Darren Fletcher's break from football

[Raulduke]

Gutted, but his health comes first! Get well soon.

 

[PeteReDevil]

that's harsh

 

[fishfingers15]

Get well soon Darren Fletcher. There's a place open for you when you regain your full fitness.

 

[Ray Peterson]

Well, that explains a lot. I was wondering why he was apparently fit, but being kept out of the side by Jones. Poor lad has to concentrate on getting well and forget about football!
I hope he can come back and get near his best, but his long term health is more important.

 

[Wumminator]

All those coming in hear with shit like "Fergie spend some money" can feck off. That shit can stay in another thread, this thread should be about every single united supporter wishing Darren a quick and full recovery. Poor lad it's a proper wank illness. Honestly some of you seem almost glad he's gone so you get your precious January transfer.

 

[SecondFig]

Really sad to hear, but focussing on his health has to be the right decision.

All the best to the lad, and hope we see him back in a Utd shirt soon

 

[Dion]

All those coming in hear with shit like "Fergie spend some money" can feck off. That shit can stay in another thread, this thread should be about every single united supporter wishing Darren a quick and full recovery. Poor lad it's a proper wank illness. Honestly some of you seem almost glad he's gone so you get your precious January transfer.

Do us all a favour and shut up you utter clown.

 

[davisjw]

Absolutely dreadful. Best wishes to Fletcher.

 

[cinc]

According to someone on BigSoccer it seems like a big impact of this is that you have a really restricted diet as regards the carbs you can take. And that´s gotta mean a professional athlete will struggle to have all the energy they need.

It is also a problem that it has psychosomatic causes and its stress induced.

 

[Smores]

Hopefully he can recover for next season but it's not something that goes away so I very much doubt we'll see him again. Fingers crossed

 

[RedRover]

Very sad news.

No doubt he'll get the best treatment money can buy and hopefully will be back playing in teh not too distant future.

 

[MUFCgal]

Bloody hell, that's awful news. Gutted for Darren as he's worked so hard to establish himself in the team over the last several seasons and was, for a period of time, our best midfielder.

Sorry to say this, but this now further highlights the need for 1-2 new midfielders.

Get well soon Fletch

 

[Wumminator]

It is also a problem that it has psychosomatic causes and its stress induced.

Yeah you can't imagine how stressful a period like this must be for a footballer as well. Poor lad.

Steve Redgrave had this apparently, and look where he got. Fletch seems like a guy who will fight this, I hope we see him back to his best.

 

[Brwned]

"Darren’s continued desire to play and his loyalty to both his club and country has probably compromised the chances of optimising his own health and fitness."

Would expect nothing less of Fletch but fair play, that's commitment. Real shame.

 

[Brophs]

I'd heard the rumours a while back but didn't want to believe them. Gutted for him. My friend has spend the last few years going through something similar and sometimes getting up in the morning is a problem, let alone top level football.

All the best to him.

 

[jojojo]

Best wishes and good luck to him.

 

[Pexbo]

Health before Football. Best wishes and a speedy recovery to him.

 

[VivaRonaldo7]

Pogs surely now needs to be on the bench for most games?

 

[Giggsy PO]

all the best in the recovery Fletch

 

[Maroon Lucifer]

Get well soon Darren

 

[TheReligion]

Get well soon Darren.

Feels like a Hargreaves situation all over again. Makes that rocket he scored against City all that more impressive.

 

[Walrus]

Gutted for him. Just when he was (speaking long term) establishing himself as a potentially great player.

Also adds to our CM issues. Not to sidetrack the thread but surely we must spend in January now.

 

[Mick1991]

It sucks (as a veteran of three colonoscopies before the age of twenty I can testify to that), I have a mate who has had it from the age of fourteen and has never weighed more than eight stone but you can still have a really good quality of life.

He got put on a new drug last year and his life has improved immeasurable and he has even put on some weight!

Get well soon Darren!

 

[Van Piorsing]

feckin devastated. We're taking absolute heavy fire from the injuries.

Wishing the speedy recovery for ALL of them.

