The smile is back but Rotherham United's Ben Hatton still has a long road ahead
ROTHERHAM United's Ben Hatton is smiling again but the youngster remains weeks away from a return to action after suffering a serious injury in pre-season.
The teenage attacker tore his hamstring in July just after he'd recovered from a similar issue he'd picked up last April during a loan spell at Warrington Town.
He's at the club's Roundwood HQ again after the Millers told him to take a break following his second dose of misfortune, but a comeback is a long way off.
“I've got no idea as to an actual date, but I would think it would be a lot slower return than the first one,” manager Matt Hamshaw said. “The first one was about three months. It could be slower because it's the same injury.”
Hatton, who made three substitute appearances in the Championship at the end of the 2023/24 campaign and played in the FA Cup and EFL Trophy last term, is partway through his rehabilitation.
“Yeah, he's doing all right,” Hamshaw said. “He's walking around the training ground with a bit of a smile on his face.
“We let him have a bit of time off initially because it's not just the footballing side of it, it's also the psychological stuff, the mental side.”
The boss suffered from absences himself when he was a winger with the likes of Sheffield Wednesday and Mansfield Town so he can empathise with the ordeal the 19-year-old academy graduate is going through
“I got injured a lot in my playing career,” he said. “Nobody knows more about coping with injuries than I do. I understand it. It's important that when injured players come back into the building they give everything they've got towards their rehab.”
Hamshaw's office door is always open to 19-year-old Hatton, who signed a new one-year deal in the summer, and to any other player who is finding life tough in the treatment room.
“If they need to speak, if they're feeling mentally low, we're there for them,” the manager said. “I'm not a professional by any stretch, but I do listen, I do want to get to know the players and I do want them to have an open relationship with me.
“Some of the players have found that difficult but some have absolutely loved it. I think you're seeing more people thrive in that environment these days.”