AFC Bournemouth
Having battled with injury for the best part of 18 months, under-21s winger Keelan O’Connell has spoken of his delight at being back on the pitch.
His goal in the first half of yesterday’s friendly away at Peterborough proved to be decisive as Shaun Cooper’s side ran out 1-0 winners.
In what were tough conditions, O’Connell netted his second goal in as many games just before the half-hour mark and afterwards talked through it with afcb.co.uk.
“They had the corner, then the ball got cleared up to their ‘keeper and I saw him take a big touch and I knew I had a chance,” he began.
“Before I knew it, he slipped again and I realised I could actually be in! Then thankfully when he did try and kick it, the deflection went in my favour.
“From there on in, it was just a tap in and probably one of the easiest goals I’ve scored but they all count.
“It was a tough game overall, I think we rode our luck a lot and were lucky to get the win.
“The goal we scored was off the back of that mistake but, as I say, they all count and we were lucky to get it.”
While his name might have been on the scoresheet, the game also marked O’Connell’s first 90 minutes back since injury, with the 21-year-old admitting it had been tough watching from the sidelines.
“I’m feeling good, but the last year and a half has been difficult,” he continued.
“I’ve had a lot of injuries, but hopefully I can just keep myself fit and carry on going when I’m going.
“The legs were feeling it in the last ten minutes or so now and it’ll still take time to get back to a full game properly, but each time I play, I’m feeling better and it’s just about continuing that.
“I’ve had a lot of set-backs, I came back then I was back out injured again. Then Covid came, so it’s been difficult on that front but it’s the same for everyone and we’ve just got to get on with it.”
The AFC Bournemouth under-21s are proudly sponsored by iPro.
