Ciaron Harkin will not rush comeback despite two years on the sidelines

Ciaron Harkin says he will not rush back into action this season as his two-year injury nightmare comes to an end.

The 28-year-old is almost back to full fitness after a very difficult time in which he has had to sit out an incredible 86 games.

Harkin’s injury hell began just two games into the 2022 season when he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during a game against Shamrock Rovers at the Brandywell. A long period of rehabilitation followed, but to his disbelief and frustration, he then suffered the same injury for a second time in September 2022, ruling him out for another year of his career.

Harkin could well have made an appearance towards the end of last season, but he, physio Michel Hegarty and manager Ruaidhri Higgins, made the decision to wait until the beginning of the 2024 campaign to ensure he was 100% ready to return.

Now, that new season is just over two weeks away, and Harkin can see the light at the end of a long, dark tunnel.

“It feels great,” he said. “I’ve had a long two years and I’ve been missing the games so I’m looking forward to getting back. I’m in a good place now so hopefully I can keep pushing on and get back on the pitch very soon.

"I’ve been doing my rehab and I’ve been doing all the work I need to do with Mickey Hegarty and Kevin McCreadie and I’m on the right road, and I’m just hoping I can get back on the pitch and get my fitness back up and game fitness and hopefully I can have a good year.”

Harkin has been stuck on 99 appearances for the Candystripes since February 2022, but he is now on the verge of completing the milestone of a century with his local club at long last.

“Playing 100 times for Derry City is a dream for me; playing one match for Derry City is a dream for me,” he explained.

“Obviously, I’ve had a bad two years but it just makes everything better now and I’m really looking forward to it. It might be a slow process with getting minutes here and minutes there but I’m looking forward to it and I can’t wait to hit the ground running.”

Patience

Harkin, who signed a new one-year deal at the club in November, admitted that suffering the ACL injury for a second time made him even more determined to come back stronger than ever, even if he had to wait that bit longer.

“It has been longer this time,” he acknowledged. “At the start, when I redone it, it was, okay, it’ll take a wee bit longer this time, but I wasn’t planning to take this long.

"The reason it has been this long was just because of how the season went and the time frame for my rehab coming to the end of the season, there was no point rushing in and playing games when I could have a good off-season and then a good pre-season under my belt, so now, coming to the start of the season I’m in a good place and obviously hoping to play games before we start back.”

The big kick-off against Drogheda United at the Brandywell on February 16 is fast approaching and Harkin is hoping to get at least some minutes under his belt before that day comes.

“Hopefully I get on the pitch before that, but even when the season does start, it will be a slow process,” he cautioned.

“I’ll not be going in 100 miles per hour, but I’m feeling good, I’m really looking forward to it and I can’t wait to get back out on the Brandywell.”