Hoban delighted with full return
TOMMIE HOBAN played his first 90 minutes in over a year as Aberdeen returned from their period on the sidelines with a victory over St Johnstone at McDiarmid Park on Thursday.
The 26-year-old was drafted in to a makeshift defence by Derek McInnes, with Michael Devlin and Scott McKenna still unavailable due to their ongoing self-isolation period.
Hoban impressed defensively for the Dons and almost scored with a header in the second period in Perth. But after a torrid time with injuries, the Englishman admits he was just delighted to be back out on the pitch playing football.
He said: “That’s my first game since February 2019. So what’s that: 18 or 19 months, something like that?
“So it’s great to be back out there but I’m very tired now.
It’s been a very tough road back. Three months ago I had no idea if I even was going to get back to playing football.
“The phone was quiet; I didn’t have too many opportunities and being out so long you start to wonder if you’re going to get back. I still wasn’t really feeling great fitness-wise but Aberdeen gave me the opportunity to come up here and I can’t thank them enough.”
Meanwhile, Gary Holt insists Livingston could provide the perfect platform for Anthony Stokes to revive his career – currently a free agent following a brief dalliance with Iranian side Persepolis – on a one-year contract.
“Anthony has a lot of quality and a lot of good traits that I don’t think we currently have at the club,” said the Livingston manager.
“You don’t play at the level he has played at and win the things he has won without being a very good footballer.
“It is something we will explore and speak to Anthony and his representatives about.”