Motherwell star Andy Halliday admits he threw himself into pre-season to exorcise the demons of a nightmare season.
The 32-year-old found himself bombed out at Hearts and was handed a lifeline by Motherwell boss Stuart Kettlewell with a short-term deal in January.
Midfielder Halliday had played just six times for the Jambos between August and November 1, and didn’t play again until he arrived at Fir Park.
But three games in 11 days resulted in a calf strain, which he didn’t sufficiently recover from before a hamstring injury further hampered him.
Recognising the importance of pre-season, Halliday launched into the programme, and is reaping the rewards.
He said: “Last season was obviously really difficult for myself, being 32 and basically not kicking a ball for the first six months of the season.
“I think I trained two days with Motherwell before playing three games in a week, and straight away got my calf issue.
“Touch wood, that was my first muscle issue I’ve had for a long time and I never really recovered from it, to be honest.
“I came back for a couple of games, did my hamstring after that, so it was a difficult period of time.
“I knew, coming into this season, that pre-season was massive for me, and I never missed a session.
“I knew that was going to be really important for me, to build that foundation, fitness-wise, going into this season.
“I’ve managed to stay in the team and it feels as if I’ve done well, individually, but more importantly, I feel the team has one well, collectively, as well, so long may that continue.”
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