Fit-again David McGoldrick has confirmed, as expected, that he will not be starting Town’s opening game of the season against Fulham at Portman Road on Saturday.

His two pre-season substitute appearances, at Southend and Leyton Orient, may have confirmed his recovery from a knee injury sustained back in February but last term’s 16-goal leading marksman admits he is still short in terms of match fitness.

Instead the former Nottingham Forest striker is likely to be among Town’s seven substitutes for the live-on-Sky clash against the newly-relegated Londoners, which kicks off at 5.15pm.

He will be itching for a piece of the action but insists he will not be the one to decide when he is ready to make his first competitive start of the new campaign.

McGoldrick, whose rehabilitation included a week working with a USA-based specialist, said: “It’s not down to me, it’s down to the gaffer and the physios to decide when I’m ready. I want to be out there again straight away, but I’ve got to be correct with this knee.

“Saturday is probably a bit too soon to start, but hopefully I’ll be involved in some way in this first game — maybe come off the bench, I don’t know.

“I’ll be doing star jumps in front of the gaffer to try and get him to put me on! Hopefully he might not need me. We could be comfortable, or he might need me. You never know in football. I just hope I can get back on that Portman Road pitch soon.”

McGoldrick’s last taste of competitive first team action came in the 0-0 Portman Road stalemate with Blackpool on February 15th when he suffered a partial tear of the medial ligament in his right knee. The 26-year-old was closing in on a return towards the end of last season but required cartilage surgery which ended his campaign.

Unsurprisingly, he is keen to reclaim his place in Mick McCarthy’s team as quickly as possible and he added: “If I don’t play this weekend then maybe it will be at Crawley [in the Capital One Cup on Tuesday] or at Reading the following weekend.

“There is no date pencilled in though, we’re just taking it day by day. I’d only had one or two training sessions before the Southend game, but I’d been doing loads of running before that.

“When you’re out for five months you lose a bit of sharpness, but it’s coming back slowly. When the gaffer sees fit, I’m sure he’ll put me in there.

“It’s been good to be back training and being around the lads every day. The knee is getting there. You get a few aches and pains sometimes because you’ve gone from not using it for five months to hammering balls with it, but other than that it’s been fine.”

Photo: Action Images

Surco72 added 18:16 - Aug 7 Bohslegend I would be delighted to be proved wrong and for Town to win by a few will make the weekend and the beer son much better. May be I am being over pessimistic just think the squad is weaker than last year and league is stronger, and we weren't good enough last year ? In the same context will those who back MM whatever he does hold their hands up if we continue to play dull defensive football and the results don't come, and the likes of Tabby and Nouble continue to be selected whatever their performance is like over others getting the same chance?

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Letchworth_Blue added 18:21 - Aug 7 Tabb and Nouble will deffo start I'm afraid.
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Gforce added 18:34 - Aug 7 Hate to be negative,but it doesn't matter which team we choose as it will not be strong enough to beat Fulham.very underwhelmed by our summer transfer activity or lack of it.we are still at least 3 quality players short of maintaining a serious promotion challenge.hopefully mm has 1 or 2 more lined up by the end of August,if not I'm afraid we will be our usual 15 pts behind the top 2 by the end of September.the bookies have us at 20/1 to finish in 15th place as I've said with our current squad they are not far wrong.

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Gforce added 18:49 - Aug 7
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biddyboy added 18:53 - Aug 7 Christ, been a long day at work and read that headline too quick.........thought it said "mc goldrick set for palace"............phew, coronary averted!!!!!!!!
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Lowestoft_Blue added 18:59 - Aug 7 Gerken Chambers berra smith parr Anderson skuse Wordsworth henshall Murphy bajner My selected 11.
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goleszowski added 20:28 - Aug 7 what will all you MM acolytes say when we lose 0-3? we just need a couple of loans? when mcgoldy is fit? it was the ref/s fault? it was sky's fault.
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BlueandTruesince82 added 20:48 - Aug 7 I will see lets see where we are come xmas
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BlueandTruesince82 added 20:49 - Aug 7 *say
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Walk_the_Wark added 22:29 - Aug 7 Mick will play for 0-0. YAWN!!!!!
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Walk_the_Wark added 22:33 - Aug 7 Cue those who'd settle for 0-0 against the mighty FUHAM!!
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bluemagic74 added 23:30 - Aug 7 Really lookin forward to season can't beleave its all but here, hoping 4 a good result against Fulham and beleave we can get one, 1-0 I'd take every point is worth so much in this league so we need to get as many as possible in what is noway a easy month, great to be playin the scum again And hope more than anything we get the result we need with a packed Portman rd the atmosphere should be blue white and awesome. COYB and Up the TOWN

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muccletonjoe added 05:22 - Aug 8 I would play marriot and wordsworth not just in this game but most of the season. I see it as our only route out of the mediocrity of last season. Pretty sure mick will be happy with more of the same Hence the inclusion of tabb and nouble
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maninashed added 11:55 - Aug 8 I would expect the team including Tabb and Nouble to start, but there might be surprises on the bench. Remember they need to start using the youths if they want Academy One status.
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