
desperate to get back in,” he said. “Now I'm watching games fully fit and
waiting for my opportunity to get back. I give 100 per cent whenever I play and
that won't change – I will give everything.

“I've
worked so hard, the hours that I did in the gym and the sacrifice.

“You
get out what you put in and I have no doubts I will get back to where I left
off. I will also be hungrier and more experienced.”

And
one major plus is that Clarke is linking up with a team fighting for promotion,
not facing a fight for survival.

The
Addicks' impressive 2-1 victory at table-topping Portsmouth in midweek that
took them back into the play-off positions was another sign the Londoners will
be in the shake-up come the end of the season.

“We
have got a great balance – we have players like Chris Solly, Jason Pearce and
myself who have been there and done it and some really good young players like
Joe Aribo, Karlan Ahearne-Grant and Krystian Bielik (the latter on loan from
).

“Lyle
Taylor is a great focal point for us up front and I don't think anyone comes
close in this league to his partnership with Karlan.

“The
manager (Lee Bowyer) has come in and he demands hard work.

“We've
got players with a lot of natural ability, but possibly before the hard work
was taken for granted a bit.

“Now
they are doing the hard work as well, they are reaping the rewards.

“Joe
Aribo is a top, top player, the same as Karlan, and I think he will play at the
top level.

“With
young players, you get inconsistency and sometimes that does crop up, but the
majority of the time they are on it. They are making massive contributions to
the team.”

Clarke
sees no reason why Charlton can't make a good fist of reclaiming the
Championship status they lost in 2016.

“We
have shown for large parts of the season how good we are,” he said. “The manager
demands hard work and confidence from us, and he gives us a lot of confidence
to go and play.

“The
same goes for his assistant, Johnnie Jackson, who's just retired. He's gone
into coaching as if he's been doing it his whole career.

“It's
going to be hard, there are some really good teams in League One – Portsmouth,
, who have momentum, Barnsley, Sunderland, ourselves.

“Frommy experience of being in the , I think our chances are as good asany, or to get as close to automatic promotion as possible.”

JOHN LYONS

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