Ffion Morgan explains why getting back on track after ACL injury means so much

by Callum Ellis

WALES midfielder Ffion Morgan is back in camp after an injury threatened her involvement in the World Cup campaign.

It resulted in the teenager having her ‘best and worst year’ last year after being side-lined with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.

“We played a double-header out in Northern Ireland with the under-19s and I injured it in the second-half of the second game,” she said.

“I knew straight away I had done something bad, but I didn’t realise it was my ACL.

“That year [2017] for me was my best and worst because I was getting senior time and getting in camps, so to get that injury so early on in my senior career was tough to take.”

Morgan has now linked up again with Jayne Ludlow’s squad as they prepare for the clash at Rodney Parade, Newport tomorrow.

The 18-year-old was included in the squad for the double-header against Bosnia and Russia in June, though she is yet to make an appearance in the qualifying campaign.

Morgan has already made three appearances for the senior team since making her debut against Northern Ireland last year, and said it was good to re-join her team-mates following the injury.

She feels preparations for Friday’s game have remained the same, despite what is resting on the result and says spirits in the camp are high ahead of England’s visit.

“My goal for the whole year was getting back into the camp, so to be involved with, hopefully, the game – that would be great. That would be more than I thought I would ever hit.

“Everyone is really positive and excited to go. It’s England at the end of the day, but for us, it’s a normal game and we just look at it in the same way we’ve look at every game in this campaign.

“For the girls, this is our biggest game and we could get to the World Cup which is massive for us. We’ve all got the same goals and want to achieve the same thing.”

The Cardiff City Ladies midfielder also opened up about how her recovery process panned out after suffering the ACL injury.

“Obviously, it’s been a long year for me and it’s been hard mentally and physically it challenged me.

“A lot of gym, running and mental strength,” were the key factors behind her rehabilitation, she said.

“But the physios here helped me loads and way more than I could have done myself.”