Martin: Stewart's return "a huge moment" for the striker
Russell Martin described striker Ross Stewart’s first appearance in a Saints shirt as “a huge moment” for the player, as he continued on his road to fitness by playing 45 minutes for the Under-21s team.
Stewart, who signed from Sunderland on transfer deadline day this summer, has been sidelined since January with an achilles injury.
However, he made it back onto the pitch earlier today, playing the first half for the Under-21s against his former club and scoring a well-taken goal to put Saints ahead.
Martin was thrilled for the 27-year-old and, while he is hoping he might be able to have an involvement in the squad against West Brom next weekend, he also urged patience with him.
Speaking at his pre-Millwall press conference, Martin said: “Firstly, it’s a huge moment for him as a person because he’s been out for a long time and I think anyone can see how hard he’s worked since he has been here.
“I’ve no doubt he had the same mentality when he was at Sunderland to try to get fit.
“He’s had a couple of setbacks along the way, which is to be expected I think with such a long-term injury, so for him as a lad and a person I’m really delighted and really pleased. And then selfishly for us as a group of coaches and the squad it’s a really brilliant moment for us because he’s going to contribute a lot.
“But I don’t think we should expect too much too soon from him. He’s been out a long while, he scored today, a goal that is typical of him – runs to the box, attacks it and a great finish. I’m sure that will get everyone excited and expecting a lot, but I think we have to be patient. He’s been out for a long while.
“I said the hope was to get him back before this break, so hopefully now he has a good week training with us and we can include him in the squad next week.”
