Emma Kelly: "Our fans are like our 12th player"
Emma Kelly: "Our fans are like our 12th player" Until starting the last three matches in row, Emma Kelly hadn't played for Newcastle United Women since the 3-1 Tyne-Wear derby win in November. But upon her return to full fitness after an injury lay-off, Kelly was entrusted by Tanya Oxtoby to start three games in eight days - and the midfielder never skipped a beat in the Magpies' engine room. Ahead of this Sunday's derby at the Stadium of Light, Kelly spoke about her return to full fitness and the devastation of her injury in the reverse fixture.
The former England youth international had her first taste of the derby last time out when she was subbed on at half-time before limping off in the same game, something which she explained has only made her more eager to get more minutes. Here are the key talking points from Kelly's pre-match interview… ON HER RETURN FROM INJURY… "I'm thrilled because it's been an exciting time for me coming back from injury, as I'd been through a pretty tough patch with my hamstring. "I feel both physically and mentally stronger this time around, and coming into my first week back with the three games was a bit more than I expected, but because I got straight into the thick of it, it's made me feel so much better.
" ON THE MOOD IN THE SQUAD… "It's really good, and I think we're all in a position that we're quite happy with. We had a tough game against Sheffield United, where we were a little bit frustrated with just getting one point, but we bounced back well against Birmingham. "The Palace game was a tired one for us and very transitional, and they're a strong opposition, so getting a point after a three-game week, we were happy with it.
" ON HER INJURY AGAINST SUNDERLAND… "It was a mixture of emotions and playing against Sunderland in the derby, emotions are heightened, so to come on at half time and for us to go 2-0 up was really exciting. "But then, as soon as I felt my hamstring go, I can't really explain the emotions I was just gutted and trying not to cry in front of about 20,000 people, but that's sometimes how football goes. " ON THE DERBY… "It's just another week and just another game, and Tanya has been really good at reiterating that we don't let emotions override how we feel going into the game.
"We need to put the work in out on the pitch, keep doing what we've been doing lately and approach it like any other fixture. " ON THE FANS… "We always say that our fans are like our 12th player. The noise and the atmosphere that they've been bringing to all of our home games, and the number of travelling fans we have, is phenomenal.