Defender George Edmundson came through Tuesday’s Sky Bet Championship against Preston North End unscathed, after recently undergoing a hernia operation, and he could be in contention to feature on Saturday against Birmingham City at Pride Park Stadium (3pm kick-off).
Fourteen days separated Edmundson going under the knife from playing against Preston North End at Deepdale.
The intention was for the defender to be on the bench as back up and should he be required for 10 minutes then he would come on.
However, due to Andre Wisdom sustaining a groin injury in the first half, circumstances changed and Edmundson played for more than an hour.
He came through the match with no reaction and even had one of Derby’s best chances of the night as he forced a strong save from Preston goalkeeper Daniel Iversen.
And he is now in contention to feature against Birmingham, with the Rams desperate for three points to keep themselves away from the division’s bottom three.
“I hadn’t trained since the international break when we had a mini-game in training and it was in that that I felt my other side of the hernia go,” he explained, chatting to RamsTV.
“I had my operation two weeks ago on Tuesday. I was just laying on the treatment table on Monday and the gaffer came and asked if needed, could I do ten minutes off the bench.
“I jumped up and said of course I would, but the circumstances changed and I ended up playing 60 minutes.
“I was buzzing to play. I want to play every minute of every game that I can, but I wasn’t 100 per cent fit with a bit of match sharpness was lacking, but obviously there is only one way to get match sharpness and that is to play.
“I have had a few niggles but obviously we are not in the position we want to be in and we need players fighting to get us out of it.”
Being out of the squad with injury has been difficult for Edmundson, who joined the Rams on loan from Scottish Premier League champions Rangers in February.
The central defender, who scored his first goal for the club in the 2-0 home victory over Huddersfield Town shortly after his arrival, moved to Pride Park Stadium shortly after undergoing a separate hernia operation at his parent club.
Whilst this latest lay-off was equally frustrating, as the team have needed more senior and experienced bodies around the first team squad, Edmundson is determined to play his part.
“Being injured is the worst thing that can happen to you when you are a footballer,” he admitted.
“When you see the lads on the training pitch and you are just sat there with the physios, it is rubbish really.
“It is great to be back out there and hopefully I can help the lads.”
Edmundson is under no illusions to the task which presents itself. The Rams head into Saturday’s game against Lee Bowyer’s side with a four-point advantage over Rotherham United, who sit in the final relegation spot.
Paul Warne’s side do have two games in hand over Derby, however, Edmundson knows that Derby need to take care of their own results before looking at others.
He said: “If we get one win, then it could deflate those below us. We just need to get it right on Saturday.
“It is a huge game. Every one of us has sat down and had a few meetings and we know what is at stake, so we will be right up for it.”