CPD Y Rhyl 1879 Jay Whitehouse is remaining positive despite a significant setback in his recovery from a gruesome injury.

The prolific forward arrived at the newly formed club last summer after agreeing to a switch from Rhuddlan Town, where he played a significant role on their way to the Vale of Clwyd and Conwy League Premier Division title.

Whitehouse was expected to do the same for his new club ahead of the new NWCFA Tier 4 (East) Premier Division campaign but an injury during a training session cut his efforts at Belle Vue short.

The player ruptured his ACL, suffered tears to his LCL and meniscus, in addition to a small fracture to his tibia and a dislocated kneecap, which will need extensive rehabilitation in the coming months after surgeons moved to repair the damage over the festive period.

Speaking to the CPD Y Rhyl 1879 website, Whitehouse said: “The surgeon sat me down as asked what football means to me and what would he do if I couldn’t play again. I was in tears when he told me the extent of the injury and I wasn’t sure how I was going to recover.

“I managed to get to grips with it and what the next stages were, but the two weeks after the operation was more painful than the injury itself.”

There were complications from the first surgery involving a screw inserted in Whitehouse’s knee that came out, which was another significant setback that will involve another procedure to repair the new damage in the coming months.

His clinical displays for Rhuddlan last season, where he held the role of captain, enabled Town to secure promotion and also saw Whitehouse finish as the league’s top goal scorer.

Both Rhuddlan and Rhyl staff and players came together to make a donation to Whitehouse following their friendly fixture before the latest lockdown, which was hugely appreciated by the player.

“All I can do is rest and heal the screw holes now and in six months’ time he’s going to try again so I am looking at 18 months before I’ll be able to play football again, but it might be longer,” he added.

“The emotional side gets to you the most when it gets taken away from you, but injuries are setbacks you have to get through and hopefully nothing will go wrong again.

“I was overwhelmed by the support from both clubs and I would like to thank everyone at Rhyl and Rhuddlan who contributed, it was a massive help.”