 

[RK]

Shit .

All the best to Fletch.

 

[kps88]

Shit. That's two first team players we're missing for the season. Always knew there was something fishy about that virus.

 

[madhed]

Get well soon Darren ! Rest easy

 

[Sunny Jim]

My friend suffered from the same disease. As far as she told very it's an embarrassing condition.


Nonetheless - one may rate Darren or not, but his commitment was always second to none. he deserves fans' support- nodoubtabut it.

I hope he comes back as soon as possible.

His absence leaves us short in midfiled.

BTW - are we cursed or what?

 

[101]

I feel so much sympathy for him. I suffer from Crohn's Disease so I have a good idea of what he's going through. Only difference is I've had it from a very young age so I've grown up with it. I can't imagine what it's like to have your whole life turned upside down because of it.

Best of luck to him

 

[kps88]

What sort of cure is there?

 

[kietotheworld]

All those coming in hear with shit like "Fergie spend some money" can feck off. That shit can stay in another thread, this thread should be about every single united supporter wishing Darren a quick and full recovery. Poor lad it's a proper wank illness. Honestly some of you seem almost glad he's gone so you get your precious January transfer.

Why? It's not as though he's going to read it. I do wish him all the best, but discussing the implications of this on our team, and on our transfer policy, that doesn't do any harm, indeed it's better than 5 pages of 'every single united supporter' saying "Good luck Fletcher" and such. You always seem to be trying to big yourself up as some sort of superfan and spoiling for an argument with people.

 

[RedMist99]

Get well soon Fletch

Get wr8 on the phone! To the transfer forum!

 

[101]

What sort of cure is there?

There is no cure. You just go through periods of relapse and remission.

 

[Interval]

A really scary prospect for a footballer.

Hoping he recovers soon.

 

[Shimo]

Health comes first always. Kudos for him trying to be there for the club but, glad he is going to take care of himself first. Wish him the best.

 

[All 3 United]

Gutted for the lad, he must be devastated. Get well soon Darren.

 

[Number7]

We've all thought Fletcher had lost form since the 'viruses' but to have performed still at a respectable level with a condition like that is a testament to what a brilliant professional he is.

 

[Smores]

Found this, thought might as well post it

Ayr Utd star David Gillies' battle to beat pain of Crohn's Disease
By Maria Croce, Daily Record

AYR United striker David Gillies was warned he might never play football again after being diagnosed with bowel disease Crohn's. But he vowed to prove doctors wrong and now he wants to inspire other sufferers to follow their dreams rather than give in to the condition.

David, 25, and girlfriend Leanne Robbie, 23, live in Ayr with their four-year-old son Brandon.
They're expecting another child and have much to celebrate now David's fit again. But last year it was a different story with David facing the prospect of losing his footballing career just as it was about to take off.

Last June he began suffering crippling cramps in his stomach. "It felt like a really sharp pain - like a knife being twisted in my stomach," he said. "It would last a couple of seconds and take my breath away. Sometimes it would happen when I was training - but it was most days."
But he battled through his football training while doctors were baffled by his condition.
"It took forever to find out what was wrong with me," explained David.

"Doctors said it went against me because I was so fit and played football - that made it difficult to diagnose because I continued to train even though I was in pain.

"I pushed myself through. And when I went to the doctor they'd say, 'On a scale of one to 10, what's the pain like?' And I'd say, '10'. But he'd look at my notes and say, 'It can't be a10 because you're training every day'. When you play sports you just get used to playing with injuries. I was enjoying it so I kept doing it and tried to ignore the pain.

"I can remember the day it started in June. One evening I just threw up at home but I felt fine the next day and went training. "I was with Airdrie and although I trained fine, I started getting stomach cramps and could hear my stomach gurgling. I thought it was because I'd changed my diet and started eating more healthily.

"But then four weeks into the season it got worse. I went to the doctors but they told me it was a stomach bug. But the pain kept returning."
Over the next six months David went to hospital six times for investigations including a barium X-ray.

