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Clark hoping the worst is behind him

27/12/2001

SOCCER: Defender Peter Clark is hoping to put his nightmare start to the season behind him.

The former Arsenal trainee missed has missed most of the season with ankle and knee problems.

But he proved his fitness in the reserves' 6-0 win over Rochdale and started only his fifth league game of the season at Fratton Park.

Clark told the County website after his run out in the reserves: "I'm pleased with the way it went. I feel a little bit tired but the knee feels fine."

It's been a frustrating time for the former Arsenal trainee.

After leaving Highbury, his two years at Carlisle were pretty much injury free, as was his first season at Edgeley Park.

This term, though, an ankle injury picked up against Scunthorpe reserves back in August and the knee injury sustained against Norwich had restricted the popular full-back to four league starts before Saturday.

He added: "It has been frustrating. I'm just not used to being injured and at Carlisle I hardly missed a game.

"Hopefully the worries are now behind me and with a little luck I might make the squad for Portsmouth on Saturday."

Despite his personal problems, though, he feels that confidence at County is high and that it is not too late to pull away from the relegation zone.

Clark added: "It's not going to be easy. But the way I see it is that we can't do any worse in the second half of the season than we have in the first.

"We are getting fitter and the new management team are getting their ideas across.

"We have had no luck either, so if we can get the rub of the green and win a couple of games quickly, I'm sure we have the players and the character to get us out of trouble."