Gary Gardner, on loan at Coventry City from Aston Villa, proved he is committed to playing for Coventry City by returning to training a day after a minor operation so as not to let his temporary team mates down.
Gardner had an operation on his ear under general anaesthetic last Thursday, but turned up for training at Ryton on Friday in case he was needed as cover for the injured captain, Sammy Clingan who,will be out of contention over the Christmas period as he recovers from a fractured toe.
The 19 year old Gardner has been asked by the Sky Blues boss Andy Thorn to take over Clingan's role in midfield and it is a role in which he impressed in his Ricoh debut.
Gardner told the CT:“I had the operation under general anaesthetic and I got out of hospital on Thursday evening and trained Friday morning because I wanted to play.
“Anaesthetics can knock you about but I am the type to get up and fight, and I want to win games for this club. I wasn’t released from hospital until seven o’clock on the night and made sure I reported for training the next day.
“I’ve had the problem for a while but hopefully this has solved it now. It used to make me feel a bit light headed and affected my balance and I wasn’t too sure what it was. I had my ears checked out and they found the problem with my ear drum.
“I could feel it before the Portsmouth game and it made me feel a bit ill, but I want to play every game and give 100 per cent for the club.”