Shrewsbury Town ‘pleased’ with Ollie Norburn recovery
Shrewsbury captain Ollie Norburn is stepping up his return from injury – without the assistance of ‘hands-on’ treatment.
The midfielder has been absent since the 2-2 FA Cup draw against Liverpool in January with a knee problem that required surgery.
It was a season-ending blow for the 27-year-old, until the intervention of coronavirus bringing football to a halt.
But Norburn has worked hard with Town’s fitness staff via video-link to ensure he is in the best shape possible in lieu of typical injury rehab.
“Norbs has been able to do video work, speaking with a specialist and everything is going well, but unfortunately we still can’t get hands-on manual therapy and manual assessment,” said boss Sam Ricketts.
“We’re very pleased with how he’s going, as much as we can be without that hands-on assessment we really need.
“It’s really hard to know where we are until we get up and running again.”
Norburn revealed he completed a 57-mile bike ride in five hours and 22 minutes over the weekend.
The injury was his second of the campaign after a knee problem sustained in pre-season training in Portugal last July saw him sidelined until mid-September.
But the skipper, who was linked with a January switch to Sunderland before the fitness blow, was a regular feature in Ricketts’ side when fit, making 24 appearances and scoring three times.
Meanwhile, defender Aaron Pierre, who injured a muscle in his leg against Oxford, Town’s last game before lockdown, has now recovered.
“Aaron Pierre’s fine. We haven’t been able to test him but he’s been doing some physical work himself and feels good,” Ricketts added. “Fingers crossed he’s fighting fit as well. Everyone else is good.”
