AFC Bournemouth
Having made it through his career without needing any in-game stitches, Lewis Cook is looking to complete the month at Rotherham without adding to the two sets he's already received during a painful November.
In an eventful period for the midfielder, who has also scored his first Cherries goal and continued to settle into an unfamiliar, from the outside at least, deeper role, Cook has made himself an increasingly integral part of Jason Tindall's starting line up.
The Cherries go into the match at the New York Stadium on Saturday with three straight wins in the same season for the first time since March 2016, with Cook telling afcb.co.uk that it will take more than the early gash sustained in Tuesday's win against Nottingham Forest to hold him back.
"In the first half I got a little whack and it was tough to carry on," he explained. "I had to get a couple of stitches before the second half.
"After the tackle I could see it was a deep wound again so I knew I'd be getting some stitches at some point, I didn't expect them at half time to be honest but they cracked on and did a great job.
"I had some in my shin after the Birmingham game a couple of weeks ago and then after that early tackle I got some more in my thigh.
"Apart from my knee operation I've never had stitches before and in the space of three games I've had ten!
"It was just the doc here, he did them. It made the second half easier, it stopped it pulling apart. The doc numbed it first, it was a bit sore after the game, but I'm sure it'll be fine.
"With all these games I'm feeling good, I feel fit, I just need to stop getting on the wrong end of these stupid tackles. I'm happy to be playing lots of games."
And the games are coming in a deeper-lying role, Cook switching with Jefferson Lerma in the middle of the park, an unexpected move that is helping to get the best out of both players.
"It's something I'm familiar with," said Cook of the positional change. "I try to get a little bit more forward if I can but I've been sitting deeper and that's part of the game plan, I try to move and keep up with the play.
It did surprise me a little bit when the switch happened. It was just before one of the games, I was told I was playing there and I was fine with that.
"I think Jeff plays for his country quite a lot in the eight role. He's aggressive in the press, can win headers and he battles, second balls are a big thing for him.
"I try and dictate the play on the ball and keep the tempo up. I'm happy with the display against Forest, I could have been a bit more progressive and tidy but generally it's another step in the right direction."
Heading back to his home county of Yorkshire - albeit South Yorkshire - this weekend, the 23-year-old says he now sees Dorset as his newly-native area, over four years after signing for the Cherries from Leeds United.
"Bournemouth feels like home to me now," he said. "I'm settled here and it's a really nice place to live, we're lucky that we have the beach to go outside to during lockdown.
"It's been tough recently but I'm lucky enough to be in a situation where I can still go to work, some people can't do that and that must be extra tough.
"I try to stay in touch with my family as much as I can on FaceTime, I got to see them just before lockdown happened again, so that was nice. Now I'm trying to keep busy and focused on my football.
"I don't think I'll get the chance to see any friends or family this weekend, it will be straight back here and recovering. Hopefully we'll have some fans back in the stadium soon and that will be a huge positive for everyone."
