Frustrating time for City injury victim Birley (From Worcester News)

Frustrating time for City injury victim Birley

9:00am Tuesday 16th February 2010 in

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MATT Birley admits he is still no closer to knowing when he will return to the Worcester City fold.

The former Birmingham City midfielder damaged the medial ligaments in his right knee during the 3-1 victory over Weymouth on January 23.

He was replaced by Gary Walker 64 minutes into the Blue Square South fixture, which was City’s first league match at St George’s Lane for nearly two months following the snow, and has not kicked a ball in anger since.

Birley has not even been able to train as his knee does not stand up to the pain and it is anyone’s guess as to when he will be next available to caretaker manager Carl Heeley.

Instead, the 23-year-old has been confined to a spectator role from the stands just at a time when City have begun to find some form.

He said: “It’s majorly frustrating. You see the lads out on the pitch and you can’t help them. Anyone who plays football doesn’t like watching.

“There’s not much I can do. I haven’t been able to train because it’s still too sore to do anything.

“I can only keep the rehabilitation going and take it from there.”

Prior to his injury, Birley had notched up 16 starts for Worcester and was beginning to establish himself in the midfield under the then tutelage of manager Richard Dryden.

Indeed, paired alongside Craig Wilding, he was the only recognised central midfielder in the mix and was proving a useful asset.

That baton has now been passed to Walker and Cheltenham Town loanee Jack Durrant as Heeley attempts to restore some balance to the team.

Birley, though, is a key absentee when Heeley and assistant player-manager Mark Clyde are expecting to call on everyone in the squad.

Including last night’s match against Braintree Town at the Lane, City are scheduled to play eight matches this month and have two more Monday night home matches to come in a sequence of five.

It is a period that is likely to go a long way to shaping their season as they bid to pull away from the Blue Square South relegation zone.

Although Birley, who joined the club after leaving King’s Lynn in September, would love to feature in these games and the scrap for survival, he knows he cannot afford to take any risks.

“You can’t rush these things, they have got to be dead right in case you do it again,” said Birley, whose only goal in a City shirt came in the 2-1 FA Trophy triumph over Burnham in November.

“I wanted to get a good run in the team and show the fans the best of my ability. It hasn’t happended but hopefully I can get fit and have a good run until the end of the season.”