Joe Riley's ankle operation proves successful
Joe Riley’s ankle operation has been deemed a success according to Shrewsbury Town’s Physio Chris Skitt.Riley broke his tore ankle ligaments and broke his fibula in last week’s season ending game with Oxford United.
The operation took place in Manchester on Thursday and Skitt is pleased with the outcome.
“All was successful”, Chris told ShrewsWeb.
“It was as planned and thankfully there was nothing that we need to be concerned about. He’s had a number of pins put in and a plate put in as well. He’s also had some soft tissue damage reconstructed, so all is well and as per the plan, we will look to get him going.
“Thankfully it was all as planned. It was something that myself and the surgeon discussed beforehand and he obviously takes a lead on it, but I was there to discuss anything that might affect his rehab going forwards.”
The injury means that Riley will be working with Skitt throughout the summer in order to make the ankle stronger.
“Joe will have a couple of days off just to recover from the operation and the trouble that it’s caused because it does take a lot out of you”, said Skitt.
“Then we will look to get him in early next week with a view towards stepping him up and getting him moving, getting the ankle movement back and trying to progress things from there.
“It’s only his ankle that’s hurt, so his arms work and his chest works so we will be working on them. It’s also a good opportunity to get some basic strength into his core with a view to then focussing on the ankle a little bit later when we can be a little bit more aggressive with it.”
The injury is a serious one, but Skitty was reluctant to put any timescale on Joe’s return at this time.
“It’s hard to tell at the minute”, admitted Chris.
“It’s really about taking things steady and seeing how the ankle reacts after the operation. It will be a number of months, but in terms of an exact figure, it’s something we have to discuss further depending on how it reacts over the next two weeks or so.”