JAI Quitongo admitted last night that last season's long-term knee injury reduced him to tears and sleepless nights. The Morton striker is back fit again after the December injury, which put paid to a season which saw him earn a Scotland Under-21 call up and attract interest from Premier League outfits Crystal Palace, Hull, Swansea and West Ham. While he feels he is faster than ever, he admitted that scare stories from other players and self diagnosing on the internet had reduced him to a nervous wreck.
"I used to be up at night crying, thinking to myself 'this isn't going to happen'," said Quitongo, ahead of today's Championship meeting with Dunfermline. "Honestly, it is the worst I have ever been in my life. I'm a dead happy person and optimistic usually but when that happened I just thought 'oh no'. I started reading up about people online - I know people tell you not to do that but the more you do that the more people tell you not to do something the more you end up doing it. I read up on John Kennedy and I spoke to the gaffer [Jim Duffy] too, he had a bad cruciate injury as well. But everybody is different.
"I was just doubting myself, will I ever get back to the same?" he added. "You read about people who have lost something when they came back, but I just worked hard and I feel stronger now than before I got injured. If anything I have got faster. I feel fit and long may it continue. I just want to get back to how I was playing.
"It probably has given me a kick up the backside," said Quitongo, speaking at Topps Match Attax football card launch. "People take stuff for granted, and while I don't think I really did, until you have gone through that you don't really realise. Now I am eating better, I am sleeping better, I am probably working harder at the gym, because I never used to do too much on my legs. For me to prolong my career I need to live everything right. It probably was a blessing in disguise."
Quitongo was delighted to see Scot Gemmill's Under-21 side ran out excellent 2-0 winners against much vaunted Dutch opposition in midweek without him, but that doesn't mean he isn't targeting a return to the squad later in the campaign. "Obviously I am delighted for the boys. I didn't really expect to get called up because I am just back and it is a long time out of football. It was a great result against a good Dutch team. They played really well and obviously the boys I know like Lewis Morgan, Stevie Mallan and Greg Taylor all did fantastic so long may it continue. Hopefully, fingers crossed, I could get back in by the end of the campaign. I can only keep plugging away and keep putting in some good performances. Then I will hopefully catch Scot Gemmill's eye and he can put me back in."
First of all, Morton will hope to get back to winning ways following a 1-0 home reverse against Livingston against a table-topping Dunfermline side at Cappielow today. "We can't lose games like that, we need to get a draw or a win, but we go in against Dunfermline, who are a really good team with a lot of really good players," said Quitongo. "They have had a couple of good results and have been taking goals off everybody. We just need to be on our A game and keep working on what we have been doing in training this week. Do what we need to get some kind of result."
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