"I'd been playing with Auchinleck juniors and this was my big move to Airdrie," he explained. "Before I'd been scoring lots of goals. But I went to Airdrie and ended up on the subs' bench. I felt I was so much better than I was showing. I couldn't make excuses for feeling terrible, so I'd just try to train. But I knew I wouldn't be able to last 90 minutes playing because I felt so bad."
Then in December he underwent an endoscopy. A tiny telescope was used to look inside his intestine - where doctors discovered a blockage.

"I remember hearing the doctor saying, 'What's that?' during the procedure. They weren't expecting a blockage, but the camera couldn't get through.
"Even after that, they still didn't know what it was at first. I found out afterwards doctors had thought it could be cancer.

"I must admit when I heard their reaction to the blockage I feared the worst and assumed it must be cancer. I was told to stay at home for a week. But I'm optimistic and told myself no matter what was wrong I'd get through it.

"Then a few days later when they told me it was Chron's it was a relief in a way to finally know what was wrong and know it wasn't cancer. But I didn't know that much about the condition - although I knew there was no real cure. And I was warned I'd probably need an operation.

"My first question was whether I'd have a colostomy bag. Doctors said I might need one as a temporary measure - but luckily that didn't happen.
"Then doctors told me I wouldn't be able to play football again. They said it was hard to believe I'd ever be fit enough to play any football again.

"But I refused to believe them and vowed to play again. Looking back I can see why they thought I'd never play again.
But then I felt they didn't know what I was capable of doing.
"I thought nothing can be worse than what I've already been through. But I did wonder a few times whether it was all worth it to keep pushing myself to play.

"I'm also a qualified plumber and have my own plumbing business so at least I knew I had another job to do.
"My girlfriend Leanne would watch me in pain and question why I was putting myself through it just to play football.

"But I always wanted to be a footballer and I love playing. When I got the chance to play for Airdrie last summer it was a massive step because it was full-time. But then it took the shine off it because I started to feel really ill. I couldn't enjoy it as much as I should have."
David underwent an operation on December 23 to remove part of his intestine and got home on Christmas day.

He discovered his heart had momentarily stopped during the procedure. "They under-estimated how slow my heartbeat was because I was fit. I told the boys at football afterwards and they nicknamed me 'Death'."

He has to take special drinks, is free of pain and was back playing two months later for Airdrie.
David feels he's finally fit again and has signed for Ayr United. He jumped at the chance to talk to youngsters with Crohn's (chrones, chron's, chrones, crones).

He spoke at the Glasgow Science Centre at an event by the Catherine McEwan Foundation - set up by Scot Derek McEwan in memory of his late mother, who suffered from Crohn's.
The foundation's aim is to help young Scots with the condition and work with the charity the National Association for Colitis and Crohn's.
Inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn's and ulcerative colitis affect about one in 400 people in the UK.

Diagnosis is usually made between the age of 10 and 40 and you have a higher chance of developing either illness if you have a close relative with the condition.
Crohn's causes inflammation of any part of the gut - the oesophagus, stomach and small and large intestine. Typical symptoms can include pain, ulcers, diarrhoea and feeling unwell.
The outlook depends on which part of the gut that's affected and the severity and frequency of symptoms. But most people will require surgery at some point.

For David the future is bright. "It doesn't hold me back at all now," he explained.
"And when I spoke to the young people it was good to hear I'd given them hope. I heard that a lot of kids think that once they've got it they can't do much - but that's really not the case. There are lots of different medications you can take to help you lead a normal life. I got this at 24 - but
I felt for the kids who were so much younger finding out they've got it.

"But gold medalist rower Steve Redgrave has got it too. He's an inspiration - I just play for Ayr United. I wanted to say to the kids with Crohn's not to give up their dreams."

 

[Decotron]

"Darren’s continued desire to play and his loyalty to both his club and country has probably compromised the chances of optimising his own health and fitness."

Would expect nothing less of Fletch but fair play, that's commitment. Real shame.

very sad news indeed. Cant see him coming back from this...

its a cnut of a disease

 

[Skywarden]

Don't really know what to say. Truly gutted for him.