STUART SEARLE is hoping his return can coincide with a strong run of form to push Chelmsford City into the play-offs.
The goalkeeper returned to the first-team fray at Staines last week after a month out with a leg injury.
And although he is glad to be back, he has praised manager Glenn Pennyfather for using his contacts to ensure he didn't have to be rushed back ahead of schedule.
In the wake of Searle's injury – suffered against Hayes & Yeading at the start of February – Pennyfather brought in Reece Charles-Cook from Arsenal and then, when Charles-Cook was himself injured, Danzelle St Louis-Hamilton arrived to fill the gap.
And Searle told the Chronicle: "The gaffer used his contacts well to get goalkeepers in.
"It's good from my point of view that I wasn't missed as much as I was last year and I wasn't back into the frame quicker than I should have been, so that's credit to the manager.
"He may well have wanted to put me back in, but those sorts of injuries aren't be messed around with.
"Fortunately I've come out of it having missed seven games and it could have been a whole lot more, so I count myself lucky and we've not really suffered from it either."
Searle, who works as a goalkeeping coach, also had praise for youngster Tom Warren.
"I felt a little bit sorry for young Tom," he added.
"Obviously I'm fairly close with him but the gaffer's obviously thought that Tom isn't ready yet.
"I think he's a good prospect. "With my day job being a goalkeeping coach I hope I've been able to give Tom the right information, the right advice with regards to what's best for him."
Searle was set to keep for last night's scheduled and hastily-rearranged clash with AFC Hornchurch, and he is hoping to soon be back to his very best.
He added: "It's obviously difficult coming back after a period of time out.
"I've come straight back into the lion's den a bit – it was nice to be back for the game at Staines but I'm hoping it's not going to take too long to get back to the pace of games and pick up my goalkeeping fitness again.
"It's important now that we get our heads down and strive to reach the play-offs.
"We're in one of the play-off positions already, we've had quite a consistent season.
"We have lost games maybe we shouldn't have, we know that, we've conceded some poor goals.
"We're certainly in a stronger position than we were last season, and we've got one of the best squads of players in the division, we've certainly got the ability to go and produce results.
"If you look at the games with Hereford United and Colchester United, we have proved that we can do that in a one-off situation."
