Dundee United’s Scott Fraser admits trying to come back too early from injury was a big mistake he will not be repeating.
The Tangerines midfielder has been in great form recently and picked up the Ladbrokes Championship Player of the Month Award for November.
His performances have coincided with the fact that he is now pain-free after finally recovering from a foot injury suffered against St Mirren back in March.
Now, as United prepare to go head to head with the current league leaders once more in Paisley on Friday night, Fraser is raring to go again.
He said: “As soon as I did it, I knew it wasn’t good and was a sore one.
“The medical staff told me I would be out for eight weeks but it ended up a lot longer.
“That was partly down to me as I came back in the play-offs when they didn’t want me to.
“Then I felt it again in a pre-season game but I tried to keep on playing.
“I was even taking painkillers before games and feeling light-headed but I just wanted to play.
“What I’ve learned from this is if you have an injury, you need to let it heal properly.
“If you don’t you are not doing yourself any favours.”
Fraser added: “For a while, I was getting stick because people thought I wasn’t trying.
“I understand why because I wasn’t doing much in games because of the pain.
“I couldn’t run properly and I wasn’t training so my fitness wasn’t where it needed to be.
“Finally I sat down with the manager (former boss Ray McKinnon) and we decided I needed a period of rest. That was the best thing I could have done because since I have been back, I’ve not felt the foot at all.”
