“INSTANTLY, my whole leg was throbbing. I have never felt pain like it. I didn’t know what I had done, but I knew it was serious.

“I was screaming. In my head I was telling myself to stop, ‘you sound like a t*t’, but I couldn’t.”

Every Saturday, across the country, from Premier League pitches to Sunday League fields, tackles are made.

On this particular day, a cold January afternoon, Bridport defender Sam Buckler was going in for one of these challenges.

It was a 50/50, between him and an Odd Down midfielder. Buckler got to the ball first whilst the opposing player got to his standing leg, breaking both his tibia and fibula in his right leg.

For everyone at the ground in Bath, it was apparent that this was serious. It took the ambulance – called by then Bees’ boss Trevor Senior – 20 minutes to get to the ground and by that time, Buckler was in a bad way.

He hadn’t moved from the spot where his leg had been broken and he lay there, shivering, with piles of coats on top of him.

“The pain was getting worse and I was freezing," Buckler explained. “It felt like forever for the ambulance to arrive.

“As soon as I got on the gas and air and on the morphine, that was it. I was in a great place.

“The only thought I had when I was heading to the hospital was that there was nothing wrong with me.”

Since that point in the ambulance, Buckler has faced six months on the side-lines, and hasn’t kicked a ball since that tackle six months ago.

Now, with a new club – Portland United – he is looking forward to getting back into pre-season once again after a long time away from the game.

Speaking about his recovery, he added: “It feels like it has gone on forever. I thought when you broke your leg it was for six to eight weeks.

“But I was in a cast for over four months. I had a lot of rest, and I played a lot of FIFA. I’m now the best out of all my mates at the game now.”

Although, Buckler seems very upbeat about his not-so-ideal situation, there were moments where he was full of despair.

He explained: “I lost motivation for everything. I wasn’t working and it really got to me.

“There were days where I felt useless, especially when you need help with everything.

Football was bottom of the pile then.

“But as soon as I got back on my feet, even if it was walking round with the crutches, I started thinking about playing again.

“It never crossed my mind that I would never kick a ball again.

“If I didn’t have football, I wouldn’t know what to do with my Saturdays. I’d have to spend more time with the missus.”

Portland boss Gary Bailey has been in constant contact with the defender since the end of the season and Buckler is hopeful he can pay back the faith the club has shown him.

“At the end of the season, I didn’t know where I would be.

“I met up with Gary and Chris (Wilson, Portland coach) at the end of the season.

“It was so nice that they wanted to do everything they could for me so I could get better and get me ready to play for them.

“It makes you want to be the best you can be for them. I want to show I am worth all the effort that they are putting in for me."

As the Blues and Buckler prepare for pre-season, Wilson has been drawing up training programmes for the defender as well as taking specialist equipment round to his house so that he can strengthen the muscles.

The defender is primarily focused on getting to know his new team-mates – although there are some familiar faces in the shape of Jamie Beasley, Darren Watts and Tom Richardson, who all played for the Bees in the last campaign.

Speaking about his comeback, Buckler said: “I know that I won’t be fully involved (with training) but as it is a new club I want to get to know all of the lads.

“I’m going to be out for another 10-12 weeks, but I’m still going to be at away games, it’s important to me, that.”

Buckler’s recovery has been long and arduous, but now, being so close to the pitch, is he worried about that first tackle?

He answers: “It will be interesting.”