Sheffield United's positive week continues with Oliver Arblaster boost after welcome milestone
Sheffield United's positive week continues with Oliver Arblaster fitness boost after welcome milestone
As Callum O’Hare’s wonderfully audacious flick put the gloss on a special night for Sheffield United and saw them plant at least a couple of toes in the play-off final later this month, if not a whole foot, then the Sky Sports cameras picked out one particular Blades fan in a joyous away end at Bristol City last night. Oliver Arblaster had joined his fellow Unitedites on the long trip to Ashton Gate along with his partner.
That came as no surprise to boss Chris Wilder, given Arblaster’s affiliation to and affection for this club, but was another welcome reminder of how well the Blades have coped in the young man’s absence this season. His campaign was cruelly curtailed back in November with an anterior cruciate ligament that derailed a career that had enjoyed a rapid rise up to that point.
But his misfortune has been Sydie Peck’s opportunity, with Arblaster’s young teammate stepping out of his shadow somewhat and enjoying some of the spotlight himself. It has been a long road back to fitness for Arblaster but there have been some welcome milestones, including one recently when he returned to the grass at United’s Shireclife training ground.
He is still some way off a return, with a pre-season campaign pencilled in for a potential comeback, but the sight of him smiling on the grass and in the stands is another welcome boost for the Blades in a positive week on and off the pitch. “It’s a nine-month injury and for the young man’s development and future, we can’t rush these things.
“But he’s in a fabulous place. He was down there on Thursday night, in the stands, which I’m not surprised about with his background. But we’ve had to deal with some big losses. Harry Souttar was a big loss for us at the time, and Blaster was a big loss for us. But we’ve overcome them, as a majority of teams have had to overcome their injury issues.
“So to get him back will be great. He’s a huge player. He was fabulous last year and at the start of the season, he was a main player for us. So when he’s ready, he’s ready, but he’s in a good place and it’s good to see him smiling and back out on the grass and working hard in terms of getting closer to a return to training.”
United were rocked by the losses of Arblaster and Souttar, whose season was also ended by a serious Achilles injury which necessitated his return to Leicester City, but Thursday’s 3-0 win at Ashton Gate puts them on the brink of a play-off final against either Coventry City or Sunderland later this month.
“We’ve recovered pretty well,” said Wilder. “Maybe Blaster’s injury has opened the door for Sydie, and he has come in and been our young player of the year. So one player’s misfortune is another man’s gain. We’re not relying on one player. We’ve had some good players who have been out for periods of time.
“We’ve coped incredibly well because we wouldn’t have got the points that we have if we were just relying on one or two players. They were big blows for the players more than anything, but we’ve covered and coped pretty well. And we’re going to have to cover and cope pretty well if we pick up another couple of knocks over the next few weeks.”