In our U19s’ recent victory over Caldicot Town, striker Mackenzie Olden made her return from a long-term ACL injury.
She went on to make her Adran Premier return in our clash with Briton Ferry Llansawel last time out, coming on as a second half substitute.
The attacker had been out since a league fixture against Aberystwyth Town on December 17th, 2023, and during that period has been working hard to get back to fitness. Making her first appearance in over a year for the U19s, she marked the occasion with a goal and an assist.
“It felt amazing,” Mackenzie told us after the match. “It still feels surreal, but I am just so proud of myself and everyone around me that have helped me through the process. When I hit the ball, I wasn’t sure if it was going to go in, but when I saw it go into the bottom corner I was over the moon and had a huge smile on my face.”
At the time of her injury, the striker was in fine form, having scored seven goals in the four games leading up to the Aberystwyth Town fixture.
Mackenzie continued: “When I first went down, I knew it was going to be bad. I didn’t want to believe it at first because I was finding my feet at the Club and settling in. I was in a great run of form and it was gone within an instant. I was really gutted. I’d say with this type of injury, the hardest part is the mental part. You can do the rehabilitation, you can relearn how to do things, but getting past that mental block is difficult and I struggled with that. I’m just so lucky to have the people that I have around me.
“The Club has been amazing: words can’t describe it. They’ve guided me every step of the way. I have been able to speak openly throughout it all to Daisy [Price] (Player Care); Maisie [Gudmunsen] (Strength and Conditioning Coach) has helped me back to fitness and match speed; Aimi [Healey-Bracher] (Lead Therapist) has helped me to walk and jump and Callum O’Neill [Lead Analyst] has supported with the technical ability. They have been a huge help and this couldn’t have been done without them. I’m so grateful to have an amazing team of staff to help me; they’ve kept me confident, working hard and smiling. I really can’t thank them enough.
“My teammates were also amazing, players who have previously had this injury have helped me through it all and even the girls who haven’t experienced it have all been there for me. That has really helped me both on and off the pitch.”
Going into 2025, Mackenzie has momentum following a goal and an assist on her return for the U19s and her substitute appearance for the Senior Team.
“I definitely feel more resilient now,” she added. “I know staying fit and strong is so important and I will now do every little thing to ensure I’m fit and feeling better. The whole experience has made me a different player and person.”
During her recovery, Mackenzie worked very closely with a talented group of staff, who all supported her through her progress. Lead Therapist Aimi Healey-Bracher recalls the journey that the striker has been on in the last year.
“I am so proud of Mackenzie and so pleased for her that she's able to play again,” said Aimi. “She has worked so hard and stayed super focused throughout her rehab. ACL rehab in particular is long, can be uncomfortable and it's hard on the player physically and mentally. Seeing her back on the pitch is her reward for all of that effort.
“We were able to arrange a scan and surgery [at the time of the injury]. After that, rehab starts slowly and we're very much guided by the surgeon in the early days. It starts with getting a full range of movement back and then building strength, fitness and function before we move to more football-specific rehab work. It's a full team effort: I, Lamah our Doctor, Maisie our S&C coach, our coaching staff and our player care team all have a part to play with Mackenzie at the centre. Injury rehab is something we do with players, not to them, so she had a lot of input the whole way.
“Seeing players get injured is the worst part of my job, but it is part of the job. Seeing them returning to fitness, training and eventually on to the game day squad is amazing. It's what they want to do and it's what they do best, so seeing them get back to that is a great feeling.”