First-team rehabilitation coach Luke Sewell has outlined how injured duo Cameron Burgess and Panutche Camara are progressing.
Centre-half Burgess suffered a facial injury which required surgery in the 2-0 victory over Bristol Rovers, while Camara joined the club from Plymouth with a groin problem at the start of September and is yet to make his debut for the club.
"They’re doing really well,” Sewell, who joined the Town staff in July 2021 having previously worked in similar roles at Bristol City, Cheltenham and Fulham, told the club site on Wednesday of last week.
"Cam had quite a significant injury. He started initially on the bike and it was then a graduated return to raising his temperature and his heart rate, just to see how he would react in terms of pressure on his face.
"We’ve done a little bit of extra curricular activities such as pilates and gymnastics, again just to see how he would react.
"This is his third day on the grass now doing some straight line running. We’re mainly assessing what he’s like with his foot contact and that going up through his body.
"Today we’re doing a little bit more dynamic stuff to see how he reacts again. Cam is doing slightly more sport specific and position specific work whereas Pan is continuing with some straight work. We’re just easing him into that.
"With Cam, there is no specific muscle injury that we need to strength or retrain as such. Pan, on the other hand, is going to be strengthening in and around his core and through his anterior chain.
"Pan is mainly strengthening whereas Cam is reconditioning as such because he’s only been out with a facial fracture.”
Regarding the process a player goes through after suffering an injury, Sewell, pictured above, added: "Initially, when an injury occurs, they will start on the physio bed mainly with Matt [Byard], the head physio. He is normally in charge of the assessment process and with them until the swelling and inflammation goes down.
"He does oversee the whole process but then the players are transferred on to me and Geoff [Robinson, first-team strength and conditioning coach]. We then return them back to their full strength, do some mobility work and then they’re outside with me on the grass as well.
"We do encourage a lot of recovery work, especially if they have had a tough few days, such as ice baths or maybe some pool work.”
Burgess says he’s pleased with his progress: "I’m doing well. All you can ask for is for the surgeon to do the best job they can, and they have, so it’s given me the best chance to get back as quickly as I can.
"The majority of the right side of my face was broken, I had fractures here, there and everywhere. If you asked me, I’d love to get back out there and play right now, but obviously I know I can’t.
"I've been told that I need no contact, basically. It’s just a case of following guidelines from the surgeons as well as the medical staff at the club.
"Before the op, it was pretty swollen. Initially, we were just trying to get rid of the pain then it turned into a lot of discomfort with the swelling. That probably took a good few days to settle down.
"It’s been tough to keep up with Pan to be honest, so I’d probably have picked someone else to be injured with!It is good to be in that partnership and that is something the medical team considered.
"A few of the boys are in their partnerships and going through similar rehab which helps keep spirits up.”