Lewis Smith is delighted to be back fit after a nightmare season disrupted by a hamstring injury.
The talented academy sustained a hamstring injury against Motherwell in August but the initial diagnosis failed to recover the extent of the injury.
The 21 year-old aggravated the problem on his return against Rangers in November and a further scan revealed that the injury was more serious than initially feared.
Smith explained: “I tore my hamstring then on the first scan, there didn’t seem to be that bad but it took a while for me to get fit.
“I came back for one game and then it went again. The second scan showed that there had been tendon damage that hadn’t been picked up in the first one.
“With tendon damage there are more complications and maybe we should have taken a bit more time.
“It’s nobody’s fault but they just couldn’t see anything on the first scan. Now, we’ve taken a lot more time and I’ve been working really hard in the gym.
“The physios have been great with me so now, I’m fully back and fine.”
The Scotland Under-21 internationalist is an excellent young prospect and his creative talents have been sorely missed by Accies this season.
Smith returned in the Lanarkshire derby defeat to Motherwell in Hamilton’s last fixture and the tricky winger is hoping to make an impact in Accies’ final three fixtures.
He said: “It’s obviously been the most frustrating season ever but I’m just buzzing to be back.
"I’m really happy to be back amongst the boys and it will be good to contribute in any way that I can before the end of the season.
“I feel good. I came on the other night and I felt alright but training and games are completely different.
“I have been training for a few weeks but as soon as you are in a game, it feels different. But I feel good and sharp so hopefully if I get the chance to play again then I can show that I am fit.
Hamilton face three massive games in their battle to avoid relegation starting against St Mirren this afternoon.
Nine points would guarantee that Accies avoid automatic relegation and Smith would be devastated if his boyhood club failed to avoid the drop.
“Personally, it would hurt me so much to go down but I’m not trying to think about it. We all still believe that we can stay up. There’s three more games left and if we win the three then we will be fine.
“We are a young team but everybody has been around the first team for a while so we know what it’s like.
"Some of the more experienced players have been there before and hopefully that experience will help pull us through.
“Everybody knows what is at stake and what it means to be in the top division to the fans and everybody around the club,” Smith concluded.
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