Interview with Rangers striker Martyn Waghorn

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MARTYN WAGHORN’S knee felt numb just moments after it smashed into Kilmarnock’s synthetic surface.

 

Yet nothing was going to stop him taking the penalty he had just won.

 

Like all good strikers, Waghorn saw a chance to add to his goal tally.

 

He smashed home from the spot to net his 28th of a stunning season, and put Rangers on track for a Scottish Cup quarter-final.

 

But as he wheeled away something just didn’t feel right. Waghorn knew it would be wrong to continue.

 

The ligament he damaged that night in Ayrshire left him staring at two months on the sidelines.

 

Just like his club, Waghorn believes Killie’s plastic pitch played a major role in the severity of his injury.

 

His first text after the Old Firm were paired together for next month’s Scottish Cup semi-final was to Gers physio Stevie Walker.

 

The message was to get him fit in time for the Hampden clash.

 

Yet Wags won’t rush back if he’s not right, not when he believes he has so many highs still to come at a club he’s grown so attached to he now considers himself a fan.

 

Waghorn, who is pushing himself to the limit in the Murray Park gym, said: “Things are going well. I’m five weeks into my rehab now.

 

“I had been limited to what I could do, but this week I’ve been able to get more movement in. I knew something in my knee wasn’t right as soon as I hit the ground to win the penalty against Killie.

 

“I had a little tingling sensation. It went quite numb. I couldn’t really feel it.

 

“But I just knew it was weaker. I tried to ignore that, blanked it out, when I stood up to take the penalty.

 

“The adrenaline was pumping too. It was a big game and only a couple of minutes in.

 

“I couldn’t turn down a penalty and a chance to get a goal! You are a striker and you want to score. But when I hit the ball I tried to reverse it. My leg just couldn’t do it. I felt it move a bit. I knew it wasn’t right.

 

“I ran away to celebrate scoring, but I had a limp. I knew I couldn’t carry on.

 

“On that pitch one twist or turn and it could have gone completely.

 

“I don’t regret taking the penalty. The physio said by that stage the ligament was already stretched. I wouldn’t have done more damage.”

 

But what about that Rugby Park surface? Gers later released a statement branding it unforgiving.

 

In the build-up to the clash boss Mark Warburton had spoken of his concerns about plastic pitches in general.

 

Waghorn, 26, added: “In the last international break I had a similar injury at Murray Park.

 

“But on impact the grass gave way and I took a divot out of the ground.

 

“It affected the same muscle in the knee, but it was sore for a couple of days then settled down.

 

“That night against Killie it was cold and wet and it was early on, so maybe my joints weren’t completely warm.

 

“So the impact of the surface might have contributed. I don’t think it’s great playing on astroturf pitches every week.

 

“I’m not going to sit and say it’s all right. Clubs have their reasons and we’ve got to deal with it until it changes.

 

“But I do think it had an effect on my injury. It could have been worse, but it could have been better if it was on grass.” Now the race is on to get back in time for what promises to be an edxciting end to the campaign.

 

Waghorn is on course and won’t completely rule out a return for that clash with Celtic on April 17.

 

Born in South Shields, he knows all about north-east derbies, but knows they will be nothing compared to next month’s clash.

 

Waghorn said: “I was buzzing for the lads when the draw came out.

 

“The first thing I did was text the physio to tell him to get us fit!

 

“He texted back saying I’d be all right for the final! It’s all good banter.

 

“My ten-week mark is around the semi-final. I’m going to do my best in the gym, see where it goes.

 

“We had to play Celtic at some point if we are to win the Cup. It will be a good marker to see where we are.

 

“We’re doing well and they are not at their peak performance right now, I think it’s fair to say.

 

“I’ve seen a few Old Firm games on TV. When you are down south you know how big they are. You know the history.

 

“You see the hype before last week’s north-east derby. But the one here is probably ten times as big.

 

“Rangers being away for so long, the way we’re playing, the way they are playing, sets it up to be a cracking game.

 

“The hype is only going to get even bigger.”

 

Despite his enforced time out, down to earth Waghorn still speaks with a smile on his face.

 

But watching games rather than starring in them hasn’t come easily for him.

 

He joined Gers last summer after growing frustrated at a lack of action at the likes of Sunderland, Leicester and Wigan.

 

A boyhood fan of the Black Cats and Manchester United, his latest club is now well and truly in his blood too.

 

Waghorn added: “I’m one of the worst spectators. I’m heading every ball, kicking every ball. I’ve become one of the fans. I’ve been to every game bar two so far, and I’ll be at all the games I can to support the lads.

 

“I’d say I’m a proper Rangers fan now. It’s hard not to be with the size of the club. The expectations too.

 

“Now when I’m in the stand I expect the boys to perform. It’s hard to say that because you have been there.

 

“I know it’s difficult, that teams make it tough.

 

“It’s just with the players we’ve got, and when we play well, it’s so good to watch.”

 

http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/7029923/The-Big-Interview-with-Rangers-striker-Martyn-Waghorn.html