Sam Parkin is keeping his fingers crossed that his problems are finally behind him after a season blighted by injury. The 25-year-old striker joined Luton from Ipswich in a £340,000 deal in the summer but a reoccurrence of an old ankle injury forced him to undergo surgery in November. After three months on the sidelines, Parkin has finally been given the go-ahead to resume light training and he is hoping to play a major role in the Hatters' fight for Championship survival. Parkin struggled to make an impact at Portman Road, scoring just five times in 22 appearances, but before then he had found the net an impressive 67 times in 124 games for Swindon. Givemefootball's Mark Shail is the man with the questions.
Q:WHAT WAS THE PROBLEM WITH YOUR ANKLE?
A:There had been some complications with the operation I had last season and unfortunately I had to have further surgery on my ankle. It was not affecting me at the start of the season but then it flared up, gradually got worse, and after a scan I was told that something needed to be done.
Q:WHAT IS THE LATEST ON THE INJURY?
A:I've been building things up gradually but after having had two operations on the ankle in a relatively short space of time I have to be a bit careful. But at the moment it feels great, I'm not getting any pain, and when I spoke to the surgeon earlier this week he said he was happy with things and gave me the go-ahead to step things up in terms of my training.
Q:YOU MUST BE RELIEVED TO FINALLY SEE SOME LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL?
A:Yes, it's been an awful couple of years for me but hopefully that's all behind me now and I just want to get back playing as soon as possible. We need as many players back fit as we can because the team needs to pick up some results to make sure we're still in this division at the end of the season.
Q:ARE YOU CONFIDENT LUTON CAN STAY UP?
A:Most definitely. We've got a good crop of young players coming through the ranks and a few of the players who have been out injured are on now the verge of coming back. It's been a difficult spell for us, after such a good start to the season, but things are starting to look brighter and there is an air of optimism about the place again.
Q:THINGS ARE LOOKING PRETTY TIGHT AT THE BOTTOM OF THE TABLE, AREN'T THEY?
A:They are and we're now approaching a crucial stage of the season. But I believe we have enough quality in the squad to stay up. Mike Newell was able to bring in a couple of new faces last month and that has helped us as well. It's been difficult for the manager, given the financial constraints, and also the fact that we lost two of our best players at the end of last season, but I'm convinced we have enough to survive.
Q:HOW DO YOU LOOK BACK AT YOUR TIME AT IPSWICH?
A:Obviously it was a disappointing time for me because things didn't go as well as I would have liked. I didn't ask to leave the club but these things happen and the older I get the more I understand that if one door shuts there is always a chance that another one will open. Now it's important for me to regain my fitness and repay the manager's faith in me.
Q:AND IPSWICH ARE BY NO MEANS SAFE THEMSELVES ARE THEY?
A:No, their performances have been a bit inconsistent – they seem to get one good result but not build on it in the next game. But I'm sure they'll be okay. On their day they are as good as any side in the league, it's just a case of producing it week in, week out. For them this is probably a consolidation season but I'm sure they will look to make a bigger impact next year.
