ALFIE'S BACK IN THE SWING

LONG-TERM injury victim Alfie Rutherford wasted no time in shaking off 13 months of hell on the sidelines – scoring just TWO MINUTES into his first game back.

- Jon Couch

The 25-year-old goal scoring ace has been out for the game since tearing his ACL while playing for Dorking Wanderers in a 5-0 home drubbing by Wrexham last September.

But after a lengthy rehabilitation process which including undergoing a knee operation and even open heart surgery, Rutherford made a welcome return to the action last Saturday, turning out for former club Bognor Regis Town on loan.

And he couldn’t have got off to a better start as, with only his second touch of the ball, he scored to earn the Rocks a 3-2 win over Hayes & Yeading United in the FA Trophy.

Butterflies

"It was a very emotional moment," Rutherford told The NLP. "Stepping back onto that pitch again was the first time I had been really nervous playing football. I'd had butterflies all week just thinking about it.