Gillingham midfielder Ethan Coleman stresses the importance of pre-season as he recalls injury-hit 2024/25 campaign

Gillingham’s players are due back next week and Ethan Coleman has learned the hard way how important a solid pre-season is.

Coleman’s got a big few weeks ahead of him as he looks to get fit and prove to manager Gareth Ainsworth what he can bring to the team.

It was an injury-hit 2024/25 for the midfielder, who had missed last summer’s pre-season with a problem picked up the back end of the previous campaign. Just as he was getting back in the flow of things, a second issue hit him.

That frustration has now given way to excitement for a fresh challenge.

“Last season was tough,” Coleman admitted. “It was very injury-oriented. I couldn’t really get going. When I felt like I’d just about got to the level that I showed the year before, I then had another injury.

“I’d gone into the season injured, and that was disappointing for me. I’d never experienced that in my life, where you’re injured pre-season, and I really think it has a massive effect on you. I think it kills you sometimes.

“You see all the other boys coming in from training, doing all this running, and as much as you don’t like running, you do at the same time because you’re banking runs, banking minutes and training on the field.

“It was really tough for me at the start of the season, mentally as well.”

The 25-year-old had played 49 games the year before but managed less than half that last season.

“I put myself on a pedestal of not being injured,” he said.

“Throughout my men’s career, I’d missed maybe one or two games due to illness, or a little tight hamstring or something. Last year was completely different and it’s about dealing with it and moving on now.”

Coleman picked up bone bruising in an ankle towards the end of the 23/24 season but with just four games