Set the record straight

REUBEN REID . . . “I know it will be a completely different game.”

Reuben desperate to avenge Yeovil embarrassment
AHEAD of what could be his first start in exactly five months, Reuben Reid has a burning desire to make up for the last showing at Yeovil.

There is certainly something in the air at Huish Park that Athletic don't take kindly to.

The season before last, a Dave Penney-led side ran out 3-0 losers in a pitiful performance, while earlier this term a similarly-emphatic loss felt like "boys against men" — to use the words of Reid, who slotted home a 90th-minute penalty which provided scant consolation in a 3-1 defeat.

"I remember the game like yesterday," said Reid, who faces a big job wresting control of penalty-taking duties from Shefki Kuqi despite despatching four spot-kicks inside the first two months of the season.

"It was one of the worst times I have ever had had on a football pitch and I was almost embarrassed.

"We have shown a lot of improvement since then and I know it will be a completely different game."

After a couple of false starts due to feeling tweaks in his torn thigh muscle, Reid (23) exploded off the substitutes' bench at Sheffield United to win the last-gasp penalty that Kuqi scored from.

The Bristol-born forward also got a decent run as a replacement against Scunthorpe and is clearly delighted to be in the frame once more to start against the Glovers.

"It is a relief to be back," said Reid, who paid out of his own pocket to see a specialist who he believes has discovered the root of his thigh breakdowns.

"It has been a long and frustrating time and it was great to be a part of one of the best wins (against Sheffield United) since I have been at the club.

"It has been the worst time of my career as I have not been injured for that amount of time before. To take away your ability to run has been the worst thing ever.

"I want to be playing every game now. Obviously that isn't my decision, but I am ready to play, definitely.

"I want to get back to where I was at the start of the season."

Reid is one of a host of Athletic players whose deals run out in the summer, giving extra incentive to make up for lost time.

"Players are playing for jobs," he added. "A lot of lads — including myself — have got to impress someone, because we are out of contract."