Winch back on track

TERRIFIC FORM . . . Carl Winchester in the thick of the action against Bradford City on Tuesday.

ATHLETIC’S stand-out performer Carl Winchester was almost thrown on to the football scrap heap for the sake of a summer holiday, it has been revealed.

The 21-year-old midfielder from Belfast returned from international duty in Cyprus in May 2013 nursing a knee problem. But instead of getting the knee seen right away, Winchester spent time recuperating on the beach — much to the displeasure of manager Lee Johnson.

“He has been one of our shining lights this season,” said the manager.

“Last year, I was disappointed in him, if I am honest. He was injured for the whole off-season and didn’t come in because he wanted to go on holiday. He reported back injured. It was really unprofessional, in my eyes. We had a heated conversation - because he’s a talent and we didn’t want him to throw his career away.”

The misjudgement led to Winchester missing the whole of pre-season with a ligament problem, which led him to start only seven times in 2013-14.

Six starts already this season have seen his weaving dribbling and deceptive pace become a star feature of an Athletic season starting to spring to life.

Chairman Simon Corney admitted Winchester’s new one-year contract had been the subject of much discussion.

“It was a little controversial,” said Corney. “Some on the management team — not the manager — were questioning whether to keep him on or not. But we stood firm as a board and pushed for him.”

Given an extended run in the side, Winchester is at last living up to his potential.