Joey O'Brien was delighted to make his Bolton Wanderers comeback in this week's reserves clash against Newcastle.

The midfielder has been missing since May 2006 and said: "It's been a long road back through rehab to build up my knee and it's been very tough.

"But it's reassuring to know that many of the players Dr Steadman has operated on (Alan Shearer, Michael Owen and Henrik Larsson) have come back stronger.

"It's great to be back on the pitch after all this time and I'm hoping I'm over the worst."